EA To Purchase Codemasters for $1.2 Billion

Last month, it was reported that Take-Two Interactive, the parent company of Rockstar Games and 2K Games, was attempting to purchase Codemasters, the studio behind the DiRT franchise, for $994 million. However, EA has outbid Take-Two and will be purchasing Codemasters for $1.2 billion. EA CEO Andrew Wilson released the following press release on the company’s website about the purchase that reads as follows:

“We believe there is a deeply compelling opportunity in bringing together Codemasters and Electronic Arts to create amazing and innovative new racing games for fans. Our industry is growing, the racing category is growing, and together we will be positioned to lead in a new era of racing entertainment. We have admired Codemasters’ creative talent and high-quality games for many years. With the full leverage of EA’s technology, platform expertise, and global reach, this combination will allow us to grow our existing franchises and deliver more industry-defining racing experiences to a global fan base. We are pleased that both our Boards of Directors are recommending this transaction, and we look forward to welcoming such an exciting and talented team to the Electronic Arts family.”

Codemasters is best known for its racing game franchises, such as the DiRT and F1 Racing series. Their most recent game, DiRT 5, was released on Xbox One, PS4, and PC on October 4, before releasing it for both the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.