A Liverpool videogame studio is to be acquired by the media giant behind the PlayStation 5, Sony Interactive Entertainment.
SIE has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Firesprite for an undisclosed sum.
The North West company has had a partnership with SIE for more than eight years while its games include The Persistence Enhanced, Air Force Special Ops: Nightfall and The Payroom.
READ MORE: Almost 50 jobs lost as Dawsons Music & Sound enters administration and partially sold off
Jim Ryan, president and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment, said: "We are delighted to welcome Firesprite into the PlayStation family.
"We have a rich history of working with the founders of Firesprite and are excited to grow the PlayStation presence in Liverpool.
"The portfolio of titles Firesprite has developed has continually demonstrated the team’s ability to transcend traditional gameplay experiences and brilliantly showcase the potential of our hardware."
Latest Liverpool City Region Business News
Hermen Hulst, head of PlayStation Studios, added: "Creating quality, state-of-the-art games has always been at the forefront of Firesprite’s work and I’m confident they will push the bar even further as part of PlayStation Studios.
Most Read
"Firesprite’s ability to weave best-in-class gameplay with new technology is exceptional and I think fans will be excited about their creative vision for the future."
Don't miss a thing - sign up for your free North West newsletter - and follow us on LinkedIn
Email newsletters
BusinessLive is your home for business news from around the North West- and you can stay in touch with all the latest news from Greater Manchester, Liverpool City Region, Cheshire, Lancashire and Cumbria through our email alerts.
You can sign up to receive daily morning news bulletins from every region we cover and to weekly email bulletins covering key economic sectors from manufacturing to technology and enterprise. And we'll send out breaking news alerts for any stories we think you can't miss.
Visit our email preference centre to sign up to all the latest news from BusinessLive.
For all the latest stories, views, polls and more - and the news as it breaks - .
Firesprite's managing director Graeme Ankers said: "At Firesprite, we’re always striving to bring something new to a game or genre and developing for new technologies is a driving force of our passion.
"Joining PlayStation Studios will allow us to amplify this passion, working more closely on cutting-edge hardware without any limitations and furthering our studio’s heritage of creativity and technical innovation to offer some truly unique experiences for PlayStation fans."
Have you followed our yet? Click for the latest updates, stories and analysis from across the region.
Firesprite will join the global development operation of PlayStation Studios and will be the 14 th studio to join the PlayStation Studios family.
The day-to-day operations post-acquisition will continue to be run by Firesprite’s current management team.