Klei Entertainment Inc. ( ) is a Canadian

video game development company A video game developer is a broad term for a software developer specializing in video game development – the process and related disciplines of creating video games. A game developer can range from one person who undertakes all tasks to a large ...

located in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

. Klei was formed in July 2005 by Jamie Cheng. Their best-known titles include ''

Don't Starve ''Don't Starve'' is a survival video game developed by the Canadian indie video game developer Klei Entertainment. The game was initially released for Microsoft Windows, OS X, and Linux on April 23, 2013. A PlayStation 4 port, renamed ''Don't ...

'' and ''

Oxygen Not Included ''Oxygen Not Included'' is a survival simulation video game developed and published by Klei Entertainment. After being released on Steam's early access since February 2017, the game was officially released on July 30, 2019. Gameplay ''Oxygen No ...

''. On January 25, 2021, Klei became a

subsidiary A subsidiary, subsidiary company or daughter company is a company owned or controlled by another company, which is called the parent company or holding company. Two or more subsidiaries that either belong to the same parent company or having a s ...

of the Chinese holding conglomerate

Tencent Tencent Holdings Ltd. () is a Chinese multinational technology and entertainment conglomerate and holding company headquartered in Shenzhen. It is one of the highest grossing multimedia companies in the world based on revenue. It is also the w ...

History

Jamie Cheng founded Klei Entertainment in July 2005. Prior to the formation of Klei, Cheng worked as a specialist AI

programmer A computer programmer, sometimes referred to as a software developer, a software engineer, a programmer or a coder, is a person who creates computer programs — often for larger computer software. A programmer is someone who writes/creates ...

at Relic Entertainment, then owned by

THQ THQ Inc. was an American video game company based in Agoura Hills, California. It was founded in April 1990 by Jack Friedman, originally in Calabasas, and became a public company the following year through a reverse merger takeover. Initial ...

. Cheng acquired seed funding for Klei by selling his THQ shares earned at Relic and getting a $10,000 loan from his brother. Klei had 11 employees in 2009 and as of May 2013 has grown to 35 employees. Their first title, ''

Eets ''Eets'' (also known as ''Eets: Hunger. It's emotional.'') was a 2D puzzle game developed by Klei Entertainment and first released on March 27, 2006 for Microsoft Windows. It was later released for Mac OS X on December 9, 2010. Both the Windo ...

'' was first released March 27, 2006, for

Microsoft Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...

, then for

Mac OS X macOS (; previously OS X and originally Mac OS X) is a Unix operating system developed and marketed by Apple Inc. since 2001. It is the primary operating system for Apple's Mac (computer), Mac computers. Within the market of ...

on December 9, 2010. Between those two releases the game was ported to the Xbox 360 via the Xbox Live Arcade platform and released on April 25, 2007. Retitled ''Eets: Chowdown'', this version featured 120 new levels and an action minigame called ''Marsho Madness''. The company assisted with

Slick Entertainment Slick may refer to: People * Slick (wrestling) (born 1957), American former professional wrestling manager * Slick (nickname) * Slick (surname) Musicians * Slick Aguilar (born 1954), American guitarist * Ricky Bell (singer) (born 1967), a.k.a. S ...

's '' N+'', the Xbox Live Arcade port of the

Adobe Flash Adobe Flash (formerly Macromedia Flash and FutureSplash) is a multimedia Computing platform, software platform used for production of Flash animation, animations, rich web applications, application software, desktop applications, mobile apps, mo ...

game '' N''. In 2008 Klei developed '' Sugar Rush'', a casual massively multiplayer online game. They announced in late August 2010, that development had stopped and the game was canceled. The company's fourth original title, ''Shank'', was announced at Penny Arcade Expo 2009. It was released on August 24, 2010, for the

PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it is part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released on Novemb ...

, August 25, 2010, for the

Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox series. It competed with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation ...

and October 26, 2010, on for Microsoft Windows. Klei's survival adventure game ''

'' was released on April 23, 2013. ''Don't Starve'' was released in a 2-for-1 beta format on

Steam Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization ...

, allowing players to purchase two copies of the game for the price of one. Before being officially self-published, Klei sold more than 300,000 copies of ''Don't Starve'' at $15 each. On April 21, 2016, Klei released a stand-alone multiplayer version of ''Don't Starve'' called ''Don't Starve Together'', which has regular updates and individual downloadable content. On July 2, 2013, it was announced that their next release would to be titled ''

Invisible, Inc. ''Invisible, Inc.'' (stylized as INVI?IBLE, INC.) is a turn-based tactics stealth game, stealth video game incorporating elements of roguelike gameplay, developed by Canadian independent studio Klei Entertainment. The player acts as the remote o ...

'', a turn-based espionage game released on May 12, 2015. In 2017, Klei Entertainment acquired Slick Entertainment. Slick founder Nick Waanders and Jamie Cheng previously worked together at Relic Entertainment, which established a working relationship that later allowed the companies to merge. Klei announced in January 2021 that they had agreed for

to acquire a majority stake in the company. Klei would remain in full control of its products, but the Tencent acquisition would help them to reach into the gaming market in China.

Culture

Co-founder Jamie Cheng sought a company culture where employees live balanced lives. He built Klei with the theory that game studios can make popular, interesting games with a reasonable budget on normal hours at a fair price and still be successful. Since then, Klei has gained a reputation in the video game industry as a successful studio that treats its employees well and maintains balance.

Games developed

References

External links

* Interview with Jamie Cheng
GamaSutra--> {{Tencent Companies based in Vancouver Canadian companies established in 2005 Video game companies established in 2005 Video game companies of Canada Video game development companies 2005 establishments in British Columbia Tencent divisions and subsidiaries Canadian subsidiaries of foreign companies 2021 mergers and acquisitions