Tencent has further expanded its footprint in the gaming industry. The Chinese technology behemoth acquired a majority stake in Klei Entertainment, the developer announced today.
“As part of this agreement, Klei retains full autonomy of creative and operations across all aspects of the studio, including projects, talent, and more,” Klei founder Jamie Cheng writes in a post on the studio’s official forum.
“Klei has been around for 15 years, and we have made many changes over the years in order to respond to a changing world. Consistently, my wish has been to enable people to do their best creative work, to learn and grow, to not have to worry about finances and be able to enjoy their lives outside the studio. This has not changed,” Cheng adds.
Why Tencent?
“We looked at a lot of different companies, and over the years, we’ve worked with a large number of publishers and distributors. Tencent is the only company that we felt would let us retain the level of control that we demand.”
Who is Klei?
Klei Entertainment is the Canadian studio behind the survival games Don’t Starve and Don’t Starve Together. Tencent helped Klei bring Don’t Starve to the Chinese market back in 2016. So the two companies already have experience working together.
