Saber Interactive has appointed Steve Allison, a former vice president at Epic Games with more than eight years of service, as its new chief business officer. Allison will oversee the developer's publishing, marketing, and revenue operations, reporting directly to CEO Matthew Karch.

Allison expressed enthusiasm for the move, stating, "I have been extremely impressed with what Matt, Andrey, and Anton have built over the years." He referred to co-founders Andrey Iones and Anton Krupkin, who established Saber in 2001.

"Saber's strength is the talented studios that build high-quality games at 30 to 50 percent the cost of industry norms. The upcoming slate is exceptional with Space Marine 3, Jurassic Park, Turok, Hellraiser, the upcoming John Wick game and several unannounced projects that we can talk about very soon. It's an honor to join Matt and the team as Saber enters this transformative period."

Allison brings a wealth of experience from previous roles, including VP of marketing and business development at Atari, CMO and senior VP at Midway Games, and senior VP of publishing at Telltale Games. At Epic, he founded and led the store organization as VP and general manager, overseeing both the Epic Games Store and Epic Games Publishing.

Karch Praises New Hire

CEO Matthew Karch offered high praise for Allison, saying, "Steve Allison has done more to shape and modernize the game industry than anyone else I know. He has created major companies, developed new platforms and spearheaded bestselling IP. He is not only one of the most knowledgeable and experienced individuals in games, but he is also incredibly handsome—a trait we were sorely lacking after leaving Aspyr with Embracer. We are lucky to have him help lead Saber into the next phase of our journey, even if I need to avoid joint photo ops."

The comment about Embracer references the company's acquisition of Saber in early 2020. Four years later, Embracer sold Saber's core assets in a $247 million deal. The divestment followed the collapse of a massive deal—reportedly with Saudi-owned Savvy Game Group—which triggered widespread cuts and studio closures, resulting in 4,500 job losses and 80 canceled projects. Karch has maintained that criticism of Embracer and its CEO Lars Wingefors is "fair."

Post-Embracer Growth

Since splitting from Embracer, Saber has secured a "significant" equity investment to pay off its debt to its former parent. Additionally, Karch donated $5 million to the University of Texas at Austin to establish the Karch Gaming Institute, which aims to nurture the next generation of creative leaders in gaming.

With Allison on board, Saber Interactive is poised to expand its portfolio, which already includes highly anticipated titles like Space Marine 3, Jurassic Park, Turok, Hellraiser, and a John Wick game. The company also has several unannounced projects expected to be revealed soon.