Q1’24 Gaming Deals Report

Apr, 2024 The “Dog Days” Are Over?

Q1’24 Gaming Deals Report

Current state of the market

Executive Summary

Current and future state of the market

2

Executive Summary

Outlook and our expectations

— After a “hangover ”-like 2023, it’s too early to predict the direction of 2024.

However, while this year may not set new records, it is expected to establish

a new “norm” in transaction activity, likely exceeding pre-pandemic levels.

— We maintain a positive outlook on early-stage investments, bolstered by

increasing capital availability observed in subsequent fundraisings

(e.g., a16z II at $600m, BITKRAFT III at $275m) and the announcement of

over 10 new gaming-focused funds since the beginning of this year.

— Midcap M&As (valued at ~$1B or less) are likely to grow amidst the current

investor-friendly environment and increased PE interest in the space, assuming

robust gaming stocks performance throughout the year.

— High interest rates will continue to pressure Late-stage financing and IPOs.

Many startups that secured Early-stage capital between 2020 and 2023 may

struggle to secure subsequent funding, leading to shutdowns or “acqui-hire” exits.

— Nevertheless, companies with solid financials and proven metrics will stand out

as “outliers,” driving value and increasing the number of deals. Capital efficiency

and profitable growth will remain the “North Star ” priorities for studios.

— The global games industry continues to face pressure, with minimal market

growth (below inflation), extensive layoffs, turbulent gaming stock prices,

and project cancellations frequently making headlines.

— Major public players, holding substantial cash reserves, are not rushing

to make acquisitions (public buyers historically account for c.80% of M&A

volume
1
) and are actively making share buybacks. Simultaneously, corporate

venture arms have shown increased interest in VC-type financing rounds,

making less solo and more syndicate-type investments.

— The challenging state of the equity markets continues. High interest rates

and poor performance of the publicly listed players have narrowed exit

opportunities and ultimately impacted Late-stage appetite. Most public

listings from 2020-2021 trade below their IPO prices, and there have been

no significant gaming IPOs since mid-2022.

— VCs and PEs became very cautious and selective, backing fewer companies

per quarter at Series A and later rounds. Seed activity remained stable and

less impacted by macro trends, supported by over $15B capital raised across

over 65 gaming-focused funds worldwide
2
.

Note: (1) gaming deals with upfront EV above $65m (see p. 18) since 2020; (2) see p. 12

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Recent news and platform additions

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channel that aggregates news from the most

relevant sources 24/7. It is refined and curated with

the power of AI to bring you the essence of each

Investment and M&A deal in the gaming industry.

Available on
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, the table is designed

with founders and investors in mind. This League

Table is your navigator in the ever-evolving M&A

landscape, spotlighting over 60 significant

acquisitions and relevant sell-side advisors.

A constantly updated
List of Industry-Focused

Funds
. The list continues to expand and soon will

include generalist investors providing capital

to gaming startups. Our patrons will receive early

access to this expanded list.

M&A Sell-side Advisors Ranking

Gaming-Focused Funds

InvestGame Patreon recent materials shared

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— 15 tables with all the industry deals;

— An exclusive Gaming M&A Sell-Side Advisory

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Quarterly YoY performance

Fewer deals but higher values — a glimpse of improvement

5

Executive Summary

Private Investments (in $B)

Public Offerings* (in $B)

Mergers & Acquisitions* (in $B)

Note: some transactions do not disclose deal value but are counted for the total number of deals;

(*) closed transactions only (excl. announced, e.g., Gearbox sale to Take-Two Interactive)

Q1’24 in a nutshell

Most notable transactions

6

Executive Summary

Note: (1) a master franchise deal with entrepreneur Nawaf Al-Bishri; (2) rumored valuation; (3) provided $590m of convertible debt in its subsidiary

Private Investments

Public Offerings

Mergers & Acquisitions

Private Investments

Incremental growth in dealmaking, following market “reset”

Executive Summary

7

“‘COVID” ACCELERATION

— In Q1’24, the results seemed to surpass

last year ’s quarterly values, primarily

driven by Epic Games raising $1.5B

from Disney. Excluding this deal,

the amount of capital deployed was 30%

lower than Q1’23.

— Over the last year, VCs have become

cautious and selective, committing smaller

check sizes, forming syndicates with CVCs,

and making fewer investments.

Nevertheless, the pace of dealmaking

has recently improved, mainly driven

by growth in Pre-Seed & Seed VC activity.

— We maintain a modestly positive outlook

for 2024 amid a stabilized macro

environment, more robust exit activity,

and positive public markets momentum

(S&P 500 +5% YTD*).

POST-PANDEMIC GROWTH

“HANGOVER”

STABILIZATION

Note: some transactions do not disclose deal value but are counted in for the total number of deals; (*) as of 18-Apr-2024

Private Investment Activity: Corporate, VC & PE (in $B)

— The last four quarters’ M&A activity

indicates impending stabilization,

with ~24 closed deals per quarter

and a growing number of midcap deals

(~$1B or less).

— PEs (financial sponsors) have increased

their role in the
sector
by making notable

acquisitions such as Scopely for $4.9B

in Q3’23 and Jagex for $1.1B in Q1’24.

— Sponsor-led deals are likely to persist,

given the buyer-friendly environment.

Strategics focus more on operational

optimization through layoffs and asset

divestitures (e.g., Embracer-Gearbox /

Saber, SEGA-Relic, MTG-Kongregate).

— PE’s willingness to deploy capital in

gaming and potential gaming stocks’ prices

growth will likely foster a steady M&A

recovery trend during 2024.

Executive Summary

8

Mergers & Acquisitions

Have yet to embark on a steady pace

“COVID” ACCELERATION

POST-PANDEMIC GROWTH

“HANGOVER”

STABILIZATION

Note: some transactions do not disclose deal value but are counted in for the total number of deals

Closed Mergers & Acquisitions: Control & Minority (in $B)

Public Offerings

IPO market remains muted

9

Executive Summary

PEAK OF PUBLIC LISTING & SHARE ISSUE ACTIVITY

MACROECONOMIC INSTABILITY & GAMING STOCKS TURBULENCE

Note: some transactions do not disclose deal value but counted in for the total number of deals; (*) as of 18-Apr-2024

Public Offerings Activity (in $B)

—
Despite some positive market signals,

such as the Reddit IPO and a
+5% YTD*

increase in the S&P 500, public listings

remained muted in Q1’24.

— High interest rates, a softening gaming

market, and the weak post-IPO performance

of many gaming comps (e.g., Skillz, Devolver,

tinyBuild) have compelled many firms

to postpone their initial listings. The only

exception is Shift Up, which has filed

to go public on the Korea Stock Exchange

with a rumored valuation of over $2B.

— Trading at significant discounts compared

to previous periods, many gaming companies

are pursuing share buyback programs (e.g.,

AppLovin, Tencent, Electronic Arts, MTG).

—
Meanwhile, issuing shares is an unpopular

option for raising capital, an “expensive”

dilutive instrument vs. using loans/notes.

Gaming

Deals with Targets represented

by video game publishers and/or developers

VC Early-stage Gaming

Solid seed and challenging Series A activity

11

Gaming

“COVID” ACCELERATION

STABLE Seed & TURBULENT Series A ACTIVITY

POST-PANDEMIC GROWTH

Game Developers & Publishers: Early-Stage VC (in $m)

—
Pre-Seed and Seed activity remained

strong, with ~3x more quarterly capital

raised vs. the pre-pandemic level of ~$30m
.

This trend is likely to persist in the future.

— On the contrary, Series A rounds continue

to slow down – this quarter reaching the

lowest point in years, with many Seed-funded

startups struggling to
raise
subsequent

rounds.

— VCs are very
cautious
in their
choices,

backing fewer startups at higher check

rounds, considering more syndicate

investments, and introducing more downside

protective terms in the deals.

— Capital supply continues to improve

as gaming funds announce fundraising

(e.g.,
a16z II
, BITKRAFT III) and new gaming

VCs emerge in the market (e.g., Laton, Merak

Capital, Hand of Midas, IGF, IMPACT46).

Note: some transactions do not disclose deal value, but counted in for total number of deals

Gaming Funds

Vast amount available capital and funds to partner with

12

Gaming

Gaming-Focused PE
 
/
 
VC Funds & Accelerators By Year of Establishment

—
The gaming industry has seen massive

capital infusion over the last five years,

with more than 45 gaming-focused funds

established since 2019, which is roughly

2x times more than the previous decade.

— Gamin
g-
focused funds cumulatively have

raised over $15B capital
to date
, with over

$7B deployed in gaming studios since 2020.

—
Despite ongoing market turbulence,

the gaming sector continues to attract

investors, with over 10 funds announced

in Q1’24.

— Over 80% of funds are focused on

early-stage
investments
,
with
fewer than

10 being stage-agnostic
and only one

gaming PE fund, Haveli Investments.

—
Many Generalist VCs and PEs joined

the race by actively co-investing with gaming

funds and leading the rounds.

VC
 
/
 
PE Late-stage Gaming

Mixed results with growth prospect

13

Gaming

“COVID” ACCELERATION

CONTINUED MARKET HEADWINDS

POST-PANDEMIC DEMAND

—
Gaming content businesses typically

require less capital in later stages.

With less attractive exit options (closed IPO

window and volatile M&A activity),

VCs and PEs have shown increased

hesitancy in funding Late-stage rounds

(Series B+) since H2’22.

— Investment in smaller rounds has seen

a slight resurgence since Q3’23,

with 3 deals per quarter, matching

pre-pandemic levels. Larger investment

rounds ($100m+) continue to be rare,

occurring roughly once or twice every

six months.

— Anticipating a decrease in interest rates

and improvements in the equity and M&A

markets, we expect to see modest growth in

the capital raised and the number

of Late-stage rounds.

Game Developers & Publishers: Late-Stage VC
 
/
 
PE (in $m)

Note: some transactions do not disclose deal value but are counted for the total number of deals

14

Gaming

Gaming VC Funds Ranked by Number of Seed Rounds*

Note: (*) only include gaming studios (developers & publishers of video games), excluding web3 studios

Most active Gaming VC funds: Seed rounds

#
1

#
2

#
3

#
4

#
5

2020

2021

2022

2023

Q1’ 24

Galaxy

Interactive

9

11

NUMBER OF
DEALS

$
20
m

#
8

VALUE

OF DEALS

RANK

Play

Ventures

Sisu Game

Ventures

$
13
m

#
8

$
9
m

#
8

1Up

Ventures

$
25
m

#
6

BITKRAFT

Ventures

$
25
m

#
5

1Up

Ventures

$
35
m

#
9

vgames

Play

Ventures

$
18
m

#
9

$
16
m

#
7

BITKRAFT

Ventures

$
19
m

#
6

Sisu Game

Ventures

$
17
m

#
6

9

1Up

Ventures

$
61
m

#
11

The Games

Fund

Sisu Game

Ventures

$
22
m

#
9

$
21
m

#
9

BITKRAFT

Ventures

$
38
m

#
6

Transcend

Fund

$
50
m

#
5

11

9

Sisu Game

Ventures

$
32
m

#
10

The Games

Fund

GEM Capital

$
24
m

#
8

$
20
m

#
8

BITKRAFT

Ventures

$
36
m

#
7

vgames

n.d.

#
6

11

9

1Up

Ventures

$
19
m

#
3

BITKRAFT

Ventures

Transcend

Fund

$
21
m

#
2

$
11
m

#
2

The Games

Fund

$
5
m

#
2

Ludus

Ventures

$
5
m

#
2

15

Gaming

Most active Gaming VC funds: Series A rounds

Note: (*) only includes gaming studios (developers & publishers of video games), excluding web3 studios. Does not include Q1’24, as

there were no gaming Series A round deals during this period

Gaming VC Funds Ranked by Number of Series A Rounds*

#
1

#
2

#
3

#
4

#
5

2020

2021

2022

2023

Sisu Game

Ventures

9

11

NUMBER OF
DEALS

$
128
m

#
5

VALUE

OF DEALS

RANK

Galaxy

Interactive

BITKRAFT

Ventures

$
28
m

#
4

$
27
m

#
4

GEM Capital

$
20
m

#
3

Play

Ventures

$
15
m

#
3

London Venture

Partners

$
55
m

#
5

BITKRAFT

Ventures

vgames

$
65
m

#
5

n.d.

#
5

Makers

Fund

$
77
m

#
4

Galaxy

Interactive

$
49
m

#
3

9

vgames

n.d.

#
6

Makers

Fund

Galaxy

Interactive

$
144
m

#
5

$
68
m

#
5

a16z

$
73
m

#
4

BITKRAFT

Ventures

$
59
m

#
4

11

9

a16z

$
70
m

#
3

Lightspeed

Venture

1UP

Ventures

$
86
m

#
2

$
86
m

#
2

Hiro

Capital

$
20
m

#
2

Sisu Game

Ventures

$
20
m

#
2

Corporate Gaming

Playing a vital role in the investment ecosystem

16

Gaming

Game Developers & Publishers: Corporate VC (in $m)

Note: some transactions do not disclose deal value but are counted for the total number of deals

— An increasing number of Corporate

investors participating in VC rounds (labeled

as “CVC+VC”) affirms a trend of VC investors

being more cautious in their investments,

managing risk by sharing rounds

and confirming interest in the studio

through strategic on-board.

— Strategic investors actively adopt

“VC-like” terms and increase their share

in Early-stage investments. Asian corporate

venture arms of major companies such as

Tencent, NetEase, Krafton, Kakao, and Sony

have been notably active, participating

in over 25 VC rounds combined since 2022.

— Corporate-led solo investments have

remained under pressure, with one

significant announcement being Disney’s

$1.5B investment in Epic Games.

Gaming Investments Q1’24

Closed VC & Corporate deals by targets geo

Gaming

17

Number of deals

Gaming M&A activity remains under pressure as public players have

paused their activity.Sponsors are slowly picking up the race

Executive Summary

18

Note: (1) including work-for-hire studios; (2) control M&A transactions with est. upfront EV above $65m (incl. recently announced

$460m Gearbox sale); Savvy Games Group is categorized as a Sponsor

Value of deals ($B)

Gaming
1
M&As
2
— Deals With $65M+ Upfront EV By Deal Type (in $B)

Gaming
1
M&As
2
By Deal Type 2020–Q1’24 (in $B)

Sell-Side Gaming
1
M&A
2
Advisory League Table

2020-Q1’2024

Executive Summary

19

Note: (1) sellers represent game developers or publishers across PC, Console, and Mobile (inc. work-for-hire businesses);

(2) includes transactions with a sale of a controlling stake and estimated upfront deal value above $65m, excluding earn-outs

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Gaming: PC & Console

Deals with targets represented by video game publishers and

developers on PC or Console platforms (incl. multiplatform)

21

Steam demonstrates consistent growth since 2020, bringing ~$9B in

full game revenue

Gaming

Note: (1) total gross revenue from game sales (excluding microtransactions); (2) 2024E shows YTD Steam peak CCU

Source:
VG Insights

— In 2023, Steam set a new record, bringing ~$8.8B in

full game sales, mainly driven by a strong slate

of high-quality premium releases (e.g.,
Baldur’s Gate 3
,

Hogwarts Legacy
,
Starfield
,
Resident Evil 4
).

— The beginning of 2024 has seen a solid start,

with YTD full-game sales approaching $3.5B

and online CCU crossing 36 million in March.

— A less crowded AAA release schedule

in 2024 opens up opportunities for independent

studios to get players’ attention: e.g.,
Helldivers 2
,

Palworld
, and 
Enshrouded
combined brought almost

$1B in sales.

— Growing sales of new IPs developed by AA/Indie

teams (CAGR’2021–23 of 10%) and over $3B capital

deployed in PC & Console studios since 2020

are positive indicators of further market growth.

Steam Gross Full Game Revenue
1
And Online Users Activity
2
(in $B)

Indie/AA studios are the driving force behind new PC “hits,”

reaching record releases in 2023

22

Gaming

Note: (1) total gross revenue from game sales (excluding microtransactions); (2) Date of Early Access release

Source:
VG Insights

Jan-2024

18m+ units

$420m+

Oct-2023

11m+ units

$90m+

Jun-2023
2

3m+ units

$40m+

Sep-2020

20m+ units

$210m+

Aug-2020

18m+ units

$250m+

May-2022

4m+ units

$70m+

Dec-2021
2

5m+ units

$160m+

Feb-2021

13m+ units

$170m+

Feb-2023

5m+ units

$120m+

Jul-2022

4m+ units

$90m+

Steam Premium Games With $20M+ Gross Full Game Revenue
1

Within The First Year of Release

Select Indie
 
/
 
AA Successful Titles Released Since 2020

VCs & PEs have deployed over $3.4B capital into PC & Console studios,

providing fuel to drive further market growth

23

Gaming

Note: (1) only investment transactions with a disclosed deal value above $250k and below $500m check size (excluding grants,

accelerators, or buyouts); (2) $10m are not included in the financing deal value

PC & Console: VC & PE Financing Activity Under $500M
1
(in $B)

— Tremendous growth in PC & Console exit activity

(mainly M&As and a few IPOs) and a relatively stable

environment (compared to the mobile sector) have

attracted many financial investors.

— Since 2020, VCs have deployed over $3B

of investments into PC & Console studios,

with over 50% of capital allocated to Series B+

rounds and the majority of all rounds closed at peak

levels in 2021.

— While the number of Seed and Series A rounds have

been relatively stable during 2020–2023, Late-stage

rounds experienced a notable decline during

2022–2023.

— In Q1’24, Late-stage rounds kicked off with a solid

uptick in activity with 3 announcements: Build

a Rocket Boy

($110m), Mountaintop ($30m),

and Gunzilla Games ($30m incl. $10m token round
2
).

Seed rounds remained largely unaffected, while Series A and

Late-stage rounds experienced lower check sizes and fewer deals

24

Gaming

Note: (*) only investment transactions with a disclosed deal value above $250k and below $500m check size (excluding grants, accelerators, or buyouts)

PC & Console: Average Round Size* (in $m)

PC & Console: Number Of Closed Rounds*

TARGET

ACQUIRER

DEAL VALUE

DATE

PC & Console studios have brought over $91B in total upfront

proceeds across 37 mid- and large-cap deals since 2020

25

Gaming

$68.7B

$7.5B

$3.6B

$1.3B

$1.2B

$1.1B

$0.9B
2

Note: (1) including control M&A transactions with est. upfront EV above $65m (incl. recently announced $460m Gearbox sale);

(2) the deal value is $0.9B (67% of equity), and the total EV is $1.3B

Oct’23

Mar’21

Jan’22

Dec’20

Feb’21

Jul’23

Feb’24

PC & Console M&As
1
Across Deals With $65M+ Upfront EV (in $B)

Largest PC & Console M&A Deals Since 2020 (in $B)

Gaming: Mobile

Deals with targets represented by video game

publishers and developers on Mobile platforms

“COVID” ACCELERATION

POST-PANDEMIC

GROWTH

POST ”COVID” HANGOVER; IDFA CHALLENGES

STABILIZATION

27

Mobile market

Stabilized, yet unready to scale

— The mobile gaming market has faced challenges

since Q3’21 after the implementation of IDFA

changes in Apr ’21 and was additionally affected

by post-COVID players’ engagement drop.

— A few last quarters have shown relatively stable

dynamics, with public mobile companies reporting

tiny organic growth, hopefully a sign of ongoing

market recovery.

— Mobile publishers introduce various initiatives to

scale games: leveraging third-party IPs, using

hybrid gameplay and monetization mechanics, and

releasing titles across multiple platforms.

—
AppMagic
cautiously expects the market to

remain steady or slightly decline in 2024, though

less severe than in the previous years. By 2025,

the market should start recovering, with significant

growth anticipated in 2026.

Gaming

Mobile Market: IAP Revenue* (in $B)

Note: (*) total revenue from in-app purchases across mobile games genres;

Source:
AppMagic

28

Gaming

TARGET

ACQUIRER

DEAL VALUE

DATE

Note: (*) including control M&A transactions with est. upfront EV above $65m

$12.7B

Jan’22

$4.9B

Apr’23

$4.0B

Mar’21

$2.2B

Aug’21

$2.1B

Apr’21

$1.4B

Sep’21

$2.1B

Jul’20

$1.0B

Oct’21

Mobile M&As* Across Deals With $65m+ Upfront EV (in $B)

Largest Mobile M&A Deals Since 2020 (in $B)

Mobile M&A activity has been significantly impacted by

unfavorable underlying market dynamics

Mobile gaming startups have become less popular

among VC & PE investors

– While VC&PE investments in gaming have struggled

overall, mobile studios have been particularly hard hit.

Many investors have shifted their focus from mobile
($0.3B

capital attracted in 2023) to PC & Console platforms,

which drew $0.5B in 2023. The latter have shown better

results and growth over the past few years.

— Seed investments were less affected than Late-stage

rounds, which saw only a few notable transactions last

year, including Candivore’s $100m raise from Haveli and

Carry1st’s $27m raise in 2023, plus an undisclosed round

from Sony Innovation Fund in 2024.

— Many mobile startups have failed to cross the “death

valley” to get promising enough metrics, affecting

Late-stage activity. In Q1’24, only 2.5% of new mobile

titles generated over $100k per month in net IAP revenue,

according to AppMagic’s Success Rate Meter.

29

Gaming

Note: only investment transactions with a disclosed deal value above $250k and below $500m check size (excluding grants,

accelerators, or buyouts)

Mobile: VC & PE Financing Activity (in $B)

30

Gaming

Note: (*) only investment transactions with a disclosed deal value above $250k and below $500m check size (excluding grants,

accelerators, or buyouts)

Mobile: Average Round Size* (in $m)

Mobile: Number Of Closed Rounds*

Seed rounds remain relatively stable, while Series A and

Late-stage investment activity has continued to decline

31

At MY.GAMES, we’ve been creating and developing

strategic partnerships with independent studios

worldwide for more than 6 years. In this timeframe,

we’ve built partnership relations with over 40

teams. Being always tightly connected

with developers allows us to identify opportunities

and monitor market trends meticulously. We’re

excited to share some of our observations,

which we hope you’ll find helpful.

— User Acquisition (UA) management has hardly

ever been so challenging: UA of a mobile project

involves juggling more than 8 channels, each

requiring daily monitoring and management

of advertising campaigns. Moreover, modeling UA

ROI predictions and setting up and managing

the neverending process of finding new hit ad

creatives require a team of experienced and highly

compensated professionals, which significantly

increases the studio’s operational costs.

— At the same time, the importance

of a comprehensive publishing mix for successful

operations is increasing. While historically,

a publisher’s focus was mainly on UA, it now

encompasses a broader scope of activities.

We identify growth factors in the entire publishing

mix, including brand campaigns, PR, IP

collaborations, and more.

— In the current mobile market landscape

with tight competition and small margins, finding

better distribution and new payment solutions plays

a critical role. Introducing off-platform payments

(web shop), arranging distribution on various

alternative Android stores and the web,

and exploring other new revenue streams might be

game changers for the studio’s performance.

— Considering the low success rate of new game

launches, activities related to maintaining

and evolving released projects become especially

important. This includes the right cadence

of live-ops and monetization events, a new content

treadmill, monitoring of core audience engagement

& happiness, and properly structured community

management.

— The current mobile market state, combined

with the macroeconomic landscape, leads many

investors and publishers to become more

conservative in their risk-taking. The chance

of securing investment or a publishing contract

without the medium-term retention & monetization

metrics is extremely low. However, an important

exception to note when it comes to raising

investment — new star teams originating from large

and successful studios. Therefore, a lean approach

to managing operating costs makes perfect sense.

— Looking at the worldwide top-100 list of mobile

games by revenue, only 7 titles were released

in 2023. Big studios created all these projects;

most of them are from Asian teams, and only

2 of them are not MMORPGs (AppMagic).

Considering the current discoverability challenges

on mobile, the chances of successfully launching

a new game by a small studio without a major

partner and large marketing budgets tend to be

close to zero.

— The F2P market on PC & Consoles is extremely

competitive and consolidated by several of the

largest titles. Only 1 game released in 2022/2023

on Steam managed to reach the top 10
by average

CCU —
The Finals
. It leads to F2P PC/Console

titles being a very risky bet, and we’ve seen many

studio and project closures that were referred to

this trend (
Hyenas
by SEGA is a shining one).

— The number of Asian developers interested

in the Western market is growing. The increased

competition in the local markets makes Asian

developers explore opportunities among

the Western audience. Plenty of projects

are interested in scaling globally and adapting

their gameplay loops and visual style to serve

the needs of a broader audience.

Message from our Partner

MY.GAMES

NIKITA MATSOKIN

MY.GAMES Venture Capital

Executive Director

nikita.matsokin@my.game
s

MY.GAMES has recently shaped a new pillar:

Mobile Publishing. MY.GAMES is uniquely

positioned to offer top-notch publishing

for mobile games based on our seasoned

MY.GAMES Venture Capital team with a solid

track record of successful collaboration

with partner development studios to streamline

the evolution and growth of their products.

Within the publishing partnership

with MY.GAMES studios receive access

to all the resources, infrastructure solutions,

and experienced marketing and business

development teams that contribute to the growth

of such successful titles as
War Robots
,
Rush

Royale
,
Grand Hotel Mania
, and more.

Esports

32

Appendix

Methodology & Glossary

The private data contained in this report

is based on information from sources

believed to be reliable, but we can’t

guarantee accuracy and completeness.

Sources include public media, our business

partners, and market insights.

InvestGame tracks closed transactions

(unless otherwise noted) in the Video Games

industry, with target companies having core

business operations related to the Video

Games market. We do not track pure

gambling, betting, and non-gaming

blockchain
 
/
 
web3 companies.

Late-stage VC

Corporate

Early-stage VC

Fixed income

IPO, SPAC

PIPE, other

Deal Types Overview

Control

Minority

— Control M&As
 
—
 
mergers and acquisitions

resulting in the change of control

(50%+ ownership)

— Minority M&As
 
—
 
sale of a minority stake

in the business

— Early-stage VC
 
—
 
pre-Seed, Seed,

and Series A rounds with a lead VC fund

— Late-stage VC
 
—
 
Series B, Series C,

and later-lettered venture rounds

— Corporate Investments
 
—
 
investments

with a lead investor being a strategic/CVCs

— IPOs
 
—
 
the process of a company going

public, including IPOs, SPACs, and direct

listings

— PIPE, other
 
—
 
private investment in public

equity, direct share issue, and other

transactions with publicly traded stock

— Fixed income
 
—
 
debt-related instrument

with fixed payments and interest payments

Deal Type Terms Glossary

Target’s Sector Overview

Hardware

Other

Cash-related

PC
 
&
 
Console

Multiplatform

Mobile

Outsourcing

VR/AR

Platform

Tech

VR/AR

Blockchain-powered

The information, opinions, estimates,

and forecasts contained herein

are as of the date hereof and are subject

to change. We seek to update our

research as appropriate.

Gaming

Platform

& Tech

Other

M&As

Private

Investments

Public

Offerings

VC Ratings Calculation

Typically, funds do not publicly disclose

their individual participation in financing

rounds. Therefore, we do not track the exact

investment amounts by each fund; instead,

we consider the entire round size

in our ranking calculations. Our priority lies in

the total number and value of the deals

a fund participates in while also emphasizing

the value and count of deals where the fund

takes a leading role.

Our historical datasets undergo ongoing

revisions to integrate newly gathered data

and updates from our partners.

This report is intended for general information

purposes only and is educational in nature;

it is not a solicitation or an offer to buy or sell

any financial instruments or to participate

in any particular trading strategy. Nothing
in this

document constitutes a personal

recommendation, or a piece of legal

or professional advice.

You agree not to copy, revise, amend, or create

a derivative work, provide it to any third party,

or commercially exploit any InvestGame

research. You shall not reproduce data in any

form or by any means without the prior written

consent of InvestGame.

We would love to thank our dear friends

at 
MY.GAMES
and
Taylor Wessing
for

supporting this report. Please note that this

support did not affect the integrity or

fairness of the data and analysis.

Twitter

Digest

Patreon

LinkedIn

33

Disclaimer

Appendix

This document is for distribution only, as may be

permitted by applicable local laws. It is not

directed to or intended for distribution

to or use by any per son or entity who

is a citizen or resident of or located in any state,

country, or other jurisdiction where such

distribution, publication, availability, or use would

be contrary to law or regulation or would subject

InvestGame to any registration or licensing

requirement within such jurisdiction.