The State of THQ and Why Warhammer 40K May Never Be Released

THQ has been having some serious economic problems and recently, the American company revealed that they have lost $56 million in the holiday quarter. As a consequence of this, the company has been restructured, as they have announced that THQ will be exiting the kids’ game business, and this led to some layoffs.

THQ CEO Brian Farrel said that “Sales of the uDraw GameTablet and related software, and other titles in the kids, family and casual category were far weaker than anticipated, substantially reducing our financial results for the quarter." The company lost around $30 million on the high definition tablet, and as a consequence of this, THQ has ceased its production and has no future plans for it.


Although THQ is facing some serious issues, the publisher has stated that Saints Row: The Third is currently their most successful IP launch in company history as the Volition-developed title has shipped around 3.8 million copies. WWE on the other hand, also performed quite well, shipping more than 12 million copies and selling 29 percent more than last year’s iteration.

In addition to this, THQ will be focusing on future releases. UFC Undisputed 3 will launch in Valentine’s Day and then Darksiders 2, one of the company’s biggest releases, is coming out in June. By the end of 2012, THQ is expected to publish Obsidian Entertainment’s South Park Game and a new WWE title. 2013 will also see some of the company’s big releases and between January and March both Metro: Last Light and Devil’s Third are expected to come out.

Additionally, the upcoming Warhammer 40k: Dark Millennium Online (that previously had been rumored to be cancelled) may never be released if THQ doesn’t manage to partner with another company. The science-fiction massively multiplayer online game is being handled in a more cautious way and such a large-scale project is a huge commitment for a company like THQ which is having so many financial issues. At least, it seems like despite difficulties, the publisher is doing everything they can not to cancel the long-awaited project. It should be noted that a specific release date for the game hasn’t been confirmed yet.

Finally, THQ is expected to publish Volition and Guillermo del Toro’s inSane, Crytek’s Homefront 2 and an original game which will be developed by THQ Montreal.

Source: GameSpot