NetEase Acquires Leading French Game Developer & Publisher Quantic Dream

Quantic Dream joins NetEase Games and will continue to bring high-quality AAA video game experiences to players worldwide.

HANGZHOU, China, Aug. 31, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTES, HKEX: 9999), one of China's leading internet and online game services providers, today announced that its games division, NetEase Games, has acquired Quantic Dream S.A., one of the premier independent video game developers in the world. Quantic Dream, led by David Cage and Guillaume de Fondaumière, will become NetEase Games' first studio in Europe, representing an important step in fulfilling NetEase's vision to support innovation and game development around the globe. Quantic Dream will continue to operate independently, focusing on creating and publishing its video games on all platforms, as well as supporting and publishing third-party developed titles, while at the same time leveraging NetEase's significant game development capabilities.

Quantic Dream is a multi-award-winning studio that was established 25 years ago in Paris, France. It is the creator of iconic games such as Heavy Rain™, Beyond: Two Souls™ and Detroit: Become Human™. The studio announced at The Game Awards 2021 that it is working in collaboration with Lucasfilm Games on the new action-adventure game, Star Wars Eclipse™.

"We are thrilled to embark on an exciting new stage of growth with Quantic Dream, bound by our shared vision, mutual trust and respect," said William Ding, CEO and Director of NetEase, Inc. "NetEase will continue to fulfil our promise to support Quantic Dream to realise its full potential. By combining the wild creativity and exceptional narrative focus of Quantic Dream with NetEase's powerful facilities, resources and execution capabilities, we believe there are infinite possibilities that could re-define the interactive entertainment experience we provide for players worldwide."

"Today marks an important milestone for our studio after a quarter century of complete independence," said Quantic Dream's founder, CEO and writer-director David Cage. "NetEase Games values our creative freedom and the drive and passion of our uniquely diverse team. We will now be able to accelerate the vision we share as a group, of creating landmark titles that touch people on an emotional level. We have highly differentiated games in the making and I truly believe that the best is yet to come from Quantic Dream. I am particularly proud that our employees, who were offered a significant share of our capital over the past years, will fully benefit from this acquisition. It is a testimony to our continued commitment to reward all those who have made Quantic Dream the successful studio it is today."

"NetEase Games first invested in Quantic Dream three years ago," said Guillaume de Fondaumière, Co-CEO and Head of Publishing for Quantic Dream. "Over this period, we had the opportunity to work closely together and saw first-hand how like-minded and complementary we are. NetEase Games' acquisition comes as a natural evolution in this process and creates a unique opportunity to boost Quantic Dream's growth by giving our production and publishing teams all the necessary means to excel."

Quantic Dream is a market leader in creating games with a strong narrative focus and nonlinear stories that reward players' choices. The studio, which develops its own proprietary technologies, is also known for its pioneering use of motion capture to bring actors' performances to life in ways never seen before in video games. NetEase originally acquired a minority stake in Quantic Dream S.A. in 2019.

About NetEase, Inc.

As a leading internet technology company based in China, NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTES and HKEX:9999, "NetEase") provides premium online services centered around content creation. With extensive offerings across its expanding gaming ecosystem, the Company develops and operates some of China's most popular and longest running mobile and PC games. Powered by industry-leading in-house R&D capabilities in China and globally, NetEase creates superior gaming experiences, inspires players, and passionately delivers value for its thriving community worldwide. By infusing play with culture and education with technology, NetEase transforms gaming into a meaningful vehicle to build a more entertaining and enlightened world.

Beyond games, NetEase service offerings include its majority-controlled subsidiaries Youdao (NYSE: DAO), China's leading technology-focused intelligent learning company, and Cloud Music (HKEX: 9899), China's leading online music content community, as well as Yanxuan, NetEase's private label consumer lifestyle brand.

NetEase's ESG initiatives are among the best in the global media and entertainment industry, earning it a distinction as one of the S&P Global Industry Movers and an "A" rating from MSCI. For more information, please visit: https://ir.netease.com/.

About NetEase Games

NetEase Games is the online games division of NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTES and HKEX: 9999), developing and operating some of the most popular mobile and PC games in markets including China and Japan. As one of the world's largest incubators of quality online game content, NetEase Games is dedicated to supporting the growth of innovative studios around the globe and growing an international presence along the way. To complement its self-developed games and world-class R&D capabilities, NetEase Games also partners with other industry leaders including Blizzard Entertainment, Mojang AB (a Microsoft subsidiary) and other global game developers to operate some of the most popular international online games in China. For more information, please visit neteasegames.com.

ABOUT QUANTIC DREAM  

Quantic Dream is a Paris and Montreal-based video game studio created in 1997 by David Cage. The unique narrative experiences offered by Heavy Rain™, Beyond: Two Souls™, Detroit: Become Human™, have reached millions of players around the world and won more than 250 international awards. Quantic Dream is currently working on three new in-house projects, including Star Wars Eclipse™, developed in collaboration with Lucasfilm Games.

As an independent publisher since 2019, Quantic Dream also supports original creators with unique visions, which are brought to life with the help of Quantic Dream's expertise, means of production, funding, and access to the international market and players.  

Quantic Dream unveiled Star Wars Eclipse™ in collaboration with Lucasfilm Games during The Game Awards™ 2021, a new action-adventure, multiple-character branching narrative AAA game set in the High Republic era of the iconic Star Wars™ galaxy, now early in development. 

Heavy Rain™, Beyond: Two Souls™ and Detroit: Become Human™ ©Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe. Developed by Quantic Dream. Heavy Rain™ is a trademark of Quantic Dream. Beyond: Two Souls™ and Detroit: Become Human™ are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe and are used under license. Quantic Dream and the Quantic Dream logo are trademarks of Quantic Dream. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. All rights reserved. 

Lucasfilm, the Lucasfilm logo, STAR WARS and related properties are trademarks and/or copyrights, in the United States and other countries, of Lucasfilm Ltd. and/or its affiliates. © & ™ 2021 Lucasfilm Ltd. All rights reserved. 

Forward-Looking Statements

This announcement contains forward-looking statements. These statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "aim," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "may," "estimates," "potential," "continue," "ongoing," "goal," "targets," "guidance," "commits" and similar statements. Among other things, statements that are not historical facts, including statements about business plans and projections and statements about the launch of new games and their popularity among players in different markets, are or contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement. All information contained in this announcement is as of the date of this announcement and are based on assumptions believed to be reasonable as of this date. You should not rely upon these forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. The parties do not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required under applicable law.

Contacts

Investor Enquiries:

Margaret Shi
NetEase, Inc.
ir@service.netease.com
Tel: (+86) 571-8985-3378
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NetEase_Global

Media Enquiries:

NetEase, Inc.
Li Ruohan
Tel: (+86) 571-8985-2668
globalpr@service.netease.com

NetEase Games
Zhou Zhaoxi
Tel:(+86) 20-85105163 ext.57169
neteasegamespr@global.netease.com

Quantic Dream
Iris Gicquel, Communications Director 
igicquel@quanticdream.com

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SOURCE NetEase, Inc.