Asmodee recently announced a global rebrand that brought changes to its logo and consumer strategy, and now it’s brought one of CMON’s biggest franchises into the fold. It’s no secret that CMON has been undergoing a bit of a rough stretch lately due to the ever-changing tariff situation, which caused layoffs at the company and prompted CMON to halt game projects and any crowdfunding campaigns until things have stabilized. As part of that ongoing strategy, CMON has now sold one of its biggest franchises to Asmodee, though there are two pretty big exceptions to that deal.
Asmodee announced that it acquired the Zombicide franchise from CMON (via ICv2), a franchise which has sold over 2 million copies worldwide since its debut in 2012. At the moment, CMON is currently delivering Zombicide: White Death to campaign backers, and the franchise has recently delivered several expansions of its Zombicide 2nd Edition as well as games that include characters from Marvel, DC, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and even Monty Python.
That brings us to the two exceptions to this deal, and they are big ones for superhero fans. CMON revealed that they will retain the rights to both Marvel Zombies – A Zombicide Game and the previously crowdfunded DCeased – A Zombicide Game. CMON posted an update on the DCeased campaign page on what the deal means for the game, which hasn’t been delivered yet.
CMON wrote, “This has no impact on DCeased or any other licensed titles that use a similar system. These games are not part of the transition and will continue to be produced and distributed by CMON as usual. This means nothing changes for the fulfillment of this project, so please stay tuned for more updates on DCeased as soon as we have them, and thanks again for your support.”
Speaking of the deal, even without those entries in the series, it’s still a big get for Asmodee, who was already working with CMON on distributing their games previously. Asmodee CEO Thomas Koegler said, “We are proud the iconic Zombicide IP further strengthens our tabletop games portfolio and allows us to reinforce our presence in key geographies. I can’t wait for the team to get to work at what’s coming next for this fantastic IP.”
A New Era
CMON issued their own statement on the move, noting that Asmodee will have control of all new and existing Zombicide games going forward, aside from those mentioned exceptions. That means Zombicide: White Death will be their last entry in one of the mainline Zombicides, though their actual final Zombicide game will likely be DCeased whenever that eventually fulfills. You can find CMON’s statement on the deal below.
“Zombicide has been a part of CMON for years – one of the most iconic tabletop games, which we will always hold dear in our hearts. As we prepare to turn the page to new and other existing games, it was important to us that Zombicide continues under the guidance of a company familiar with the series and with the right mix of strengths to take it into the future. We’re thrilled that Asmodee is that company and will have control of all new and existing Zombicide games going forward.
As with any transition like this, there will be a period while some support for the current product in the series will still be handled by CMON. We recently started fulfillment of Zombicide: White Death, and couldn’t be prouder of our final game in the series. CMON will continue to support all Zombicide: White Death backers for the next six months, including handling replacements, answering product questions, and ensuring everything runs smoothly with your pledge.
Our priority remains to deliver a great experience to our customers. We’re focused on doing exactly that for our current campaigns and all the future games we have in development. Progress is being made toward fulfillment every day, so look for specific updates as we have them. We’re happy to report that a number of them are in manufacturing already, and will begin fulfillment in the coming months.
We’re also very excited for the future and can’t wait to share details of our upcoming retail releases and other unannounced projects. While some will be familiar, others will be completely new for CMON. Rest assured though – creating iconic tabletop games is in our DNA, so look forward to more news this year. As always, we sincerely thank our community and appreciate your support. We couldn’t do what we do without you, and we’re grateful to be a part of the hobby with you.”
Future of the Franchise
It remains to be seen where Asmodee will take the franchise moving forward, especially in regards to IP. Zombicide’s Marvel Zombies game was incredibly popular, and DCeased had no issues funding either. The Turtles then crossed over with Zombicide in a special White Death expansion, so fans definitely love the IP crossovers in the franchise. Hopefully, that continues with Asmodee, but we are also likely to see plenty of original characters and games as well, either in the core 2nd Edition franchise, the Old West setting, or the White Death medieval fantasy side of things.
As for CMON, they still have big franchises in their lineup, including Death May Die and the Marvel United games, which now include X-Men and Multiverse entries. They also most recently added DC to the mix with DC United, which is currently in the process of being fulfilled to campaign backers.
What do you think of the news, and what would you like to see Asmodee do with the Zombicide franchise? Let us know in the comments, and you can talk all things gaming and tabletop with me on Bluesky @knightofoa!
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