Chinese corporation Tencent intends to purchase Sumo Group, but a US national security panel is investigating the deal.
Sumo, which is based in Sheffield, England, also has studios in the US and they told Reuters that Tencent had agreed to offer undertaking to gain approval from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), which assesses deals to ensure they do not hurt national security.
The task force is also looking into the sale of the US video-sharing app TikTok. Under former President Donald Trump, the task force was refocused to provide greater scrutiny on Chinese deals.
According to Eurogamer, Tencent previously owned an 8.75 per cent stake in Sumo before announcing their intent to purchase the group in July.
Sumo is best known for its work on Forza Horizon 2, LittleBigPlanet 3, Disney Infinity, and Team Sonic Racing. Tencent is one of the worlds largest video games companies and has stakes in several game publishers such as Riot, Supercell, and Epic Games.
Sumo and Tencent are currently engaging with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States to get clearance for the acquisition before the end of the year.
Tencent also stakes in PUBG publisher Krafton. Recent leaks suggest that the flagship battle royale may become permanently free to play. An insider has indicated that a free trial week was actually a test for an entirely free to play release of PUBG.
PUBG Mobile is also doing a crossover with Liverpool FC to add the team’s branded kit to the game. By playing a series of classic mode games, players will be able to unlock limited edition Liverpool FC outfits and free gear such as parachutes and backpacks. The event will run until December 20.
In other news, Age Of Empires 4 has hit 69,000 concurrent users on Steam just three days after launch.
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