Room 8 Group acquires art services provider Massive Black to expand into US market

Room 8 Group, a global game company with Ukrainian roots, has acquired art services provider Massive Black. The terms of the deal remain undisclosed.

The Massive Black acquisition is in line with Room 8 Group’s global development strategy and should help it expand into the US market.

“Massive Black joining the Room 8 Group portfolio is another step forward in our ongoing global expansion, including new offices, teams, and service offerings,” Room 8 chairman Sviatoslav Pohrebnoi said (via GamesIndustry.biz). “Our deal with Massive Black is a part of our M&A growth strategy, which we are keen to continue.”

Founded in 2003, Massive Black provides game companies with different art services, including animation, illustration, artwork, character development, and cinematics. The list of its clients includes Google, Amazon, Blizzard, Unity, and others.

Room 8 Group is a holding company that consists of game developer Dragon’s Lake Entertainment and Room 8 Studio. The latter is focused on console and mobile co-development, providing other companies with a wide range of services. Together, the group has worked with Electronic Arts, 505 Games, Activision, Ubisoft, Gameloft, CD Projekt RED, and Rovio.

With Massive Black joining Room 8 Group, the company now has a presence in Seattle. It also has offices across the globe in cities like Kyiv, Limassol, London, Montreal, and Tokyo.

Last month, Room 8 announced its decision to stop hiring specialists from Russia and Belarus, saying that people from these countries “who oppose the aggressor’s actions won’t be able to cooperate with Room 8 Group without changing the place of their residence.”

On top of that, the company, which has over 800 employees from Ukraine, will also donate all its profits for 2022 to help refugees and finance various programs related to the reconstruction of Ukraine.