Tencent Opening New AAA Studio Led By Former Rockstar Leader

Tencent Games is opening a new AAA studio in Orange County headed up by Rockstar veteran Steve Martin. The studio's first project will be an open-world game for Xbox Series X and Playstation 5. This is Tencent's second studio located in LA, the other being TiMi Studio's LA studio.

Originally reported by GamesIndustry.Biz, the new developer falls under one of Tencent's existing subsidiaries--LightSpeed and Quantum--one of four studios the company currently has. Steve Martin will serve as both studio head and executive producer of development at LightSpeed LA, after leadership roles working on both Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2.

"We're ushering a new era of game culture by combining world-class development with a stress-free work environment," Martin said. "From day one, our teams will be focused on building the highest caliber games while promoting integrity, proactivity, collaboration, and creativity."

LightSpeed LA has already recruited talent with experience at companies including Respawn Entertainment, 2K Games, Insomniac, and Rockstar Games. In other Tencent news, the company partnered with The Pokemon Company to develop Pokemon Unite, a free-to-play MOBA for Nintendo Switch and mobile.

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