Epic Games has received a further $2 billion investment, split between Sony and LEGO owner KIRKBI. Both companies have invested $1 billion each. This has now led to Epic Games being valued at $31.5 billion. Both Sony and KIRKBI have pointed to the metaverse as the reason for their investments, as both companies see that space of growth.
“As a creative entertainment company, we are thrilled to invest in Epic to deepen our relationship in the metaverse field, a space where creators and users share their time.” said Kenichiro Yoshida, Chairman, President and CEO, Sony Group Corporation. “We are also confident that Epic’s expertise, including their powerful game engine, combined with Sony’s technologies, will accelerate our various efforts such as the development of new digital fan experiences in sports and our virtual production initiatives.”
“Epic Games is known for building playful and creative experiences and empowering creators large and small,” said Søren Thorup Sørensen, CEO, KIRKBI. “A proportion of our investments is focused on trends we believe will impact the future world that we and our children will live in. This investment will accelerate our engagement in the world of digital play, and we are pleased to be investing in Epic Games to support their continued growth journey, with a long-term focus toward the future metaverse.”
“As we reimagine the future of entertainment and play we need partners who share our vision. We have found this in our partnership with Sony and KIRKBI,” said Tim Sweeney, CEO and Founder, Epic Games. “This investment will accelerate our work to build the metaverse and create spaces where players can have fun with friends, brands can build creative and immersive experiences and creators can build a community and thrive.”
This is the second time that Sony has invested in Epic Games, with the company previously investing $250 million in 2020. Last week, Epic released Unreal Engine 5 for all developers to use. Gears of War developer The Coalition who already released some prototype demos of their own using the engine, Square Enix’s upcoming Dragon Quest XII, and CD Projekt Red just announced that they would be using Unreal Engine 5 in a new tech partnership for the next The Witcher game. The next Tomb Raider game will also use Unreal Engine 5.
Source: Epic Games
