In a busy year for gaming mergers, every other deal has upright been announced. Tencent is to fully web Sumo Group, the UK developer in the again of LittleBigPlanet 3 and Crackdown 3. The Chinese language web massive is offering 513 pence per half for the studio, in which it already owns an 8.75 p.c stake, valuing it at $1.26 billion (£990 million).
The acquisition brings every other foremost developer into the Tencent fold. Already the realm’s biggest gaming firm, Tencent owns League of Legends studio Rebellion Games, and has a monetary stake in numerous publishers including Myth Games, Activision Blizzard, Ubisoft, Bluehole, Paradox Interactive, Supercell, Grinding Gear Games and Yager, alongside with chat platform Discord. In February, the firm received a minority set in DayZ developer Bohemia Interactive.
Nonetheless, Tencent’s dominance has triggered regulatory pushback at residence and abroad. Earlier this month, Chinese language authorities blocked its conception to merge its two game livestreaming websites, Douyu and Huya. Tencent will be negiotiating an settlement with a US national security panel that might per chance presumably allow it to lift up its stakes in US companies Rebellion Games and Myth Games, according to a total lot of studies.
The Sumo acquisition hands Tencent a combine of AAA and indie order material. Alongside LittleBigPlanet 3 and spinoff Sackboy, both printed by Sony, Sumo was as soon as also in the again of Hitman 2. It also owns UK-primarily primarily based fully indie developer The Chinese language Room (Each person’s Long previous to the Rapture) and Purple Kite Games, easiest acknowledged for ports of games like Two Level Clinical institution. In February, the studio bought Poland’s PixelAnt Games for £250,000.
“The commercial will seize pleasure in Tencent’s significant videogaming ecosystem, confirmed commercial expertise and its strategic resources, which can help honest and additional the aspirations and long-time duration success of Sumo,” Ian Livingstone, non-govt chairman of Sumo, mentioned in an announcement.
Between Microsoft’s acquisition of ZeniMax and EA’s deal for Codemasters, 2021 is already turning out to be a blockbuster year for video game consolidation. Other sizzling provides comprise Myth Games acquisition of Plunge Guys studio Mediatonic, Sony’s favor of Returnal developer Housmarque and Facebook’s takeover of BigBox VR by its Oculus arm.
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