“HDW will acquire 51 per cent of Deltatech Gaming, followed by a merger of DGL into HDW. Upon completion of the merger, DeltaCorp Ltd (“DCL”) will hold a 5.7 per cent stake in HDW,” it said.

HDW builds and manages real-money gaming platforms, including A23 Rummy and A23 Poker.

“We’re excited about this journey with Deepak and the team, whose leadership has been instrumental in shaping the online rummy market in India. We believe that this transaction will help Adda52’s leading position in the online poker market,” said Ashish Kapadia, Managing Director, Deltatech Gaming.

With this acquisition, HDW aims to strengthen its position in the online gaming industry, expanding its portfolio and market reach. The deal is expected to enhance its offerings and provide a more diverse gaming experience for users.

If finalised, the agreement would include Pokémon Go and Niantic’s other mobile gaming titles. 

Despite the massive success of Pokémon Go, Niantic struggled to replicate its popularity. In 2022 and 2023, the company cut staff and cancelled several projects in development. Due to underwhelming performance, Niantic shut down its Harry Potter: Wizards Unite game in 2022.

A sale to Scopely could significantly shift the mobile gaming landscape as the Saudi-owned company looks to expand its global gaming portfolio.

Representatives from Niantic and Scopely declined to comment on the matter. Savvy Games Group, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund subsidiary, owns Scopely.

Originally a part of Alphabet Inc.’s Google, Niantic became an independent company in 2015. Its founder and CEO, John Hanke, previously worked in satellite mapping and later led Google’s Geo product division. Pokémon Go, which became a massive hit, encouraged players to explore their surroundings using an interactive map to locate popular characters from Nintendo Co.

According to the company, the game is the most downloaded and profitable augmented reality app of all time.

The San Francisco-based company makes other products, including tools to help capture and share 3D scans of real-world locations. Data generated through its apps have contributed to a “large geospatial model,” the company announced in November. That model will “use large-scale machine learning to understand a scene and connect it to millions of other scenes globally.”

Savvy Games acquired Mobile game maker Scopely for $4.9 billion two years ago. In 2024, Savvy Chief Executive Officer Brian Ward told Bloomberg News that the company planned to add a “genre-leading” mobile title to its roster through Scopely — the “tip of the spear” for its mobile investment strategy.

In August, Niantic partnered with Savvy Games Group to support its expansion into Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt.

Savvy is a key player in the Saudi Public Investment Fund’s broader strategy to diversify the country’s economy by investing in the video game industry.

The acquisition aims to expand Nodwin Gaming’s global portfolio of AAA esports IPs and event production. In gaming, AAA refers to high-budget, high-quality titles.

Under the deal, Nodwin’s Singapore subsidiary will pay StarLadder $2 million (₹17 crores) in cash, while it will settle the remaining $3.5 million through an equity share swap in Nodwin Singapore. Additionally, the company will pay StarLadder extra upon achieving specified earn-out targets.

Despite the acquisition, StarLadder will retain its brand identity. Founder Roman Romanstov will continue to lead the business while also becoming a shareholder in Nodwin Gaming.

“StarLadder and Roman have been and remain the superstars behind the Creme de la Creme events that esports fans have loved to see. Roman is considered one of the pioneers of esports event production, and he has deep insight into stage design, creative broadcast solutions, and entrepreneurial energy,” said Nodwin Gaming co-founder Akshat Rathee in a statement.

“With this, Nodwin will level up our capability and envision bigger and better IPs and events for our fans and partners to love,” he said.

Founded in 2018 by Roman Romanstov, StarLadder boasts a team with over two decades of experience in organizing esports tournaments. Their portfolio includes major events like the Valve CS:GO Major, Valve Dota 2 Major and Minors, 18 seasons of StarSeries for CS 1.6 and CS:GO, and 17 seasons of StarSeries for Dota 2.

In addition to hosting its tournaments, StarLadder has successfully executed numerous white-label events. The company has collaborated with top gaming giants, including Valve, Tencent, Krafton, Blizzard, Riot Games, Supercell, Com2uS, Moonton, and Smilegate.

“We live in an era of globalization, where the synergy of resources, expertise, and potential drives success and paves the way for future growth…Together with Nodwin Gaming, Starladder is committed to creating extraordinary experiences for fans, delivering unforgettable events across multiple games and regions,” Romanstov said.

Founded in 2014 by Akshat Rathee and Gautam Singh Virk, Nodwin Gaming has expanded its footprint in India and international markets through acquisitions and strategic investments.

In November 2024, Nodwin acquired Trinity Gaming, a leading gaming agency and creator service provider, for ₹24 crore. In December 2024, the company further strengthened its esports presence by acquiring AFK Gaming for ₹7.6 crore.

In June 2024, Nodwin took over Germany-based esports and gaming marketing agency Freaks 4U Gaming to enhance its PC gaming and game publishing support capabilities. In January 2024, the firm diversified into pop culture events by acquiring Comic Con India for ₹55 crore. In February 2024, it expanded into the UAE and Turkey by acquiring Ninja Global FZCO.

Other key acquisitions include:

• April 2023: Purchased a 51% stake in Singapore-based live events firm Branded for up to $1.3 million in an all-cash deal.

• September 2021: Acquired the gaming and adjacent IP businesses of OML Entertainment for ₹73 crore, including the popular NH7 Weekender music festival.

• January 2022: Bought Planet Superheroes for ₹4.9 crore.

On the investment front, Nodwin Gaming secured a ₹64 crore funding boost from NazaraTechnologies in December 2024. Before this, in May 2023, it raised $28 million from new investors Sony Group Corporation and Innopark, alongside existing investors Nazara, Krafton, and JetSynthesys. As of November 2024, Nodwin Gaming’s valuation was $410 million.

This increase follows Nazara’s acquisition of 1,000 additional equity shares, equivalent to a 3% stake, from Next Wave Multimedia’s founding shareholders.

On December 16, 2024, Nazara Technologies paid ₹2.31 crore in cash to the founding shareholders—P.R. Rajendran, R. Kalpana, and P.R. Jayashree—as part of the first tranche of the Share Purchase Agreement (SPA) signed on May 24, 2024. The SPA details the acquisition of 9,375 equity shares, representing a 28.12% stake in Next Wave Multimedia.

The remaining 8,375 shares, equivalent to a 25.12% stake, will be acquired in the second tranche for ₹19.33 crore. The company said it would pay in cash or by issuing NazaraTechnologies’ stock within six months of completing the first tranche.

In FY24, Next Wave Multimedia reported a turnover of ₹21.92 crore, a slight decline from ₹23.79 crore in the previous fiscal year. The company had posted a profit of ₹3.16 crore in FY23.

This development follows Nazara Technologies’ recent fundraising of ₹855 crore(approximately $100 million) from investors such as SBI Mutual Fund, Caratlane founder Mithun Sacheti, and Aamara Capital.

Subsequently, the publicly listed gaming giant announced plans to increase its stake in three key subsidiaries — Nodwin Gaming, Absolute Sports (parent company of Sportskeeda), and ad tech firm Datawrkz. Nazara also outlined plans to invest in kids’ play centre company Funky Monkeys and the edtech platform Learntube.ai.

On the financial front, Nazara reported a consolidated net profit of ₹16.24 crore in Q2 FY25, marking a 33% decline from ₹24.18 crore in the same quarter of the previous fiscal year.

At 12:50 PM, shares of Nazara Technologies were trading 1.87% higher at ₹1,052.15 on the BSE.

This acquisition ensures that Next Wave Multimedia remains a key subsidiary of NazaraTechnologies. Known for its popular mobile games, Next Wave has significantly driven Nazara’s growth since the company acquired its majority stake in 2018.

Along with equity, Jetapult will provide funds to grow UMX Studio’s portfolio, expand its audience across various markets, and develop games in new genres. Jetapult’s gaming experts will also help UMX Studio boost user acquisition, scale monetization, and adopt advanced analytics and AI tools.

Launched in 2022 by Sharan Tulsiani and Yash Baid under JetSynthesys, Jetapult supports game development studios using an invest-and-operate model. The company targets Southeast Asia, MENA, Eastern Europe, and South America.

The company has committed to invest $100 million over the next five years.

“This is part of Jetapult’s broader plan to invest in a diverse portfolio of gaming studios in emerging markets, and that is where the growth continues to be, especially in the gaming industry,” Tulsiani, who previously led gaming at Google Play Asia – India and ANZ markets, said.

Prior to this, Jetapult invested in Mumbai-based Holy Cow Studio and plans to invest in four to five companies annually.

“Our focus is to have a portfolio of companies targeting high average revenue per user markets globally, and the Middle East is an upcoming hub. UMX is one of the first players to come out of that market and to build very strong culturally resonating games for that particular audience. We believe that adding more titles and genres under a cohesive umbrella of companies will make sense for the next five to seven years,” said Baid. 

This investment trend follows a rise in international acquisitions by gaming companies. For instance, Mumbai-based Nazara Technologies recently allocated around Rs 830 crore for mergers and acquisitions in markets like India, Europe, and North America. Noteworthy acquisitions by Nazara include Comic Con India, West Asia-focused marketing firm Publishme, Singapore-based events firm Branded, and Turkish esports company Ninja Global.

With the fresh capital, LightFury Games aims to create AAA games in India. Initially, the focus will be on mobile gaming, with plans to expand to other platforms like consoles later on.

AAA games are known for their large budgets and high-quality graphics, typically developed and published by major gaming companies or studios. These games feature advanced gameplay mechanics, extensive content, and significant marketing campaigns. They are usually available on various platforms such as PCs, consoles like PlayStation and Xbox, and sometimes even mobile devices.

Popular examples of AAA games include well-known franchises like Grand Theft Auto, The Witcher, Assassin’s Creed, and Call of Duty.

LightFury, founded by Shroff, Anurag Banerjee, who serves as the chief product and technology officer, and Tina Balachandran, formerly a 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.” 

Shroff officially launched LightFury Games on April 10 through LinkedIn.

Although India has witnessed the emergence of gaming unicorns like Dream11, Mobile Premier League (MPL), and Games 24×7, it has yet to develop a homegrown AAA game. However, steps are being taken 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.

“As part of this transaction, Nodwin Gaming will acquire 100% of the shares of Comic Con India at a valuation of Rs 55 crore through a combination of cash and share swap from the founders of Comic Con India – Jatin Varma and Karan Kalra. They will continue and remain to operate the business as part of Nodwin Gaming,” Nazara said in a statement to bourses.

Jatin Varma, founder, Comic Con India, said, “For more than a decade, we have worked tirelessly to build a unique space in India for promoting and celebrating popular culture. And with that goal in our mind, I am very excited to join hands with Nodwin Gaming in taking the next step and building upon this goal together.”

Founded in 2011, Comic Con India hosts festivals nationwide, rejoicing in diverse elements of popular culture such as comics, cosplay, movies, TV shows, merchandise, gaming, and more.

These festivals, held in cities like New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Chennai, have gained immense popularity across India.

“Pursuant to share swap transaction, the Company is proposing to issue 3,71,637 Equity Shares at a price of Rs. 872.15/- per Equity Share aggregating to Rs. 32,41,23,210 (Rupees Thirty-Two Crores, Forty-One Thousand lakhs, Twenty-Three thousand, two hundred and nine only) (“Issue”) by way of preferential issue on private placement basis to the Sellers,” it said in a statement.

This move aims to assist Nazara in building a game discovery platform driven by influencers. Nazara plans to leverage influencers to promote its games across social media channels. 

By having influencers customize content based on audience preferences, the company aims to generate excitement for new releases and boost downloads, according to a statement.

“Our goal is to create an environment where gaming collaborates with the creativity of influencers, enriching the gaming experience for a global audience. Our new game publishing initiative ‘Nazara Publishing’ will particularly benefit from this new initiative,” said Nitish Mittersain, Joint Managing Director and CEO of Nazara Games.

Bengaluru-based Kofluence has a network of slightly over 600,000 creators on platforms like Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, LinkedIn, and X (formerly Twitter). 

Established in 2019 by Sreeram Reddy Vanga and Ritesh Ujjwal, this adtech platform serves users based on diverse performance metrics. The startup has secured $4 million in funding so far, with support from prominent angel investors such as Sujeet Kumar, Aprameya Radhakrishnan, and Kunal Shah.

A 50:50 joint venture will be formed in India between JetSynthesys and DHH, aiming to expand debugging businesses in India and the global gaming market by combining resources. DHH, headquartered in Tokyo and listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, offers comprehensive services to global gaming companies, including debugging, game translation, LQA (Linguistic Quality Assurance), game development support, marketing support, and customer support.

Regarding this announcement, Rajan Navani, CEO and Founder of JetSynthesys, said, “Japan is the third-largest gaming market in the world and boasts of the highest ARPU globally. Our strategic partnership with DIGITAL HEARTS HOLDINGS is pivotal in strengthening JetSynthesys’ international footprint. We will leverage our collective sensibilities, deep understanding of the video games market, audience behaviour, and industry dynamics to create cutting-edge global titles. By pooling our expertise and resources, we are poised to introduce exciting innovations to the gaming world and unlock incremental opportunities and possibilities for the world at large.”

India, with the youngest population globally, is a significant emerging market in gaming, ranking high for mobile game downloads and having one of the largest gaming populations globally. This collaboration is poised to enhance both companies’ global expansion and growth potential.

JetSynthesys Japan will assist in business development in Western countries for DIGITAL HEARTS HOLDINGS. At the same time, DHH will support business development in Japan and other key Eastern Asian markets for JetSynthesys Japan. DHH and its group company will provide development and support function resources for projects co-developed with JetSynthesys Japan.

Additionally, Ryo Shima, Head of JetSynthesys Japan, said, “This partnership heralds a new era of collaboration in the gaming industry. By synergizing our strengths, JetSynthesys and DIGITAL HEARTS HOLDINGS are set to achieve remarkable growth. Our sectoral hold, individual expertise, local knowledge, and extensive networks in both our markets of origin will unlock new horizons for our organizations. On the cards are collaborative game development, operations, talent management, and business growth. We are confident this partnership will bode well for both JetSynthesys and DIGITAL HEARTS HOLDINGS, and we look forward to some exciting times ahead.”

Toshiya Tsukushi, Director, Executive Vice President, and COO of DHH, stated, “We are delighted to be part of this strategic partnership with JetSynthesys. This collaboration enables us to expand our presence in the Indian gaming market and offer our extensive QA services while also opening up new avenues for the global gaming industry out of Japan. We look forward to leveraging JetSynthesys strong foothold in India and in other Western markets to further bolster our global presence.”

This strategic partnership between JetSynthesys and DIGITAL HEARTS HOLDINGS marks a milestone in the gaming industry, focusing on Japan and India. The collaboration aims to deliver innovative gaming experiences globally and foster business growth in both regions.

The company plans to release up to 20 games in 18 months, investing at least Rs 1 crore each. They aim to partner with Indian and global developers to adapt and introduce their games to the Indian gaming audience.

“We are dedicated to nurturing both Indian and global game developers, providing resources, expertise, and a robust network to bring top-tier gaming experiences to India’s vast audience,” said Nitish Mittersain, CEO & joint MD, Nazara Technologies. 

Through its platform, the company is also looking to promote Indian developers globally. “With a special focus on supporting Indian developers, Nazara sees a significant opportunity in the Make-in-India initiative, and as part of this initiative, we will also promote Indian game developers globally,” Mittersain added. 

Nazara intends to offer developers support in game design, localization, data analytics, beta testing, quality assurance, improved monetization, and efficient distribution with its publishing platform.

Last month, the Mumbai-based company received a Rs 2.83 crore GST show cause notice due to unpaid GST on certain exported services.

In early October, Nazara secured Rs 410 crore from SBI Mutual Funds by issuing 5.7 million equity shares at Rs 714 per share. This followed a Rs 100 crore investment from Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath, furthering their foray into game publishing.