Games developer reaps rewards of expanding portfolio and new acquisitions

A growing portfolio and “transformative” acquisitions has contributed to another record set of results for video games developer Team17, which has published its unaudited final results for the year ended 31 December 2021.

Revenue has climbed 9% to £90.5m (2020: £83m) while the group reports an 11% rise in pre-tax profits to £29.1m (2020: £26.2m). Adjusted EBITDA is up 18% to £35.8m (2020: £30.3m).

Debbie Bestwick, chief executive officer, said: “We’ve invested heavily across our business in terms of people, processes and infrastructure and will continue to do so.

“Our Group now has its most diverse range of owned IP; third-party and licensed IP targeting the broadest audiences across multiple platforms.

“We have made great strides over the last few years to build out our portfolios, laying strong foundations for future years.

“The acquisitions have enabled us to expand not just our content portfolio but also our skillset and customer reach, taking us into new territories and markets.”

Team17 – which has bases in Wakefield, Nottingham and Manchester – released 12 new games during the year, while its £12m acquisition of Golf With Your Friends in January 2021, strengthened its Games Label’s owned IP portfolio.

It also acquired StoryToys for an initial cash payment of £19.2m in July 2021, a developer and publisher of “edutainment” apps.

Group headcount had grown to 265 by the year end (2020: 250).

In its outlook statement, the group notes 2022 has started well in its existing businesses, with contributions from its newly acquired companies operating in line with expectations.

It adds: “The Board continues to be mindful of the ongoing impact of the pandemic including uncertain working environments alongside cost of living and wage inflation, the combination of which are expected to increase Group costs in FY22 by about £1.7m.

“The ongoing conflict in Ukraine/Russia is currently estimated to impact Group revenues by about £4m and EBIT by around £2.5m.

“In spite of unforeseen headwinds, the Group remains well positioned to continue to deliver on our growth plans, supported by the recent acquisitions coupled with the underlying strength and continued momentum of the Group’s broadening games portfolio and healthy development pipeline.”