With a "voluntary cash offer to acquire all shares" in the Norwegian developer on the table with both Funcom and Tencent speaking positively of the potential acquisition. Chinese company Tencent is one of the largest in the world, and a shareholder in many of the biggest names in the industry - including Riot Games, Epic, and Ubisoft. This offer in relation to Funcom is for full ownership.

Tencent currently owns a 29% stake in the Conan Exiles developer.

“We have had a great relationship with Tencent as our largest shareholder so far and we are excited about this opportunity,” says Funcom CEO Rui Casais. “We will continue to develop great games that people all over the world will play, and we believe that the support of Tencent will take Funcom to the next level. Tencent will provide Funcom with operational leverage and insights from its vast knowledge as the leading company in the game space.”

According to the announcement if the acquisition goes through there are no plans to change how Funcom operates - with the studio to remain independently run.

Steven Ma, Senior Vice President of Tencent, commented: “We are impressed by Funcom’s strengths as a developer of open-world multiplayer, action and survival games. Funcom has a strong track-record in developing new titles with long life span. We are glad to deepen our relationship with Funcom and look forward to collaborating with Funcom to deliver more exciting and enjoyable game experiences to fans worldwide.”

Interesting news, and Funcom is already planning to expand the scope of its upcoming game based on Frank Herbert's Dune based on this announcement - which like the popular Conan Exiles is described as an "open world multiplayer survival game".