The two privately held companies share a similar philosophy of game design, focusing on simple but compelling game play accessible to everyone. The acquisition is expected to serve PopCap's overall growth strategy -- building expertise, expanding its talent base and maintaining a nimble, low-overhead production schedule -- while also providing Sprout Games with increased resources and an atmosphere of creative freedom.
"We've always been impressed with the Sprout team's approach to game design," said PopCap co-founder and Creative Director Jason Kapalka. "They concentrate on playability and fun, and create highly polished, professional games that are perfect for our audience. We think it should be a great match."
"We're extremely excited to join PopCap Games," said James Gwertzman, managing director of Sprout Games. "We've admired every game they've ever built. When designing our own games we often asked ourselves, 'What would PopCap do?' It's a huge honor to become part of this fantastic team."
Following the acquisition, the Sprout team will move into the Seattle-based PopCap offices, consolidating operations with the PopCap development team to work on new properties as well as follow-ups to previous hits. Mr. Gwertzman will become the Director of Business Development for PopCap.