How Finland is reshaping its games industry
- Finland’s game studios are more than past breakthroughs, adopting new platforms and business models to drive sustainable growth in a tougher global market.
- Meet and learn from its makers at Pocket Gamer Connects Nordics in Helsinki on October 20th to 21st.
One of the world's leading games industries per capita, Finland has seen huge outsized returns for a country with a population of 5.7 million.
With hits that have shaped how games are built and played universally, the spiritual birthplace of saunas was long dubbed the global games industry’s number one innovation and startup hub.
But what matters isn’t that legacy of global hits, it’s how the sector is adapting to a tougher market.
Studios like Remedy, Supercell and Rovio are clear examples of Finnish companies iterating and thriving through multiple market cycles. But with rising demands on content output, UA and live operations, there’s much more underpinning the sector’s success today.
Despite domestic financial challenges, global market uncertainty and an industry seeing profit and revenue decline, a culture of risk-taking and non-mainstream creativity has remained dominant and seen 75 new startups emerge over the past three years, according to Neogames. Notably, one that extends beyond mobile games, with PC, console, web and other platforms on the rise.
While mobile remains dominant among established companies, early-stage startups are less focused on the platform, according to a 2025 industry report from industry organisation Neogames Finland. Cross-platform development is rising, with over 70% of games released in 2024 available on PC and a growing number of studios working on browser-based games.
Finnish studios continued to hire in 2024, despite wider market headwinds. Even as turnover declined, the total number of active studios increased to 270, up 15% in two years. Since 2023, 120 Finnish games have been published, primarily on mobile and PC.
Finland’s games scene isn’t idly relying on past glory, but is actively building for the present and future, finding new publishing models and platform strategies. Underpinning this direction is a solid network of support from regional hubs like Kajaani Game City and Tampere Game Hub to national organisations like Neogames and IGDA Finland.
Finland’s games industry is moving forward with intention. Finding new paths to sustainable growth in a volatile market, there’s plenty to learn from this versatile and resilient ecosystem.
At Pocket Gamer Connect Nordics in Helsinki on October 20th and 21st, you can connect directly with the studios, startups, investors, support hubs, and services powering the Finnish game sector, while gaining first-hand insight into the strategies and creativity driving its studios forward.
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