Tencent, the billion-dollar Chinese tech giant, announced on Monday, July 24, 2023, that they will acquire a majority stake in Techland, the studio that created Dying Light. Tencent wholly or partly owns a plethora of studios including Epic Games, Riot Games, Bluehole, and others. Techland will be the latest addition to its long list of subsidiaries.
Disclosing the partnership was none other than the CEO of Techland, Pawel Marchewka. In what appears to be an emotional letter shared on the Techland blog, Marchewka described how much the company means to him and how the partnership with Tencent will launch the company into a new phase of game production.
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“Techland has been a huge part of my life for more than 30 years now and is something I truly cherish,” Marchewka wrote. “Teaming up with Tencent will allow us to move full speed ahead with the execution of the vision for our games.”
Techland is a Polish game studio founded by Marchewka in 1991. The studio has carved a niche in making some of the best zombie survival games including the Dead Island series. After a long delay, the studio released Dying Light 2: Stay Human, a sequel to Dying Light in 2022. The game received mostly positive reviews.
What the Tencent partnership means to Techland
Although Tencent will now become the largest shareholder in Techland, Marchewka will still be the company’s CEO. Also, Techland will retain full ownership of its Intellectual Properties and still have the creative freedom to chart its part to growth.
“Whenever I think about the future of Techland, I want the best for our games, the team, and you,” wrote Marchewka. “While I am very proud of our achievements as an independent studio over all these years, I believe the best is yet to come.”
One way the partnership will benefit Techland is by equipping them with the financial muscle to take some of their major titles in a direction that was previously impossible due to financial constraints.
“We dream of turning Dying Light into the ultimate zombie game experience for players worldwide, providing you with multiple astonishing adventures and pushing the boundaries of solo and online modes to a new level,” wrote Marchewka.
Techland is already working on a new IP which Marchewka said would be the company’s “first new IP in almost a decade”. While not much was revealed about the game, the CEO hinted that it would be an “open-world action RPG in a fantasy setting”.
“I am happy to announce the partnership with Tencent who are in the process of becoming Techland’s majority shareholder,” wrote Marchewka. “We have chosen an ally who has already partnered with some of the world’s finest video game companies and helped them reach new heights while respecting their ways of doing things.”
In terms of administration and game development, no drastic change will happen at Techland due to the partnership. The company will continue to act the way it “believe is right”. Read the full announcement by Marchewka here.
Tencent closed a similar deal with Lighthouse Games
Earlier in July, GamesIndustry.biz reported that Tencent has splashed an undisclosed amount on Lighthouse Games which would set them on the path of becoming one of the largest triple-A game studios in the UK.
The studio was founded by Gavin Raeburn who was a co-founder and studio head at Playground Games. Lighthouse Games is currently working on an unnamed IP. Notwithstanding the investment, Lighthouse Games will retain full creative and publishing decisions. The fund pumped into Lighthouse Games will be used for recruitment and acquiring new technology.
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“The investment is financial, and we retain control over our game and destiny as a studio,” disclosed Raeburn. “An investment of this scale allows us to grow our team and prove the vision for our game and remain completely independent… This new beginning also enables us to build our games from the ground up, with no legacy tech or architecture to work around.”
While financial inflow is always great news for game studios, the effect of such commitments sometimes ends up unpleasant. Swedish gaming conglomerate, Embracer Group, in June, announced a halt in the development of some games as well as announced the selling off of some studios in line with a broader restructuring plan.
Do you think it was a wise choice to let Tencent buy a majority stake in Techland? Share your thoughts in the comment box below.
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