In August 2026, the company GDEV announced the sale of the mobile farming simulator Island Hoppers. The announcement did not disclose the buyer's name, but it has now been revealed that it was one of the subsidiary teams of the Swedish holding Embracer Group.
Island Hoppers
As reported by Embracer Group, the game has been transferred to the management of A Thinking Ape. This is a Canadian mobile studio whose portfolio also includes projects like Party in My Dorm, Single City, and Kingdoms at War. The team has fully taken on the operation of Island Hoppers, including promising to release new content for the game and investing in user acquisition.
To recap, under the terms of the deal, Embracer Group paid GDEV $4.5 million for Island Hoppers. They also committed to transferring an additional $500,000 in the future if the game reaches a certain gross revenue threshold.
The Swedish holding expects to recoup the purchase in approximately 2.5 to 3.5 years.
"Great games can live much longer than the market typically expects. We invest in already proven games in which we see opportunities for community development and long-term profitability. Island Hoppers is one of such games," commented Ken Go, head of DECA Group at Embracer Group, of which A Thinking Ape is a part.
Island Hoppers was soft-launched in November 2021, and its global release took place in October 2023. It is known that in its first three years, the game generated $47 million in gross revenue for GDEV.