Tencent sells UK-based Battalion 1944 studio BULKHEAD to new consortium

Chinese gaming giant Tencent has sold BULKHEAD, the developer behind Battalion 1944 and upcoming FPS Wardogs, to a newly formed consortium that is looking to potentially work on the Hell Let Loose franchise.

The details:

• As reported by GamesIndustry.biz, the consortium, comprising Super Media Group (SMG), Everplay Group—the parent company of Worms studio Team 17—and Hiro Capital, acquired the studio for an undisclosed sum this week. Bulkhead is still working on Wardogs, a new FPS that will be published by Team17, with the intent of launching the game in early access some time next year.
• SMG, which was founded in October, lists Bulkhead’s CEO Joe Brammer, CTO Kevin Chandler, and CFO Mark Pinney as its directors and has announced intentions to co-develop future entries in Team17’s realistic World War 2 FPS series, Hell Let Loose. “We're really excited about this partnership and our future collaboration on the Hell Let Loose franchise, as well as Wardogs entering early access next year," Brammer said. "Most importantly, we’re proud to be keeping all of our team members on board as we move forward.”
• Bulkhead was founded in 2015 and is best known for its competitive WW2 shooter Battalion 1944. The studio was acquired by UK studio Splash Damage in 2022, which itself was then acquired by Tencent. However, both companies ran into some issues in recent years, with the cancellation of Transformers: Reactivate resulting in layoffs and Splash Damage’s eventual split from Tencent.