Updated: Ubisoft have officially announced the acquisition of THQ Montreal, and publishing right to the upcoming Obsidian developed South Park: The Stick of Truth game. With Ubisoft Montreal President Yannis Mallat, stating the following.

“This deal adds experienced developers to our internal creative teams at a key moment in the cycle of the video game industry,”

It has also been revealed Ubisoft have gained rights to a new, yet-to-be announced IP that was in development at the studio. The staff at THQ Montreal will join the already second-largest in-house development staff in the world, with 26 studios in 19 countries and with more than 6,250 people dedicated to creating video games.

Original Story Below:

Since THQ has announced their assets would be sold off via auction, many have speculated as to the landing spots for various assets. Well where some of THQ’s assets have landed is starting to surface.

It’s important to note that the following sales are subject to US Bankruptcy Court approval.

The following is a list of the winning bidders and the runner up bids too, both with the amounts they bid too. Distressed Debt Investigating, which has been following the matters closely, said that Darksiders makers Vigil Games had no bids made for it. These figures all are being reported and thanks to Kotaku.

Relic Enterainment; Best known for Company of Heroes and Warhammer 40,00 Dawn of War

Winning bidder: Sega, $26.6 million. Runner up: Zenimax Media, $26.3 million.

THQ Montreal;

Winning bidder: Ubisoft, $2.5 million. No runner-up.

Evolve; development at Turtle Rock Studios

Winning bidder: Take-Two Interactive, $10.894 million. Runner-up: Turtle Rock Studios, $250,000.

Volition Inc. makers of Saints Row.

Winning bidder: Koch Media, $22,312,925. Runner-up: Ubisoft, $5.4 million.

Homefront; IP released in 2011 rumoured to have a sequel

Winning bidder: Crytek, $544,218.

Metro; Series with sequel Metro: Last Light slated for a 2013 release.

Winning bidder: Koch Media, $5,877,551. Runner-up: Ubisoft, $5,175 million.

South Park; license with South Park: The Stick of Truth set for release on March 5.

Winning bidder: Ubisoft, $3,265,306.

According to sources at IGN the WWE license has been sold to Take-Two Interactive, parent company of 2K.

Beyond these results, many THQ employees have reportedly lost their job, many companies have taken to Twitter to help find those made redundant a landing spot.

Kotaku has been reporting that the following letter was sent to all THQ employees by President, Jason Rubin and Chief Executive Officer, Brian Farrell:

To All THQ Employees:

We now have the answers we’ve been seeking through our financial restructuring and
Chapter 11 case. While much will be written, here are the facts of the bids and auction
that occurred t:

• Yesterday morning, we received a competing bid for the operating business,
  along with Clearlake’s offer, and numerous offers for separate assets.
• During an auction process that lasted over 22 hours, the final conclusion was
  that the separate-asset bids would net more than a single buyer for the majority
  of the company.
• Shortly, we will, present the results to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, which must
  concur with our assessment.
• The proposed sales of multiple assets is as follows :
• Sega agreed to purchase Relic
• Koch Media agreed to purchase Volition and Metro
• Crytek agreed to purchase Homefront
• Take 2 agreed purchase Evolve and
• Ubisoft agreed to purchase Montreal and South Park

We expect these sales to close this week.

Some assets, including our publishing businesses and Vigil, along with some other
intellectual properties are not included in the sale agreements. They will remain part of
the Chapter 11 case. We will make every effort to find appropriate buyers, if possible.

What this means for employees

We expect that most employees of the entities included in the sale will be offered
employment by the new owners. However, we cannot say what these owners may
intend, and there will likely be some positions that will not be needed under the
new ownership. You should receive notice this week or early next week if the new
owners intend to extend employment to you. Please note that the terms of your new
employment, including pay and benefits, may be different from the current terms of
your employment with THQ.

If you are an employee of an entity that is not included in the sale, we regret that
your position will end. A small number of our headquarters staff will continue to be
employed by THQ beyond January 25 to assist with the transition. THQ has sufficient
resources to pay these employees for work going forward, and we will be contacting
these employees immediately to ensure their continued employment during this
transition period. We are requesting the ability to offer certain severance pay to
minimize disruption for employees of non-included entities as they determine the next
steps in their careers.

We know you will have many questions about this news. We’ll be meeting tomorrow
when we return to talk through this announcement and to answer any questions you
have. You will receive a benefits fact sheet and FAQs with answers to some questions
that may be on your mind. Please review these materials closely.

A personal note

The work that you all have done as part of the THQ family is imaginative, creative,
artistic and highly valued by our loyal gamers. We are proud of what we have
accomplished despite today’s outcome.

It has been our privilege to work alongside the entire THQ team. While the company
will cease to exist, we are heartened that the majority of our studios and games will
continue under new ownership. We were hoping that the entire company would remain
intact, but we expect to hear good news from each of the separate entities that will be
operating as part of new organizations.

For those THQ employees who are part of entities that are not included in the sale, we
are confident that the talent you have displayed as part of THQ will be recognized as you
take the next steps in your career.

Thank you all for your dedication and for sharing your talent with the THQ team. We
wish you the best of luck and hope you will keep in touch.

Sincerely,

Brian Farrell
Chief Executive Officer

Jason Rubin
President

I on behalf of all of us here at Analog Addiction send our best wishes to those who have been affected by today’s events.

Sources: Kotaku and IGN

Hugh Simmonds is an Editor for Analog Addiction, follow him on Twitter for his daily musings.