Epic Games, one of the most valuable game gaming technology startups in the world, has acquired Tonic Games Group (TGC) and its subsidiaries.

Epic Games is known for being the creator of highly popular first-person-shooter game, Fortnite, that was banned from Apple's App Store last year.

Tonic Games Group was a relatively unknown game developer (and publisher) up until last year, when the company released its family-friendly battle-royale game, Fall Guys: UltimateKnockout.

Fall Guys rose to tremendous popularity in 2020, largely attributed to the global pandemic where people were stuck at home.

Epic buying TGC falls under the company’s broader plans of creating its own metaverse — an immersive “virtual world” where people of all ages can play games, go to concerts, and watch movies.

With that in the pipeline, some of TGC's game features may be ported over to Epic Games' titles as well, creating greater synergy and flexibility.

“It’s no secret that Epic is invested in building the metaverse, and Tonic Games shares this goal,” Tim Sweeney, founder of Epic, said in a statement.