NetEase Games has acquired Canadian studio and co-developer for Halo and Minecraft, SkyBox Labs.
SkyBox was founded back in 2011 and is based in Burnaby and Victoria. The studio made two original titles: TASTEE: Lethal Tactics back in 2016 and Stela back in 2019.
The studio also worked as a co-developer on many games from publishers like Xbox Game Studios and EA. Currently, SkyBox is working on Halo Infinite, Minecraft, and Fallout 76. It also contributed to other Halo and Minecraft titles, as well as Age of Empires and Project Spark.
SkyBox is set to operate independently within NetEase Games under the leadership of its co-founders, Shyang Kong, Derek MacNeil, and Steven Silvester.
SkyBox will continue working with its existing partners to co-develop games for PC and console and will be making new games in the future.
Shyang Kong released a statement about the acquisition: “We have built a team of talented individuals who are passionate and creative, and by joining NetEase Games, we will also be able to accelerate our plans to pursue new creative opportunities, and enjoy access to world-class operational resources and the full breadth and depth of NetEase’s services so we can scale faster in Canada.”
SkyBox is just the latest in a series of acquisitions by the Chinese tech and gaming giant. NetEase Games also recently acquired Quantic Dream, the studio behind Detroit: Become Human.
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Zainah Yousef
Zainah Yousef is the author of The Fallen Age Saga and specializes in gaming, social media advice, and reviews. She's been writing all her life and she probably won't stop anytime soon.
