Sony and Tencent have grabbed a larger slice of the FromSoftware pie, snapping up a joint 30% stake in the Elden Ring developer. The decision, shepherded by parent company Kadokawa, comes after a blockbuster year for FromSoftware, which heralded the major, global success of Elden Ring – one of the year’s biggest games.
Going forward, Kadokawa – which owns the majority stake in FromSoftware (69.66%) – expects this third-party share allotment to help strengthen the company and the ‘stable creation of intellectual property (IP) consisting of a variety of portfolio content’ – mostly video games, and other projects.
‘With an eye on further expansion of the Game Business, the Group recognises the enhancement of capabilities for the creation, development and deployment of game IP as one of the Group’s highest priorities,’ Kadokawa said in a public release.
The new investments from Sony and Tencent will directly aid growth of the FromSoftware games vision, while also aiding ‘strategy targeting’, communication, advertising, and other services, for global markets.
‘FromSoftware will aim to proactively invest in development of more powerful game IP for itself to strengthen FromSoftware’s development capabilities and will seek to establish a framework that allows the expansion of the scope of its own publishing in the significantly growing global market,’ Kadokawa said.
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Tencent, under its Sixjoy subsidiary, will take 1,703 new shares in the company, while Sony Interactive Entertainment will take 1,476 new shares, for the total issuance price of 11,450,000 yen (AU $120,320.49) per share. This means Sony will obtain a 14.09% stake in the company, while Tencent will have a 16.25% stake.
While the success of Elden Ring likely pushed this decision forward, FromSoftware isn’t taking the time to bask in this achievement. Its next major video game release is reportedly nearly finished, with the company now looking to hire more staff for its next project. It’s clear that FromSoftware has major plans for the future – and that the recent investment from Sony and Tencent will likely be put to very good use.
