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Argentinian developers NGD Studios, developers of the recent Master of Orion reboot, have acquired Red Katana, merging the two companies together to become a leading force for game development in Latin America.
The merger will see some redefining of roles at NGD studios as the two companies smash together. The new CEO will be Martin Cao, keeping the same job he held at Red Katana since he founded the company in 2010. Vacating the CEO role is Andres Chilkowski, who co-founded NGD Studios in 2005 and is now taking the role of chief creative officer, while remaining in his role of chairman of the NGD board of directors.
It’s understood the change is to focus on the individual strengths of the pair. In a statement to GamesIndustry.biz, Chilkowski said: "Martin has a great deal of experience in management, business and marketing, while I have always been more focused in the creative and technical side of making games.".
With his own statement, Cao said: ""Making videogames has become more competitive and challenging than ever, and the only way to succeed is by being the best in every area," Cao added. "By combining the strengths of both our companies, we are better prepared than ever to face the challenge."
NGD is most recently behind the Master of Orion reboot, notable for being the first game published under Wargaming’s WG Labs initiative. This is one of the biggest releases from a Latin American developer in recent years, and a large part of the reasoning behind the merger was that it puts the pair, now united under the name of NGD Studios, in a better place to reach the global market.
