Tencent, Nintendo-backed Pokemon join forces to create new video games

Tencent Holdings and The Pokemon Company will jointly develop games, an alliance that may help the Nintendo-backed firm crack the world’s largest mobile gaming arena.

Hong Kong-listed Tencent, whose WeChat social media service is used by more than a billion people across China, said its TiMi Studio Group will take the lead in developing titles with the Japanese company behind the popular monster-hunting game franchise.

The two have struck a broad agreement on collaboration, Tencent said in a post on its official Weibo blog without elaborating.

The video games and social media giant could prove a strong ally for Nintendo and Pokemon in China, where local titles dominate and gamers have shunned consoles in favour of smartphones and personal computers. Developers there have also complained of rampant piracy, where popular titles tend to trigger a wave of copycats.