Investment Round
Former Supercell devs at Bit Odd raise $18m investment
Funding round led by Griffin Gaming with participation from Makers Fund, Index Ventures and others
Studio Support
SayGames to invest $30 million in hybridcasual studios over next three years
Publisher will back studios worldwide over the next three years
Investment News
Funstop Games secures $5 million to accelerate game development and expand globally
The studio will use the funds to accelerate its development efforts and expand its portfolio
Investment News
Starform secures $6 million to bolster shooter game Metalstorm
The studio plans to use the new funds to expand its team and reach new players
Web Shop Waves
Neon raises $14 million to create web shops for developers
Funding comes from Thrive Capital, Renegade Partners, a16z Speedrun and others
Investment News
Animoca Brands raises $10m to expand metaverse platform Mocaverse
This latest round follows previous funding totalling $31.88 million
Funds And Finances
Radical Forge raises £2.6m to hire more staff and take on "bigger contracts"
Bright Paw developer receives investment from Mercia Equity Finance’s Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II
Funding News
Levellr raises $1.75 million for Discord management tools
Company appoints SuperAwesome co-founder Dylan Collins as chairman; aims to add Reddit integration in 2025
New Studio
Supercell invests in Barcelona-based studio Penguin Armada
PC-first developer working on top-down PvP title
Investment News
Konvoy invests in Magic Potion Games to build safe and social immersive experiences
“The gaming landscape is changing, especially for younger audiences"
Strategic Growth
Redwood acquires majority stake in Indian games streaming start-up Loco for $65m
The deal will see Loco expand to global markets
Gaming Trends
Games industry M&A activity hits $2.5 billion in Q3 2024
M&A activity in games has grown for the fourth consecutive quarter
Funding News
Party Icons lands $9 million in seed for mobile-first web3 games
The company plans to develop its web3-enabled functionalities and expand into key markets by 2025
Hot Five
Hot Five: Supercell’s first CMO departs, Unity 6 goes back to basics, and Azra Games raises $42.7 million
Our quick-fix roundup of the hottest stories on PocketGamer.biz
Funding News
AI-powered player feedback platform Live Aware Labs lands $4.8 million investment
The platform helps game developers capture, analyse, and act on player experiences in real-time
Social Superfans
Windwalk raises $4.5 million and launches "superfan" social software platform Harbor
Harbor is a hub for superfans in games, music and more
Getting Gritty
Ex-Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes GM on raising $42m and building the fourth generation of mobile RPGs at Azra
Project Legends is veering away from the prevalent anime aesthetic and aiming for a Western audience
Phenomenal Funding
Azra Games raises major $42.7 million in Series A to create a mobile RPG for Western audiences
Project Legends is harkening back to 70s fantasy media like Conan the Barbarian
Digital Development
Loot Labs raises $6 million in Bitkraft-led seed round towards digital collectables platform
The firm’s Boxed.GG platform is already established for physical collectables
Funding News
Krafton leads investment round in India studio Deftouch to scale King and develop new games
Krafton India co-led the round alongside T-accelerate Capital and Lumikai Fund
Investment News
UMX Studio secures $4.5 million investment from Jetapult to expand portfolio
Funding will "accelerate" developer's expansion in Saudi Arabia
Spanish Startup
EF Games is hiring developers and artists in Europe following Krafton investment
The startup is currently developing a competitive multiplayer title
Studio Startup
Krafton invests in Mario + Rabbids and Red Dead Redemption veterans at Day 4 Night
The new studio is developing an original IP combining the expertise of Davide Soliani, Christian Cantamessa and others
Funding News
Queensland indie studios secure $1.3 million in latest Games Grants funding round
This latest funding will support 12 games and an additional 40 positions for local developers
Investment
Finnish developer Future Run secures second round of investment led by Supercell
The funds will go towards the continued development of the studio's cross-platform title Riot Ball
Ai Funds
OpenAI raises $6.6 billion making it one of the most valuable companies in the world
The AI and research development company is most widely known for its ChatGPT service
Investment News
Nazara secures $108m to fuel further M&A
Nazara has also acquired an additional 19.35% share in Sportskeeda parent company Absolute Sports
Opening Up?
OpenAI wants to raise $6.5bn at $150bn valuation
Investors eye structural changes and removal of profit cap, according to reports
New Beginnings
Supercell invests in new Finnish studio Redly Games led by former game lead Theo Chow
The Helsinki-based studio is working on a cross-platform 3D adventure game built with Unreal Engine 5
Investment News
Nazara invests $117 million PokerBaazi parent Moonshine
India games firm picks up 47.7% stake in the company
Big Plans
“Treating what we are building not just as a game but as a social platform is very rare"
Social First’s CEO Kim Soares on securing funds to fuel the development of a new cross-platform MMO title that champions social connectivity
Investment News
InMobi lands $100 million for AI-driven expansion and acquisitions
InMobi will use the funds to propel its AI development and deployment efforts
Big-form Investment
PUBG developer Krafton invests $89.5m in audio and short-form video streaming firm Spoon Labs
Deal represents publisher's largest investment in a non-gaming company
Funding News
Turkey's Cypher Games raises $10m to take on match-3 market filled with "too many average-quality titles"
Seed investment round led by The Raine Group
Philosophy Focused
Mother Games raises $5 million to fuel its games ambitions
Its debut title Le Zoo is veering away from "traditional mobile games that exploit the dopamine system to addict players"
Platform Power
Live ops platform Magify raises €1 million to enhance AI and reach new markets
Magify has raised further funds towards democratisation, product development and more
Organic Opportunities
Empire Games will function as "new external team" after Huuuge Games investment
Huuuge sees potential in Empire to contribute to its organic growth
Hot Five
Hot Five: Harry Potter canned, Savvy's Saudi surge, Pokémon turns five and switching roles at miHoYo…
Our quick-fix roundup of the hottest stories on PocketGamer.biz
Mena Means Business
Savvy Games Group strikes key deals to power MENA industry growth
As string of partnerships and investments this week are focused on building the Middle East into a gaming powerhouse
Change Of Fortune
Tencent and NetEase rethink Japanese strategy with studio closure imminent
The first evidence of the change of heart is the closure of Visions of Mana studio, Ouka Studios just days after the game's launch
Double Jump
double jump.tokyo raises $10 million to bolster web3 games development
The Series D funding round was led by SBI Investment
Investing In Britain
Ukie's 2024 Video Games Growth Programme gets Department for Business and Trade backing
The programme of advice and help for businesses now has 30 companies signed up for this year's cohort
Investment News
Web3 platform GAMEE secures investment from TON Ventures
The Animoca Brands subsidiary plans to integrate TON-based digital assets into its Telegram Mini App to boost user engagement
Finding A Franchise
Mad Crusader to invest in games with "franchise potential" via Game IP Incubation programme
Applications are open for the second batch of the eight-month programme
Funding
FRVR raises $12.7 million towards AI engine and games democratisation
Iberis Capital led the funding round, while further participation came from Indico Capital Partners, Lince Capital, Hiro Capital and others
Ai Qa
nunu.ai has raised $2 million towards AI playtesters and QA with bot detection on the way
The startup specialises in quality assurance for open-world games
App Intelligence Magic
AppMagic’s CEO on raising $3m, market intelligence price wars, and ad revenue estimates
PocketGamer.biz speaks to Max Samorukov about the state of market intelligence and its plans for the future
Investment Bounceback
M&A is on the rise for the third quarter in a row
That's according to Drake Star whose latest Global Gaming Report for Q2 only carries good news on the games industry's rebound
Hot Five
Hot Five: HoYoverse’s next game, Monster Hunter Now’s multiplayer mindset, and three years of Pokémon Unite
Our quick-fix roundup of the hottest stories on PocketGamer.biz
Investment Round
UGC platform developer Look North World raises $4.5 million in seed funding
Start-up publishes premium mods and games for Fortnite, Roblox and Minecraft