Talk:Studio Wildcard
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Regarding the acquisition by Snail Games
[edit]I've read time and time again that Studio Wildcard has apparently been bought out by Snail Games (or more specifically, SDE, Inc., which is an affiliate of Snail Games USA, which is in turn a subsidiary of Snail Games) in December 2015. Most if not all comments regarding this acquisition point to this article from MMOs.com, which explains the situation. However, there are several issues that I would like to preserve for future reference.
First off, please consider the ambiguity of the term "affiliate", which can as much as subsidiary to as little as colleague. Whatever SDE is, it is not necessarily a direct part of Snail Games USA, but could also just be a privately owned holding company for Studio Wildcard that has simply partnered with Snail Games for things like PixArk, Ark Park or Dark and Light. This uncertainty would mark the claim as a poor fit for Wikipedia (see specifically, WP:V). Furthermore, the article claims that Wildcard Properties, LLC (the legal entity of Studio Wildcard) in Florida had been merged into a company called Snail Ark, Inc., however, Wildcard Properties is still active in Florida. The related filing cited by MMOs.com says that Wildcard Properties was the surviving entity, and only identified Snail Ark (the merging a.k.a. non-survivng entity) as subsidiary of SDE, not Wildcard. Also note that, unlike the Florida LLC, the Washington-registered Wildcard Properties remains unchanged, and lists no foreign governors (you can find the business via this site).
Lastly, MMOs.com is not recognized as a reliable source by Wikipedia. Their about us page shows who appear to be enthusiasts rather than professional journalists; their editorial policy is also very shallow. Their article on this matter is filled from top to bottom with original research, something Wikipedia despises. If a source should be considered reliable, it should meet requirements set by WP:RS, our reliability guideline; WP:VG/RS also lists reliable sources specifically for video games. The point is, we cannot tell what has happened as long as no reliable source has reported on this reliably, and as long as this issue persists, we cannot help but stick to what our current reliable sources and otherwise primary sources say, all of which have not spoken about this apparent buyout.
Regards. Lordtobi (✉) 13:23, 22 December 2018 (UTC)
- https://ccfs.sos.wa.gov says that Wildcard Properties, LLC falls under the jurisdiction of Florida state.
Business Name:
WILDCARD PROPERTIES, LLC
[...]
Jurisdiction:
UNITED STATES, FLORIDA
- http://search.sunbiz.org/ says that Wildcard Properties, LLC was merged with Sneil Ark Inc and the merging entity is a "wholly-owned subsidiary of SDE Inc". (L14000161311)
- The president of the SDE Inc is Jim Tsai.
- https://businesssearch.sos.ca.gov/Document/RetrievePDF?Id=03831666-23984987
- Jim Tsai was the vice president of Snail Games USA.
- http://web.archive.org/web/20180123153331/http://www.snail.com/en/news/2015/0108/8683.html
- --240B:11:43A0:4BF0:9D1:DB5E:805B:C8D6 (talk) 06:25, 2 May 2019 (UTC)
- I realize now that the Florida LLC is the primary incorporation. Unfortunately this does not confirm that Wildcard was acquired by Snail Games or SDE with that merger, as the Articles of Merger document only confirms that Snail Ark had been a subsidiary of SDE, and Snail Ark was the merging entity, so Wildcard Properties should have been unaffected by Snail Ark's prior ownership. I'll look for further documents on this. Lordtobi (✉) 07:10, 2 May 2019 (UTC)
- The Corporation Wiki (cannot link due to Wikipedia's blacklist filter) seems to confirm my suspicion: SDE does not own Wildcard directly, but its manager (Jim Tsai, as you mentioned) holds a significant interest in Wildcard privately. Through the Gainesville Sun reference, I added that three managers moved on from Snail Ark to Wildcard following the merger. Lordtobi (✉) 07:43, 2 May 2019 (UTC)
- I realize now that the Florida LLC is the primary incorporation. Unfortunately this does not confirm that Wildcard was acquired by Snail Games or SDE with that merger, as the Articles of Merger document only confirms that Snail Ark had been a subsidiary of SDE, and Snail Ark was the merging entity, so Wildcard Properties should have been unaffected by Snail Ark's prior ownership. I'll look for further documents on this. Lordtobi (✉) 07:10, 2 May 2019 (UTC)
Consolidating this: The Florida LLC is the main incorporation, while the Washington LLC was a branch (apparently dissolved in July 2018). In December 2015, Snail Ark was merged into Studio Wildcard (MMOs.com incorrectly reported this the other way around). The filing is not direct evidence of an acquisition, but in a 2018 lawsuit, Studio Wildcard stated itself that SDE was now its parent. The Gainesville Sun also cites that "Studio Wildcard was bought by a Chinese company that December [2015]". The usage of "affiliate" is still vague, and is only presented in the lawsuit by the plaintiffs. I added SDE as the parent company to the article with the appropriate sources; MMOs.com has been repeatedly inserted but still appears unreliable. I'm still looking for better sources on this, but the core statements are now included. IceWelder [✉] 17:47, 17 February 2021 (UTC)