Iconic game publisher Acclaim Entertainment has been revived under a new leadership team that includes licensing veteran and Striker Entertainment founding partner Russell Binder as an advisory board member.

Acclaim is best known for publishing several high-profile gaming titles in the 1990s and early 2000s, including Mortal Kombat, NBA Jam, Burnout, WWF Attitude and Turok. But it filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2004, shuttering its publishing business and selling off many of its gaming IPs to Electronic Arts and Warner Bros.

The studio is now back in operation under a completely new team, with former Graffiti Games founder Alex Josef taking the reins as CEO. And Ridge Partners founder Mark Caplan and Global Force Entertainment founder and professional wrestler Jeff Jarrett are also on its board with Binder. 

Out of the gate, Acclaim’s vision is to support other independent game studios by offering funding, marketing and PR services. Binder will play a key role in the game submission process by evaluating titles for broader licensing potential. He will also help Acclaim negotiate future purchases and set up deals to secure new licenses for the studio’s legacy franchises. 

Binder notes that one of the key challenges Acclaim faces today is the oversaturation of new titles in the gaming market, with popular platforms like Steam seeing as many as 50 launches every single day. “We believe that the Acclaim brand still holds a lot of weight and nostalgia with gamers, which helps a lot with recognition in the marketplace,” says Binder. “By focusing on working with indie developers, the company can also support multiple titles at a time, as opposed to hedging its bets on one title [at a major publisher] that can cost more than US$50 million to develop.” 

In addition to serving as a board member at Acclaim, Binder is also an advisor and venture partner at Griffin Gaming Partners, and he has executive produced a game show based on Candy Crush (2017) and a feature film adaptation of Five Nights at Freddy’s (2023).