Life is Strange dev Dontnod is branching into third-party publishing

Life is Strange and Tell Me Why developer Dontnod Entertainment is moving into third-party publishing. 

The French company will partner with Danish studio PortaPlay on an upcoming co-production pitched as an original title that "embodies Dontnod's editorial values."

PortaPlay is best known as the developer behind Broken Lines, a tactical action game set during a zombie apocalypse.

The collaboration will be Dontnod's first partnership with an external developer, and comes shortly after it opened departments dedicated to publishing and marketing. The company said PortaPlay will benefit from its "know-how" and knowledge of the market. 

"As a publisher, we want to offer players experiences that are both accessible to the wider audience, while setting the bar high regarding themes and quality of design," said Xavier Spinat, head of publishing at Dontnod.

"From our first discussions with PortaPlay, it became clear to us that co-producing and publishing this original creation would allow us to expand our portfolio with a game complementary to our in-house productions, while remaining true to our DNA."

Back in January, Tencent purchased a minority stake in Dontnod for $36.3 million to help the company fulfil its self-publishing ambitions.