Relic Entertainment’s post-Sega plan is to keep supporting established games, add smaller and more frequent experimental releases, and explore ways to revisit classic franchises—while continuing to make larger strategy games. The studio outlined that approach in February 2025. Reporting in September 2026 confirms ongoing Company of Heroes activity, but does not establish that every part of the plan has been carried out or that it has succeeded commercially.
What changed when Relic left Sega?
On March 28, 2024, SEGA SAMMY announced that it had resolved to transfer all shares in Relic Entertainment to a holding company newly established by UK investment company Emona Capital LLP. SEGA SAMMY said Relic would leave its consolidated group after the transfer. Relic’s own website now describes the studio as newly independent. The change in ownership set the context for a new strategy, but it does not mean Sega continues to own Relic.
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SEGA SAMMY presented the transfer as part of structural reform. Relic was established in 1997, according to the corporate disclosure. SEGA SAMMY’s March 28, 2024 disclosure provides the transaction details; Relic’s official site describes its current status and history.
What is Relic’s strategy after Sega?
In interviews published February 10, 2025, CEO Justin Dowdeswell described three complementary strands. They are intentions announced at that time, not a promise that a particular game or release date will follow.
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Continue supporting established games
Relic said it would keep supporting games such as Company of Heroes 3. The 2025 announcement positioned ongoing support as one part of the studio’s work, alongside development of new projects.
Make smaller games on shorter schedules
Relic also planned smaller-scope projects, potentially in strategy genres adjacent to its established work. Dowdeswell told Game Developer that the aim was to work with smaller teams and shorter timelines, with a game potentially reaching market in roughly one to two years. That was a target he described, not a guaranteed release cadence or a confirmed schedule for any specific title.
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The rationale, as Dowdeswell presented it, was that long development cycles leave fewer opportunities to learn from players and respond to changing opportunities, while larger budgets raise the risk of each project. Smaller releases could let Relic test product-market fit more often. These are the CEO’s stated reasons for the strategy, not independently established findings about the market.
Explore classic revivals
The studio said it would consider remasters, re-releases, or new games that capture the spirit of classic franchises. “Explore” matters: the announcement did not confirm a specific revival, licensing agreement, or release.
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Keep making larger strategy games
The smaller-project push was described as an addition to Relic’s work, not an abandonment of real-time strategy (RTS) or larger games. Both Game Developer and GamesBeat reported that the studio intended to keep making larger strategy titles. Dowdeswell told GamesBeat that RTS still had an audience, while acknowledging that it was not as dominant a genre as it had been in 2000.
Read together, the plan aims to balance different project scales: continue serving existing players, try more compact ideas, and retain capacity for larger strategy games. It does not, by itself, show whether that balance will produce sustainable growth.
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What does later reporting show?
A PC Gamer feature published September 13, 2026, reports continued support for Company of Heroes and a recent release of the game’s Final Stand mode. That is evidence of ongoing activity around an established franchise. It is not a complete account of Relic Labs releases, classic revivals, finances, staffing, or the overall results of the 2025 strategy.
Dowdeswell told PC Gamer, “We will survive and thrive based on the success of the decisions that we make along the way.” The comment underscores that the studio’s future depends on how its choices perform; it is not evidence that the new approach has already succeeded.
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Who controls the rights to Relic-associated franchises?
Relic cannot assume it controls every familiar series associated with its history. GamesBeat reports that Relic owns Company of Heroes, Games Workshop owns the Dawn of War and Space Marine intellectual property, and Microsoft owns Age of Empires. A revival involving a franchise owned by another company may require that rights-holder’s participation. Dowdeswell described the choice of what to revive as depending on factors such as external partners, internal resources, and other development commitments. No specific revival should be treated as agreed without confirmation.
Relic’s undated studio history page reports more than 4 million copies sold worldwide for the Company of Heroes franchise and more than 7 million for Dawn of War. Because the page does not date those totals, they should not be read as current sales figures. The figures provide historical context for the franchises, not proof of present demand or a planned revival.
How to assess the strategy
The plan is best understood as a shift in how Relic wants to manage its portfolio, rather than a single announced game. Useful questions for judging its progress are:
- Release cadence and scale: Does Relic bring smaller projects to players more often, while still developing larger strategy games?
- Learning from players: Do the shorter projects create opportunities to respond to player feedback between major releases?
- Support for existing games: Does activity around established titles continue alongside new development?
- Rights and partnerships: Can Relic secure the external relationships needed for any revival it chooses to pursue?
- Evidence of results: Are there confirmed releases and outcomes, rather than only stated intentions?
The 2025 interviews explain the intended approach; the September 2026 reporting supplies a limited example of continued franchise activity. Together, they do not establish the business strategy’s overall success.
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Quick Recap
Sources
- Relic Entertainment — studio information and undated franchise sales figures.
- SEGA SAMMY, March 28, 2024 — share-transfer disclosure.
- Game Developer, February 10, 2025 — interview on the new strategy and proposed timelines.
- GamesBeat, February 10, 2025 — interview on RTS, the strategy, and franchise rights.
- PC Gamer, September 13, 2026 — later reporting on Relic and continued Company of Heroes activity.
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