Playtonic Sells Minority Stake to Tencent, Will Retain Creative Control

Derby-based game developer Playtonic announced to take sold a minority stake to Tencent. The investment will reportedly permit the studio to grow from ane team to multiple teams, expanding their HQ and potentially adding new locations as well. Playtonic is also set up to retain artistic control over its IP.

Gavin Price, Founder of Playtonic, shared this statement:

6 years agone we built a cool, exciting rocket ship, ready a course we call back is correct and exciting. Nosotros are thrilled that Tencent agrees with that course and has provided some rocket fuel to further the reach of our mission!

The inaugural to today has included (deep inhale)... our record breaking Kickstarter for Yooka-Laylee, growing the buddy-duo's reach with the acclaimed Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair, establishing Playtonic Friends and the successful launch of its showtime three titles - BPM: Bullets Per Minute, A Little Golf game Journeying and Demon Turf, signing iii further incredible beauties in L'il gator Game, Victory Heat Rally & Blossom Tales ii - The Minotaur Prince, and all the while nevertheless being cool (inquire our parents)! BUT with Tencent'southward help we can scale up and fast-track the super-exciting, super-secret projects we've been keeping close to our treasure chests also... things are going to go Bat Ship Crazy over the next few years! Please imagine a flash emoji right at present.

Moreover, Playtonic also hired Danny Spiteri as the new Caput of Publishing. He'll oversee the publishing side at Playtonic Friends (which already released games like BPM: Bullets Per Minute). Spiteri said:

It's been less than a yr since Playtonic Friends was unveiled only, information technology's fair to say, it's fabricated quite an impression in a relatively short space of fourth dimension. The assortment of titles that'southward already been published is quite something and I'm excited to see how I can add wind to the sails to help us build on the momentum we've already clustered to power us into 2022.

For Tencent, this is simply another in a seemingly unending list of investments into strange companies, something that may become even more important with the increased restrictions for online games imposed by the Chinese state.