Sacred Veterans Form New Studio

German publisher Kalypso Media has acquired a "majority of licenses and assets" from bankrupt developer Ascaron and formed a studio with 15 members of its former staff.

No details on the projects underway at the new studio, Gaming Minds, were provided. Kalypso global managing director Stefan Marcinek said that the new studio will provide the company with "greater independence in our games development."

Kalypso now owns the rights to several former Ascaron brands, including DarkStar One, The Patrician and Port Royale and On the Ball, with The Patrician III due out this summer. The name of the economic sim sequel will inevitably lead to some confusion, as in 2003, an English bundle of Patrician II and its expansion were released as The Patrician III.

The fate of Ascaron's action-RPG series Sacred is unclear, with Kalypso noting that "a few existing license agreements held by Ascaron UK will stay with the Ascaron until expiration." Previously, Ascaron had been working on a Sacred 2 add-on and Sacred 3.