Game Developer -Playable Worlds Raises Over $25M for Series B with Strategic Investment from Kakao Games

BITKRAFT Venturesinteractive galaxy, Lilith Games and Gaingels join the development of a cloud-native technology MMO and sandbox game, led by Raph Koster and Eric Goldberg.

Playable worlds

Playable Worlds announced today that it has obtained over $25 million in a Series B funding, led by a Korean video game publisher Kakao Games Corp.a subsidiary of Kakao, and with the participation of returning investors BITKRAFT Ventures and Galaxy Interactive. New investors Lilith Games and Gaingels also joined the tour, which follows a $10 million Series A in 2020. This strategic investment will be used to boost Playable Worlds’ talent recruitment and fund its cloud-native sandbox MMO game currently in development.

“We have proven the fundamental technology and continue to work on our game production, with the goal of revealing our IP soon,” said Raph Koster, CEO and co-founder of Playable Worlds. “While we’re not ready to lift the curtains yet, this funding round will help us get closer to sharing with potential players, with a focus on delivering a more meaningful experience comprised of rich simulations, fully persistent online worlds and deeper social mechanics.

Playable Worlds was co-founded by industry veterans Raph Koster, repeat entrepreneur and designer of Ultima Online and Star Wars Galaxies; and Eric Goldberg, four-time entrepreneur and designer of MadMaze, the first online game to attract one million players. The company is actively recruiting to join its high-calibre team, and various positions are currently open for applications at: playableworlds.com/jobs

“Cloud-native online games lead to multiverses of online worlds,” explained the president and co-founder, Eric Goldberg. “And these lead to metaverses when they are finally connected to the real world.” Cloud computing now allows us to create both more powerful sandboxed MMO games and multiverses of connected experiences.

“We are making investments that will fuel innovations in MMO games and bring new concepts to life,” said Kakao Games CEO, Kyehyun Cho. “The technology stack that Playable Worlds has implemented and proven so far has significantly influenced investment and will certainly play a role in the development of the metaverse.” The caliber of the team behind Raph and Eric finally sealed the deal, and we’re confident in their ability to execute.

Lilith Games is a global mobile game developer and publisher that has been actively growing into the metaverse since 2018. Gaingels is a syndicate of private investors dedicated to supporting diversity and inclusion in the venture capital ecosystem.

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To learn more about the playability of these worlds and if this is truly an MMO game for the rest of us*, visit www.playableworlds.com and follow us on Twitter, Instagram or LinkedIn.

*We can neither confirm nor deny the rumor that we are building a game for the rest of us. We’re not sure about Elon. And maybe not Mark.

About playable worlds

Playable Worlds, Inc. is a multiverse company creating immersive worlds with diverse player experiences, social integration and higher retention, based on San Marcos, California. Founded in 2018 by online gaming veterans Raph Koster and Eric Goldberg, Playable Worlds creates cloud-native online worlds by combining proprietary technology with expertise in service operations, community building and online game design. For more information, visit playableworlds.com.

On Kakao Games Corp.

Founded in 2016, Kakao Games is a leading publisher of online and mobile games, responsible for releasing titles such as Pearl Abyss’ Black Desert Online (served in North America and Europe until early 2021), from Krafton PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (maintained in Korea), Kong Studios’ Guardian Tales (served in North America, Europe, Latin America and Oceania), Moonlight Sculptor (maintained in North America and Europe) MMORPG Elyon (maintained in North America, Europe and Oceania) and ArcheAge (served in North America and Europe).

Media Contact

press@playableworlds.com

TriplePoint, on behalf of Playable Worlds

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