Weekly News Digest #45

Hi all,

We are currently working on our Q1-Q3’22 Gaming Deals Activity Report, so there’s no featured news in this digest. However, you can still find all the relevant news of the past week in the Notable Transactions section below! Since the Report is on its way, make sure you follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Telegram not to miss it.

We want to thank Hiro Capital and The Games Fund for supporting this digest.

 MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS

US-based streaming entertainment platform Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) has acquired US-based indie-games developer Spry Fox. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. As a result of the deal, Spry Fox will be the 6th in-house studio of the company. With this deal, Netflix is increasing its production capabilities, while Spry will get access to bigger resources for further growth. The studio is known for titles like Triple Town, Alphabear, and Cozy Grove.

US-based game developer 1047 Games acquires Sweden-based anti-cheat service provider EQU8. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. EQU8 provided its service for the Splitgate game, as both companies had worked closely before. 1047 Games plans to expand the current EQU8 team to create a robust anti-cheat platform for an unannounced upcoming project. Notably, 1047 said the anti-cheat solution will be exclusive to its future games.

UK-based games publisher and developer Frontier Developments (LON: FDEV) acquires Canada-based games developer Complex Games. The upfront consideration of $9.5m (£8.3m) will be paid fully in cash. The conditional consideration of up to $3.78m (£3.3m) will be paid based on meeting certain operational milestones during the period from the date of the acquisition to December 31, 2023. In addition, four shareholders (2 founders and 2 studio principals) will participate in a 5-year profit-share cash earn-out scheme of up to $8.59m (£7.5m), funded from the future cash profits generated from games developed by Complex Games. The companies worked closely on Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters, and will continue to support the project. As a result of the deal, Frontier will increase its production capabilities and expertise.

US-based video games marketing company ÜberStrategist acquires US-based marketing services provider VirTasktic. The financial terms of the deal are not disclosed. The acquisition will allow ÜberStrategist to increase its staff and the client roster.

China-based games publisher and developer NetEase (HKG: 9999) has acquired a minority stake in Sweden-based indie games developer Liquid Swords. The exact amount was not disclosed. The studio is currently working on an unannounced AAA title, and the funds will support the development and expansion of the team.

VENTURE FINANCING

China-based digital entertainment platform Zebra Labs has raised $5m in funding, with NetDragon and Sumitomo participating in this round. The platform aims to help artists enter the metaverse and transform their art in NFT. The funds will be used to further develop the platform.

Denmark-based tech company Modl.ai has raised $8.4m (€8.5m) in Series A funding. The round was co-led by Griffin Gaming Partners and Microsoft’s M12 venture fund, with participation from Rendered.vc, PreSeed Ventures, and others. The funds will be used to develop AI-driven playtesting and QA bots for debugging and quality assurance for game developers.

South Korea-based blockchain games developer WEMADE has raised $46m from Microsoft, Shinhan Asset Management, and Kiwoom Securities. In a regulatory filing, WEMADE disclosed that it is raising the capital through the sales of convertible bonds. The company recently launched its blockchain Wemix 3.0, as well as a stablecoin and a DeFi platform. The company aims to create games with blockchain technology and use its Wemix coin as a key currency in its titles.

US-based multiplatform game developer Playgig has raised $10.85m in Seed funding. The round was led by March Gaming, with participation from Paramark, Aream, and Gaingels. The funds will go towards hiring more staff and developing its first title.

US-based indie publisher Freedom Games has raised $10m in funding. The round was led by Play Ventures, with participation from Nashville Capital Network, and GFR Fund. The funds will be used for hiring more staff and developing the company’s publishing platform.

India-based mobile games developer Hitwicket has raised $3m in funding from Prime Venture Partners. The funds will be used to create a strategy-driven gaming studio and develop more multiplayer features for its titles.

UK-based blockchain-powered social platform FruitLab has raised $1.5m (€1.5m) in funding. The round was led by Scytale Ventures. The funds will be used to further develop the platform.

Portugal-based Web3 startup RealFevr, which builds a gamified and immersive ecosystem around licensed sports digital collectables, has raised $9.98m (€10m) in funding. The round was led by ADvantage, with participation from Semapa Next, Shilling Capital Partners, and others. The funds will go towards international expansion, the acquisition of new intellectual property rights, and the launch of its game Trading Moments Game: FEVR Battle Arena.

US-based startup Mozart has closed a $3m pre-Seed funding round. The proceeds will be used to expand the team and support the development of the company’s core product — a platform for developers to simplify the integration of Web3 features into their games.