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15 September 2026

everplay group plc  

("everplay", the "Group" or the "Company") 

Half Year Results

·    Resilient H1 revenue performance ahead of major title launches in H2

·    Strong start to H2, with new titles Hell Let Loose: Vietnam and Wardogs performing well ahead of expectations

·    FY 2026 results expected to be materially ahead of current market expectations

everplay, a leading global independent ("indie") developer and publisher of premium video games, working simulation games and children's edutainment apps, is pleased to announce its unaudited results for the six months ended 30 June 2026 ("H1 2026", "half" or "period").

Mikkel Weider, Group Chief Executive Officer of everplay, commented:

"It is a pleasure for me to present everplay's half year results. Our back catalogue posted another resilient performance in a half in which there were no major new releases, underpinning the solid foundations upon which everplay is built.

"At the same time, the teams have been laser focused on preparing for our key releases in the second half. We have entered the period with real momentum, and feel confident in materially exceeding market expectations for the full year. I am pleased to share that our major new releases, including Hell Let Loose: Vietnam and Wardogs, are performing well ahead of our expectations, breaking many sales and player number records. I am also delighted to say that we have exercised our option to increase our shareholding in Super Media Group, owners of Bulkhead - the team behind Wardogs. We have long admired this team, and we are thrilled to further strengthen our relationship and support them on their journey.

"I'd really like to thank everyone at everplay and our partners for their hard work and dedication so far this year, and welcome everyone who has joined the Group, including Jon Rissik as Chief Growth Officer. With a strong balance sheet, resilient catalogue, growing portfolio of first-party IP and innovative third-party games, we are well positioned to deliver accelerated growth."

Financial summary

·   Group revenue of £66.9 million, down 8% (H1 2025: £72.4 million), or 5% excluding the impact of the strategic exit from Astragon's low-margin physical distribution activities, reflecting the phasing of major FY 2026 releases into H2.

·    Back catalogue revenues remained robust, rising modestly to £64.3 million (H1 2025: £63.5 million), with contributions from more than 150 titles, demonstrating the breadth and longevity of the Group's portfolio, underpinning the strong foundations of the Group

·    Adjusted EBITDA of £9.2 million (H1 2025: £19.2 million), reflecting lower revenues and investment ahead of the major H2 release programme.

·    Increased investment in the pipeline, with capitalised development expenditure up 14% to £16.4 million (H1 2025 £14.3 million), across 20% more titles than the prior period, of which 65% related to first-party IP (H1 2025: 59%).

·    Strong balance sheet maintained, with £57.1m of cash and cash equivalents at the period end (H1 2025: £59.5 million), providing capacity to fund organic growth initiatives and selective M&A.

Operational summary

·   Team17 delivered a resilient back catalogue performance, alongside four new titles launched, including Lumentale: Memories of Trey, Sintopia, Wardrum and Rogue Point. Team17 was also named Indie Publisher of the Year at the MCV/DEVELOP Awards.

·    StoryToys revenues grew by 43%, with active subscribers up 22% to 408k, and total downloads of over 18 million. 394 app updates were released across multiple titles, including LEGO® Bluey, LEGO® DUPLO® Disney, LEGO® DUPLO® World and Disney Coloring World. LEGO® Bluey delivered a strong performance, including winning Best Mobile Game at the Kidscreen Awards 2026 and Best Licensed Video Game Project at the Bologna Licensing Awards.

·    Astragon released two smaller new titles: Ranger's Path: National Park Simulator into PC Early Access and Underground Garage. Efforts continue to improve performance, with operations refocused on its core IPs.

·    Rissik joined everplay as Chief Growth Officer, overseeing new growth opportunities across the Group. Most recently serving as CEO of Dovetail Games, Jon brings more than 25 years' experience in gaming franchise and lifecycle management.

·    Since the period end the Group has exercised its option to increase its stake in Super Media Group, owners of Wardogs developer Bulkhead, to 28%, further strengthening their partnership within the exciting first-person shooter genre.

Interim dividend

·    The Board has declared an interim ordinary dividend of 1.1 pence per share payable on 23 October 2026 to those shareholders on the register as at 25 September 2026. The ex-dividend date is 24 September 2026.

Outlook

·     Strong start to H2 2026 trading, supported by record sales generated from Hell Let Loose: Vietnam and Wardogs, alongside continued resilience from the Group's back catalogue.

·    Further new title releases expected in H2 2026, providing additional opportunities to drive growth through the remainder of the year.

·     The Board now expects FY 2026 revenue and adjusted EBITDA to be materially ahead of current market expectations³, with adjusted EBITDA margin expected to be broadly in line with FY 2025.

·    Capitalised development expenditure for FY 2026 in a range of £35-40 million (FY 2025: £33.2 million), reflecting a 15% increase in the number of titles in development, and in a similar range for FY 2027. Approximately two-thirds of this expenditure relates to first-party IP.

¹ Adjusted EBITDA reflects the EBITDA of the Group, without the impact of acquisition-related costs which vary year on year based on acquisition activity. In addition, it includes the impact of amortisation and impairment of development costs, publishing rights and IP licences, as this reflects the primary costs incurred by the Group in generating revenue. Full disclosures on earnings adjustments can be found in the Alternative Performance Measures section of the Group Financial Review 

² Operating cash conversion is defined as cash generated from operating activities adjusted to add back payments made to satisfy pre-acquisition liabilities recognised under IFRS 3 "Business Combinations", divided by earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation ("EBITDA") 

³ Company-compiled consensus shows FY26 revenues of £175.2 million and adjusted EBITDA of £50.7 million.

Analyst and institutional investor webcast

A presentation for analysts and institutional investors will be held on Tuesday, 15 September 2026 at 8.30 a.m. BST. To register for this event please contact Vigo Consulting on:

[email protected].

Retail investor webcast

A webcast for retail investors will be held on Tuesday, 15 September 2026 at 10.00 a.m. BST. The presentation will be hosted on the Engage Investor platform. Questions can be submitted pre-event or at any time during the live presentation. Investors can sign up for free via the following link: https://engageinvestor.news/EVPL_IP26

Enquiries:

About everplay group plc   

everplay group plc is an award-winning and leading global indie games label developer and publisher of premium video games and apps, comprising three distinct divisions: Team17, Astragon and StoryToys. Team17 is a games developer, publisher and creative partner for indie developers around the world, known for iconic IP such as Hell Let Loose, Worms, Wardogs, Dredge and Overcooked!. Astragon is a leading games publisher, developer and distributor of sophisticated working simulation games, including Construction Simulator and Police Simulator, targeting a broad audience from young enthusiasts to technical experts and casual gamers. StoryToys is a world-class developer and publisher of educational entertainment apps, bringing the world's most popular characters, worlds and stories to life for children under the age of eight, with apps including Disney Colouring World and LEGO® Bluey.

Visit www.everplaygroupplc.com for more information or follow us on LinkedIn: everplay group plc

Operational review

Introduction

The Group has been exceptionally busy during the period, preparing for major new title launches in the second half of the year from its largest franchises including Hell Let Loose and Bus Simulator, as well as a new title, Wardogs, with strategic partners Bulkhead. However, there has also been a steady flow of new high-quality content, with the launch of four new third-party titles from Team17, a brand new first-party IP from Astragon, as well as very strong growth from StoryToys. The continued performance of the back catalogue in the period again shows the strength and breadth of everplay's broad portfolio and the teams' lifecycle management capabilities, sustaining robust sales of the Group's titles for many years after their original launch.

The softer performance in the half compared to the prior period reflects the timing of the new release schedule in FY 2026, with larger titles in the second half, together with the timing of investment and other costs ahead of the associated revenue contribution. However, the Group is on track to deliver a record second half performance, returning to strong growth and a sharp improvement in margins, supported and corroborated by the very strong revenue performance from titles released so far in August and September.

During the period, the Group also continued to strengthen its organisational structure, with a focus on increasing efficiency, enabling greater collaboration across the Group and building a scalable platform to support future growth.

Strategic Update

The Group has continued to make good progress against its core strategic priorities, namely:

·    building long term first-party IP roadmaps;

·    discovering & nurturing innovative new third-party games;

·    maintaining disciplined cost control; and

·    driving organic & inorganic growth.

One brand new first-party IP was launched during the half (Ranger's Path: National Park Simulator from Astragon). Since the period end, two new instalments of best-selling existing franchises have been launched (Hell Let Loose: Vietnam and Bus Simulator 27), while a further four have also been announced. Investing in established first-party franchises provides greater visibility around new releases, supports higher-margin revenues and creates opportunities for sustained lifecycle revenues through additional content and continued back catalogue sales. This approach is proven to generate attractive returns on development investment over the life of a title.

In the Group's third-party games catalogue, Lumentale: Memories of Trey proved a highlight for Team17 in H1 2026, and post-period end Wardogs, the Group's first title with first-person shooter ("FPS") specialist Bulkhead, has performed ahead of expectations, breaking sales and player-number records, providing an encouraging start to this strategic partnership. The pipeline for third-party games remains strong, with a broad range of innovative content in development.

Capitalised development costs increased 14% during the period and are expected to rise further in the second half as the pipeline expands. Forecast FY 2026 capitalised development expenditure will cover a 15% increase in games in development, with first-party titles accounting for around two thirds of total investment. Importantly, this increase is managed within a disciplined capital allocation framework. Average spend per title in FY 2026 is expected to be broadly flat on FY 2025 levels, driven entirely by higher spend on first-party titles. This trend is expected to continue, reflecting the Group's deliberate allocation of more capital towards proven franchises with established communities and greater visibility over potential returns.

Organic growth remains a key priority and the Group has taken further steps during the half to strengthen the organisation, support future growth, drive synergies and unlock greater value from future acquisitions. Jon Rissik has joined everplay as Chief Growth Officer, bringing more than 25 years' experience across media, publishing and games. Jon has held senior leadership roles at Electronic Arts and Codemasters, most recently serving as CEO of Dovetail Games, where he led its development from a company of around 30 employees into one of the industry's leading simulation game publishers. As Chief Growth Officer, Jon will work across the Group to help identify new opportunities, support the businesses as they continue to grow, and strengthen the capabilities underpinning Team17, StoryToys and Astragon.

Further investments were also made in central functions, including People & Culture, Finance, IT and M&A as part of the move towards a more scaled service offering from the centre, so as to drive efficiencies across the Group and enable the business units to stay agile and nimble. The reorganisation of Team17 into three portfolio pillars, each focused on specific areas of the market and designed to deepen category expertise and improve portfolio management, has progressed well.

The Group continues to realise value from previous acquisitions, including through the release of DLC for Heroes of Hammerwatch II in July 2026. Selective M&A remains an important component of the Group's long-term growth strategy, supported by its strong balance sheet and disciplined approach to capital allocation. Since the period end, the Group has exercised its option, the terms of which were agreed at the time of the first subscription, to increase its stake in Super Media Group, owners of Wardogs developer Bulkhead, to 28% from 20% for £2 million. Following the hugely successful recent release of Wardogs, this has been a highly attractive investment and the Group is excited to further expand its partnership with Bulkhead within the FPS genre.

Divisional Review

Team17

Revenues declined 16% in the half to £41.1 million (H1 2025: £49.3 million) on the back of the very strong performance from new releases in the comparative period and the phasing of releases in FY 2026.

Four titles were launched during H1 2026, with Lumentale: Memories of Trey delivering a particularly encouraging performance and receiving a positive response from the Monster Collector role playing game audience. Team17 also launched Sintopia, Wardrum and Rogue Point in Early Access. While these titles were positively received, the aggregate contribution from H1 new releases was below the prior period, which benefitted from the launch of the hugely successful Date Everything!.

Back catalogue revenue remained resilient, declining by 5% compared with the prior period, with strong contributions from the Overcooked! franchise, Golf With Your Friends, Worms W.M.D and Hell Let Loose. Team17 continued to extend the reach and lifecycle of its existing portfolio through new platform launches and additional content. Worms W.M.D launched on Amazon GameNight and Overcooked! All You Can Eat on Netflix, while The Survivalists and Nice Day for Fishing were released on Epic. New DLC was also released across a number of titles, including The Survivalists: Frostbite Fortress and Blasphemous 2: The Third Sin.

During the period, Team17 was named Indie Publisher of the Year at the MCV/DEVELOP Awards, recognising the strength of its development partnerships, publishing capabilities and long-standing position within the independent games market.

Pleasingly, initial trading during the second half of the year has been very strong.  August saw the full release of Rogue Point and the tenth anniversary of the BAFTA-winning Overcooked! franchise, which has now attracted more than 100 million players across Steam, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch and Netflix Games.

In August 2026, Worms Galactic Tactics, the latest instalment in Team17's original and iconic Worms franchise, was announced at Gamescom. The game is expected to be released in 2027.

The main event in August was the much-anticipated full release of Hell Let Loose: Vietnam, which, despite some technical issues affecting the first weeks of review scores, generated record month one sales for the Group, attracting peak CCUs over 65,000 and achieving the number one position on Steam's global best-sellers chart. This record was broken again in September by the Early Access release of Wardogs, Team17's first title with strategic partner Bulkhead. Initial sales have been outstanding, selling over 1 million copies on day one, with peak CCUs since launch of over 400,000.  New releases still to come in the second half include Silver Pines, What Goes Up and Hokko Spaces.

StoryToys

StoryToys posted an excellent revenue performance in the half, up 43% to £15.9 million (H1 2025: £11.1 million). Total downloads exceeded 18 million over the prior period, active subscribers increased 22% to 408k (H1 2025: 331k), and monthly average users peaking at 9.3 million during the H1 2026.

While no new apps were launched in the period, StoryToys released 394 app updates across multiple titles (H1 2025: 335), including new play packs for LEGO® Bluey, three new franchises for LEGO® DUPLO® Disney (featuring Disney The Little Mermaid and Tangled, and Pixar Toy Story), new play packs for LEGO® DUPLO® World, and new colouring pages for Disney Coloring World (Hoppers and Toy Story 5).  My Very Hungry Caterpillar+ was also released on Apple Arcade.

LEGO® Bluey made a strong revenue contribution in the half, and received several industry accolades, winning Best Mobile Game at the Kidscreen Awards 2026 and Best Licensed Video Game Project at the Bologna Licensing Awards. It was also a finalist for Best Licensed Interactive or Digital Product at the Licensing International Excellence Awards 2026. The Bluey Apple Arcade "Ultimate Playdate" campaign also brought Bluey colouring content to Disney Coloring World+, exclusively on Apple Arcade.

StoryToys has continued to release new content in the second half, including the School play pack for LEGO® Bluey, Tracks & Ramps for LEGO® DUPLO® World, and "George Gets a Hearing Aid" content for LEGO® DUPLO® Peppa Pig. StoryToys' partnership with Netflix continues successfully, with My Very Hungry Caterpillar now live on Netflix Playground, along with additional play packs launching for LEGO® DUPLO® World Netflix.

Astragon

Revenues declined 20% in the half to £9.7 million (H1 2025: £12.0 million), principally reflecting the Group's exit from Astragon's physical distribution business during FY 2025. Excluding physical distribution, revenue fell 6%.

The majority of sales were delivered by the back catalogue, which was supported by five paid-for DLCs, special editions and the release of Police Simulator: Patrol Officers on Nintendo Switch 2. Construction Simulator joined Xbox Game Pass during the period, further extending the franchise's reach and introducing the title to new players. The strength of Astragon's franchises was acknowledged when Weltenbauer, the developer of Construction Simulator and Firefighting Simulator: Ignite, in which Astragon has a 25% stake, was awarded Studio of the Year at the German Computer Game Awards 2026.

During H1 2026, a new brand was added to the portfolio with the release of Ranger's Path: National Park Simulator into PC Early Access. Underground Garage was also released on PC. While these were smaller title launches, sales performance did not reach internal expectations. As a result of the performance, re-organisation initiatives have been completed during the half year.

The second half of the year is packed with new content. It has got off to a good start with the launch in September of Bus Simulator 27, a new title from the major Bus Simulator franchise, set in the Mediterranean and featuring the Solaris brand for the first time. Despite some early issues, the title is making a solid revenue contribution. Firefighting Simulator: Ignite released the Motor Vehicle Accident DLC and Vehicle Rescue Edition in July, as well as joining PlayStation Plus. The second half of 2026 will also see the full release of Seafarer: The Ship Sim.

The Early Access release of Construction Simulator: Evolution has been announced, building on the established franchise with new construction equipment, including Volvo machinery, expanded manual construction activities, demolition mechanics and a range of additional gameplay features. The next instalment of the best-selling Police Simulator franchise was revealed at Gamescom in August, for a PC and Console release in 2027.

Group Financial Review

Revenue

Group revenue decreased by 8% to £66.9 million in H1 2026 (H1 2025: £72.4 million), partly reflecting lower physical distribution revenue following the Group's exit from Astragon's physical distribution activities during FY 2025, together with a lower contribution from new releases. Excluding the impact from the exit of Astragon's physical distribution activities, Group revenue decreased by 5%.

The back catalogue delivered a solid performance, increasing by 1% to £64.3 million (H1 2025: £63.5 million), with contributions from over 150 titles. Revenues from new releases decreased to £2.7 million (H1 2025: £8.9 million), reflecting a softer performance against the very strong comparative contribution from Date Everything! in H1 2025 and the heavy weighting of the Group's major FY 2026 releases towards the second half.

Revenues from first-party IP declined 18% to £20.5 million (H1 2025: £25.1 million), representing 31% of Group revenues (H1 2025: 35%). This principally reflected the inclusion of platform deals in H1 2025, and the focus on new content, including the release of Hell Let Loose: Vietnam, in H2 2026. However, the original Hell Let Loose title, along with Golf With Your Friends and Police Simulator: Patrol Officers all continued to make solid contributions during the period. Third-party revenues were broadly stable at £46.4 million (H1 2025: £47.2 million), supported by strong contributions from Overcooked!, Dredge, Disney Coloring World and LEGO® DUPLO® World.

By division, Team17 revenues fell by 16% to £41.3 million (H1 2025: £49.3 million); Astragon revenues declined 20% to £9.7 million (H1 2025: £12.0 million), moderating to a 6% decline excluding physical distribution sales; and StoryToys revenues increased 43% to £15.9 million (H1 2025: £11.1 million).

Gross profit and margin

Group gross profit decreased by 29% to £23.9 million (H1 2025: £33.7 million), with gross margin falling by 10.9 percentage points to 35.7%. The principal driver of the reduction in gross margin was higher amortisation of capitalised development costs, along with some lower margin back catalogue revenues linked to lower first-party revenues, platform deals recognised in H1 2025 and the timing of royalty payments. Capitalised development cost amortisation increased to £11.6 million (H1 2025: £7.1 million), related primarily to titles released over the previous 12 months. This included a title impairment charge of £1.9 million (H1 2025: nil) related to a small number of titles.

Expensed development costs also increased as a percentage of revenue to 8% (H1 2025: 5%), reflecting continued investment in back catalogue content and expenditure associated with the StoryToys Netflix partnership. These increases were partially offset by lower royalty costs, which represented 29.5% of revenue (H1 2025: 30.5%), and lower physical cost of sales following the exit from Astragon's physical distribution activities.

The Group expects a significant improvement in gross margin during H2 2026 as revenue from the major second-half releases is recognised. For the year as a whole, gross margin is expected to be within the recent historical range.

Administrative expenses and profitability

Total administrative expenses increased by 9% to £22.3 million (H1 2025: £20.4 million), predominantly reflecting higher staff costs, associated with the strengthening and centralisation of certain Group  functions, and marketing investment ahead of major new title launches in H2 2026.

Administrative expenses include £6.2 million of acquisition-related adjustments, as set out in the Alternative Performance Measures table below (H1 2025: £5.7 million). The increase principally reflects IP acquisitions completed during FY 2025.

Alternative Performance Measures  

¹Acquired intangibles are defined as those that arise directly from M&A activity and include the asset classes Brands, Acquired Apps and Customer and Developer Relationships

The combination of lower gross profit and higher administrative expenses resulted in significant, but expected, operating deleverage during the first half. Operating profit decreased to £1.7 million (H1 2025: £13.4 million). Adjusted EBITDA decreased by 53% to £9.2 million (H1 2025: £19.2 million), with adjusted EBITDA margin reducing by 12.7 percentage points to 13.7% (H1 2025: 26.5%). This reflects the aforementioned phasing of revenue and investment between H1 and H2. Following the major releases in the second half and the anticipated improvement in gross margin, the Group expects adjusted EBITDA margin for FY 2026 to be broadly in line with FY 2025.

Net finance income decreased to £0.1 million (H1 2025: £1.1 million), reflecting lower average cash balances following acquisition activity during the preceding 12 months, lower interest rates and foreign exchange movements. Profit before tax was £1.6 million (H1 2025: £14.3 million), while adjusted profit before tax was £8.8 million (H1 2025: £19.7 million).

Taxation and earnings per share

The tax charge for the period was £2.2 million (H1 2025: £3.7 million), resulting in a loss after tax of £0.6 million (H1 2025: profit of £10.6 million). The tax charge includes a £1.3 million prior-year adjustment relating to the correction of an item originating in FY 2021.

Adjusted taxation was £3.5 million (H1 2025: £4.6 million), representing an adjusted effective tax rate of 39.5% (H1 2025: 23.5%), or approximately 25% excluding the prior-year adjustment. Adjusted profit after tax was £5.3 million (H1 2025: £15.1 million).

Basic earnings per share were (0.4) pence (H1 2025: 7.4 pence). Adjusted earnings per share, which adds back share-based compensation costs and acquisition-related costs and adjustments, was 3.7 pence (H1 2025: 10.5 pence).

Cash flow and development investment

The Group remained highly cash generative, with operating cash conversion of 128% (H1 2025: 94%) and net cash inflow from operations of £27.8 million (H1 2025: £26.0 million).

Capitalised development expenditure increased by 14% to £16.4 million (H1 2025: £14.3 million), comprising £11.1 million at Team17 (H1 2025: £7.7 million), £4.7 million at Astragon (H1 2025: £4.9 million) and £0.8 million at StoryToys (H1 2025: £1.7 million). This expenditure was spread across 20% more titles than in H1 2025, with first-party IP representing 65% of capitalised development spend (H1 2025: 59%), consistent with the Group's strategy of allocating a greater proportion of investment towards owned IP and established franchises.

After capitalised development expenditure and dividends of £2.7 million, cash and cash equivalents at the period end were £57.1 million (H1 2025: £59.4 million), leaving the Group well-funded to execute its organic and inorganic growth strategy.

Outlook

The Group's performance during the second half to date has been ahead of expectations, following the releases of Hell Let Loose: Vietnam, Wardogs and Bus Simulator 27. Back catalogue performance has also remained resilient. The Group expects to release at least four other new titles during the second half.

Therefore, the Board now expects FY 2026 revenue and adjusted EBITDA to be materially ahead of current market expectations, with the adjusted EBITDA margin broadly in line with FY 2025.

Capitalised development expenditure for FY 2026 is expected to be in a range of £35-40 million, compared to £33 million in FY 2025, and be in a similar range for FY 2027. In FY 2026, this reflects a 15% increase in the number of titles in development, with approximately two thirds of this expenditure relating to first-party IP.

The Board remains confident in the Group's prospects, supported by a strong balance sheet, a broad and healthy new release pipeline, a unique and consistent back catalogue and a growing portfolio of first-party IP, creating a strong foundation for sustainable growth and long-term shareholder value creation.

Condensed Consolidated Income Statement

All results relate to continuing activities.