The startup plans to utilise the new capital to develop AAA games in India and will initially focus on mobile gaming before expanding to other platforms, including consoles.
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AAA games are characterised by high budgets, top-quality graphics that are developed and published by major gaming companies or studios. Featuring advanced gameplay mechanics, extensive content, and significant marketing campaigns, they are usually released on multiple platforms such as personal computers, consoles like PlayStation, Xbox and sometimes mobile devices.
Examples of AAA games include popular franchises like Grand Theft Auto, The Witcher, Assassin’s Creed, and Call of Duty.
LightFury, cofounded by Shroff, Anurag Banerjee, who also serves as its chief product and technology officer, and Tina Balachandran, previously senior vice president at Unacademy, aims to establish game studios in India and the UK while recruiting top talent.
“Creating successful AAA titles in the Indian market and establish a Tencent-like presence originating from India is what we are excited to bring to the fore,” Shroff said in a statement. “It would necessitate building the finest expertise and leveraging state-of-the-art technological innovations to ensure top-tier gameplay quality.”
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LightFury Games was officially launched by Shroff on April 10 via LinkedIn.While India has seen the rise of gaming unicorns like Dream11, Mobile Premier League (MPL), and Games 24×7, it has yet to produce a homegrown AAA game. However, efforts are being made in this direction, such as the beta launch of Underworld Gang Wars by MPL’s mobile gaming development arm Mayhem Studios, and the beta release of Indus Battle Royale by Pune-based gaming studio SuperGaming.
“The ability to piece together the talent and bring in believers from the gaming and consumer universe make it one of the most exciting investments we’ve made in this space,” said Karthik Reddy, cofounder and managing partner of Blume Ventures.
ET on March 24 reported that India is now the largest gaming market in the world, boasting a user base of 568 million gamers and over 9.5 billion gaming app downloads in 2023. It contributes approximately 20% of the world’s total mobile game downloads, surpassing the combined download totals of the United States and Brazil.
