Game On: EA to be acquired by group including PIF, Silver Lake for $55B

“Game On” is The Fly’s weekly recap of the stories powering up or beating down video game stocks.

NEW RELEASES: This week’s most notable new releases is Sony‘s (SONY) action-adventure game “Ghost of Yotei,” a sequel to 2020’s “Ghost of Tsushima.” The game launches exclusively for PlayStation 5 consoles on October 2. Meanwhile, Nintendo’s (NTDOY) “Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2,” remasters of previous Wii games, are releasing for Switch consoles on October 2 as well. Additionally, Square Enix’s (SQNXF) remaster of “Final Fantasy Tactics” launches for PC, PlayStation 4, PS5, Xbox One (MSFT), Xbox Series X/S, Switch, and Switch 2 on September 30.

EA DEAL: Electronic Arts (EA) announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by an investor consortium comprised of PIF, Silver Lake, and Affinity Partners in an all-cash transaction that values EA at an enterprise value of approximately $55B. Under the terms of the agreement, the Consortium will acquire 100% of EA, with PIF rolling over its existing 9.9% stake in the company. EA stockholders will receive $210 per share in cash. The per share purchase price represents a 25% premium to EA’s unaffected share price of $168.32 at market close on September 25, 2025, the last fully unaffected trading day, and a premium to EA’s unaffected all-time high of $179.01 at market close on August 14, 2025. The transaction was approved by EA’s Board of Directors, is expected to close in Q1 FY27 and is subject to customary closing conditions, including receipt of required regulatory approvals and approval by EA stockholders. Following the close of the transaction, EA’s common stock will no longer be listed on any public market. Upon completion of the transaction, EA will remain headquartered in Redwood City, California and continue to be led by Andrew Wilson as CEO.

Following the announcement, no fewer than four securities analysts downgraded the stock, with Jefferies analyst cutting Electronic Arts to Hold from Buy with a price target of $210, up from $200. Jefferies sees limited obstacles to the deal closing or likelihood of additional bids. Additionally, HSBC, which downgraded EA to Hold from Buy, said the deal leaves Take-Two (TTWO) as the last independent AAA games publisher.

Viewing the deal a little more positively, BMO Capital raised the firm’s price target on Electronic Arts to $210 from $166 and maintained a Market Perform rating on the shares, saying the two-tier break fee could incentivize a strategic partner who could offer more complementary benefits and long-term growth potential to come in over the top. The firm also questions the durability of all the IP licenses given the potential for change-of-control provisions, as wholly-owned IP only represents approximately a third of EA’s bookings, the analyst told investors in a research note.

NOA PRESIDENT RETIRES: Nintendo of America announced that Doug Bowser will retire as President and Chief Operating Officer on December 31, 2025, after more than a decade in multiple leadership positions. He will be succeeded by Devon Pritchard, a 19-year veteran of the video game industry and long-standing member of the NOA leadership team. In addition, Satoru Shibata will join NOA as Chief Executive Officer, while continuing his roles as Managing Executive Officer and Corporate Director, Member of the Board at Nintendo Co., Ltd. Pritchard will also join the NOA Board of Directors and become an NCL Executive Officer. “One of my earliest video game experiences was playing the arcade version of Donkey Kong,” said Bowser. “Since that time, all things Nintendo have continued to be a passion for both me and my family. Leading Nintendo of America has been the honor of a lifetime, and I am proud of what our team has accomplished in both business results and the experiences we’ve created for consumers.”

ELECTRONICS TARIFFS: The Trump administration is weighing slapping tariffs on foreign electronic devices based on the number of chips in each device, Reuters’ Alexandra Alper (ASUUY) hardware, the flexibility of Windows, and an approachable Xbox experience, so your games, friends, and progress are always within reach,” the Xbox maker said. Both consoles launch globally on October 16, with the higher-powered ROG Xbox Ally X available for $999.99 an the ROG Xbox Ally available for $599.99. Players can pre-order their handhelds today in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, and Vietnam, as well as eight newly announced markets launching on October 16, namely Egypt, Greece, Hungary, Indonesia, Slovenia, South Africa, Thailand, and Ukraine.

MICROSOFT/IMOD: Microsoft said it is disabling a set of services to a unit within the Israel Ministry of Defense following reporting from The Guardian that the unit was using Azure for the storage of data files on phone calls obtained through broad or mass surveillance of civilians in Gaza and the West Bank. The Fly notes that the move comes after a number of employee demonstrations over the IDF contract, as well as calls to boycott Microsoft’s products, particularly its video games software and hardware

Click here to check out recent Media Buzz Sentiment on Microsoft as measured by TipRanks.

MORE VIDEO GAME NEWS:

• Take-Two has delayed the Switch 2 port of “Borderlands 4,” saying the game needs “additional development and polish time”
• At a State of Play event, Sony confirmed that an upcoming “Wolverine” game, based on the Marvel character, will release for PS5 Fall 2026
• Meanwhile, Microsoft’s Playground Games confirmed that racing game “Forza Horizon 6” will take place in Japan and release in 2026
• Nintendo unveiled new mobile game “Fire Emblem Shadows,” a spinoff of its tactical RPG series “Fire Emblem”
• Konami (KONMY) said “Silent Hill f” has sold over 1M units in its first week of availability
• Piper Sandler raised its price target on Roblox (RBLX) to $180 from $175