Chinese giant Tencent has acquired a majority stake in Klei Entertainment, known for its Don’t Starve title. Klei Entertainment founder Jamie Cheng made the announcement on his forums, where he revealed that the studio will remain completely autonomous in its creative and operational side. Clay Entertainment is known for titles like Don’t Hunger, Oxygen Not Included and Griftlands.

Jamie revealed that Tencent helped Klei Entertainment distribute Klei titles in China in 2016. Don’t Starve Together is also the first title to be released on Tencent’s WeGame platform. The developer is also working with them on the development of Don’t Starve : Newhom on mobile devices. The two companies have been working together for a long time. This time, Tencent will provide the necessary impetus in the right direction so that Clay can concentrate on developing the game.

You can find the official article from the blog below:

What’s going to change?

There are some nasty accounting changes we need to prepare for. Further, I will continue to run the studio as I have in the past, with no changes in staff, projects or other operations.

Why are we doing this?

Glue has been around for 15 years and over the years we have made many changes to respond to a changing world. My desire has always been for people to do their best creative work, learn and grow, not worry about finances and enjoy life outside of the studio. That hasn’t changed.

This collaboration helps us navigate a changing industry and focus on what we do best: creating unique experiences that no one else can provide.

Who is Tencent?

Tencent has been active in the gaming industry for years, investing in companies that produce games such as Path of Exile, League of Legends, PUBG, Clash of Clans, Fortnite and many others.

In 2016, Tencent helped us launch Clay games in China and Don’t Starve Together was the very first game to launch on their WeGame platform. We recently worked with them on the Don’t Go Hungry program: Newhome on mobile.

Why a penny?

We’ve looked at a lot of different companies and we’ve worked with a lot of publishers and distributors over the years. Tencent is the only company that we believe would allow us to maintain the level of control that we need.

We have been working with Tencent for years, and even in times when we disagreed, they were always willing to work with us to find the best solution for all parties, and to bend with us when we were strong.

How does this affect Clay’s games in China?

As mentioned, we have been working with Tencent for some time. We worked with them on the launch of Don’t Starve Together in China in 2016, and have been working with them on our launches in China ever since.

The players in China represent a large part of our players and we have been supporting them for several years with our offices in North America. We do not anticipate any major operational changes in China or elsewhere in the world, but we hope this partnership will help us better support our players in China.

What do you think of Tencent’s purchase of a significant stake in Klei Entertainment? Let us know in the comment section below.