NJD Games creative director Baraa Odeh on building a racing franchise and taking Hajwala culture global

• NJD Games was founded by two people in Riyadh and has grown to a team of around 10, with Impact46 providing investment support along the way.
• KOH and Drift Toon have combined for over 5m installs, driven largely by social gameplay, customisation, and community engagement.
• Hajwala Corsa 2 launched in January 2026 and is the studio's current main focus, with ongoing updates, new content, and long-term community support planned.

Founded in Riyadh, NJD Games built its first hit around Hajwala driving culture. Its mobile title KOH surpassed 5 million installs, helping attract backing from Impact46. In January 2026, the studio launched Hajwala Corsa 2, and its international expansion is now live.

We caught up with NJD Games’ creative director Baraa Odeh about community-first retention, monetisation without breaking gameplay, and what Vision 2030's gaming push actually looks like from inside a studio that has been building through it.

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PocketGamer.biz: Could you tell us a bit about NJD Games? How did the studio come about and how big is the team right now? 

Baraa Odeh: NJD Games is an independent game studio based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The studio was founded by Salman Almutiri and Waleed Alqahtany, starting as a small team driven by a shared passion for gaming and creating immersive experiences.

The journey began with “KOH,” which achieved over 5 million installs and revealed a strong market opportunity for the studio. Since then, NJD Games has continued expanding its vision with upcoming titles such as “Drift Toon” and “Hajwala Corsa 2.” Over time, the studio grew from just two founders into a team of around 10 talented developers and artists.

NJD Games also received investment support from Impact46, helping the studio continue developing ambitious projects and pushing the quality of its games even further. Today, the team remains focused on delivering engaging gameplay experiences while continuing to grow within the regional and international games industry. 

How have your games been received internationally outside the MENA region? 

While our strongest audience has traditionally been within the MENA region, Drift Toon marked the beginning of our efforts to reach a broader international audience. With Drift Toon, we started focusing more on creating a style and gameplay experience that could appeal to players globally while still maintaining the identity and spirit of our games. 

The response has been encouraging, especially from players who enjoy driving games and Hajwala-style simulation experiences. This international expansion continues with Hajwala Corsa 2, which has already been released. 

Mobile racing is crowded with CSR, Asphalt, and Drift Max all chasing the same players. Can you tell us about the retention and monetisation playbook that's worked for KOH? 

One of the key factors behind KOH’s success has been understanding the community and building gameplay experiences that keep players socially engaged over time. Instead of focusing only on competitive racing, KOH emphasised player expression, driving culture, customisation, and online social interaction, which helped create a loyal and active player base. 

From a retention perspective, continuous updates, new content, live events, and listening closely to community feedback played a major role in keeping players engaged. We also focused on creating gameplay loops that encourage long-term progression and regular return sessions. 

On the monetisation side, customisation has been one of the strongest drivers. Players enjoy personalising their cars, styles, and overall in-game identity. Our approach has always been to balance monetisation with player enjoyment by offering meaningful cosmetic and progression-based content without compromising the core gameplay experience.

Many of these systems and ideas were further improved and expanded in Hajwala Corsa 2, where we focused even more on content quality, player progression, customisation depth, and long-term engagement through continuous updates and community-driven improvements. 

SeaCatFishing was mentioned as an upcoming title but doesn't appear on your current site. Is it still in development, or has the focus shifted entirely to the drift portfolio?

SeaCatFishing was part of our earlier plans as we explored different gameplay ideas and genres. However, our focus later shifted toward expanding and improving our driving and Hajwala portfolio, especially with the continued growth of KOH and Drift Toon. In January of this year, we officially launched Hajwala Corsa 2, which is currently our main focus. 

Since release, the team has been actively working on updates, improvements, new content, and long-term support for the game as we continue building and evolving the experience for our players. 

What changes have you observed in the local games industry, particularly in the MENA region, and in consumer behaviour towards games? 

The MENA games industry has grown rapidly in recent years, with more local studios, stronger investment, and increasing player engagement. Players today expect higher-quality experiences, continuous updates, and strong online features. 

We’ve also seen growing interest in games that reflect regional culture while meeting global standards, which continues to shape how we develop and support our titles at NJD Games. 

As a Saudi studio, how has the Kingdom’s gaming push through Savvy and Vision 2030 actually benefited NJD in areas such as talent, funding, or partnerships?

The growth of the gaming ecosystem in Saudi Arabia has had a very positive impact on local studios like NJD Games. Increased investment and industry support have helped create more opportunities for collaboration, visibility, and long-term growth within the region. 

We’ve also seen improvements in the local talent pipeline, with more developers and artists becoming interested in game development as a career. Overall, the industry momentum driven by Vision 2030 is helping accelerate the growth of studios and the quality of games being developed in Saudi Arabia. 

In terms of funding and support for game studios in MENA, what has been your experience navigating the funding landscape? 

The funding landscape in the MENA region has improved significantly in recent years, especially with the growing focus on games in Saudi Arabia. There are now more opportunities for studios to access investment and industry support compared to the past. 

For NJD Games, receiving investment support helped accelerate the studio’s growth and allowed us to expand our team and continue developing our projects at a larger scale. At the same time, building a successful studio still requires strong execution, consistency, and a clear long-term vision. 

What are your plans for the rest of 2026? Will you be exploring new platforms? And are there any specific initiatives or projects on the horizon that we should look forward to? 

For the rest of 2026, our main focus is on continuing to expand Hajwala Corsa 2 through new updates, features, and long-term content plans while building a stronger and more engaged community around the game.

We are also continuing to grow our audience both within the MENA region and internationally, while exploring future opportunities and ideas that align with the studio’s vision.