Tencent acquires Back 4 Blood developer Turtle Rock Studios

Parent company acquired in newest shopping spree

Tencent Holdings Inc. has added another major developer to its massive stock portfolio. The Chinese conglomerate has acquired Slamfire Inc., which is the parent company of Turtle Rock Studios, the developer behind multiplayer shooters Evolve and, most recently, Back 4 Blood. The acquisition’s financial details were not released to the public.

We are all looking forward to joining the Tencent family of studios,” said president and general manager of Turtle Rock, Steve Goldstein. “Tencent’s outstanding partners, global reach, deep knowledge of gaming, and unprecedented support will help us create the kinds of ambitious games we dream of, while allowing us to retain our autonomy and independent spirit.”

Tencent spoke of its excitement in bringing Turtle Rock Studios under its expansive umbrella, though it was quick to note that the Californian studio will retain independent leadership under the company’s original founders, (and former Westwood Studios developers), Chris Ashton and Philip Robb. According to the press release, the Tencent acquisition will have no bearing on the current or future operation of Back 4 Blood, the IP of which remains the property of Warner Bros. Interactive.

“We are huge fans of Turtle Rock’s games, especially their amazing approach to creating cooperative online games,” said Tencent Games Global’s chief strategy officer, Eddie Chan. “We can’t wait to see what comes next, and we’re excited to be part of their future.”

Turtle Rock Studios joins Tencent’s bustling portfolio of developers and publishers with which the conglomerate holds stakes or, in some cases, full ownership. Tencent’s portfolio includes Sumo Digital, Riot Games, Funcom, Leyou, and Sharkmob; majority stakes in Supercell, Klei Entertainment, Yager Development, and Grinding Gear Games; and minority stakes in Activision-Blizzard, Ubisoft, Dontnod Entertainment, Remedy Entertainment, Bohemia Interactive, Marvelous, and Epic Games.

Tencent acquires Turtle Rock Studios [Yahoo! Finanace]