UK retailer Game expands into eSports with Multiplay acquisition

U.K. retailer Game has announced a deal to acquire Multiplay, a long-running U.K.-based video game event firm, for £20 million (roughly $30.1 million USD).

It's an intriguing move for the retail chain, which relisted on the London Stock Exchange last summer after nearly going under in 2012.

Game is paying £12.6 million up front for Multiplay (the rest to come over the next three years) in order to both expand its presence in the digital PC game market and beef up its ties to the video game event business, especially eSports tournaments.

"The acquisition of Multiplay is an exciting and strategically important step for Game," stated company CEO Martyn Gibbs in a press release confirming the deal. "The world of live events, eSports and multiplayer gaming is growing rapidly and one we have been looking to enter for some time."

Multiplay is perhaps best known for running a long-running series of Insomnia Gaming Festivals in the U.K., which often host tournaments for games like Counter-Strike and Dota 2 with significant prize pools alongside more convivial affairs like LAN parties and exhibition halls.