Slitherine has acquired the Blood Bowl video game licence and publishing rights from NACON, putting the future of Warhammer’s most violently ridiculous sports series in the hands of a publisher that knows a thing or two about strategy.
The deal includes the Blood Bowl video game back catalogue, as well as publishing rights for the franchise going forward. Slitherine has also confirmed it will continue working with Cyanide Studio, the long-time developer behind the Blood Bowl video games, and will move ahead with the next Warhammer Blood Bowl game previously announced by NACON.
For the uninitiated, Blood Bowl is what happens when American football gets shoved through a Warhammer meat grinder. Originally created by Games Workshop in the 1980s, the series mixes turn-based tactics, fantasy factions and bone-crunching violence
That blend has made Blood Bowl one of Warhammer’s strangest but most enduring spin-offs, with the video games finding a loyal audience among strategy fans who like their dice rolls served up with pieces of goblin and the occasional fatal injury.
Marco Minoli, Director of Publishing at Slitherine, commented: “Blood Bowl is one of the most iconic and distinctive strategy franchises in videogames, and we’re genuinely honoured to help shape its future alongside Cyanide and Warhammer.”
“We have enormous respect for what Cyanide has built over the years, and we’re excited to continue working closely with the team to support and grow the series together with its passionate community.”
The acquisition also fits neatly into Slitherine’s wider push into the strategy and tactics space, particularly around Warhammer. The publisher has been steadily building its reputation with deep, systems-driven games, making Blood Bowl a fairly natural fit, even if the sport itself is about as natural as an orc with a playbook.
Slitherine says it intends to keep supporting and expanding Blood Bowl, with a focus on community feedback, long-term development, and continued player engagement. For a series that lives and dies on its dedicated fanbase, that will be the part many players will be watching most closely.
Patrick Pligersdorffer, CEO of Cyanide, also said: “We are delighted to partner with Slitherine to ensure the future of the Blood Bowl video games. Slitherine has proven its expertise, publishing high-quality strategy games. We believe it is a perfect match”.
No further details have been shared yet on the next Blood Bowl game, but with Cyanide still involved and Slitherine now holding the publishing reins, the franchise looks set to stay on the pitch. Probably covered in blood. Definitely arguing with the ref, but no longer allowed to cover its mouth in a confrontation.
Authored by
Paul McNally
Paul McNally has been around consoles and computers since his parents bought him a Mattel Intellivision in 1980. He has been a prominent games journalist since the 1990s, spending over a decade as editor of popular print-based video games and computer magazines, including a market-leading PlayStation title. Paul has written high-end gaming content for GamePro, Official Australian PlayStation Magazine, PlayStation Pro, Amiga Action, Mega Action, ST Action, GQ, Loaded, and the The Mirror. He has also hosted panels at retro-gaming conventions and can regularly be found guesting on gaming podcasts and Twitch shows. Believing that the reader deserves actually to enjoy what they are reading is a big part of Paul’s ethos when it comes to gaming journalism, elevating the sites he works on above the norm.
