- The new funding wil go towards their as yet unnamed social sandbox MMO
- “We are creating a game that is also going to be the most important social platform for millions of players, where they can create meaningful relationships”
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Finnish game studio Social First has announced a further $4.2 million seed round led by Crowberry Capital – a Nordic venture capital firm that invests in seed and early-stage startups across the Nordics – with original pre-seed investor Play Ventures also investing. A further component of this new funding comes from Business Finland, the Finnish governmental organisation for innovation funding.
The new funding wil go towards the company’s first product – an as yet unnamed social sandbox MMO that they hope will “redefine social gaming” and which has been undergoing testing with “thousands of players” already.
“Games are fast becoming leading social platforms and for many in the younger generations they are indeed that already.”
Kim Soares, CEO
“Games are fast becoming leading social platforms and for many in the younger generations they are indeed that already,” explained CEO Kim Soares [right in our picture, alongside president Mikko Kähärä].
“We are not just developing a social game, we are creating a game that is also going to be the most important social platform for millions of players, where they can create meaningful relationships”
“Deep understanding of social games”
Crowberry Capital Founding Partner Hekla Arnardóttir says: “We are incredibly impressed with the Social First team’s extensive experience and professionalism. Their early release numbers have shown enviable traction, reflecting their deep understanding of social games. We are excited to back them through their early launch and look forward to seeing them redefine the social gaming landscape.”
The company is now 20-strong, comprising of a team of industry veterans from studios such as Ubisoft, Rovio and Paradox Interactive. The team aim to have the game into early access before the end of the year.
“We’re excited to continue our backing for Social First. Games are inherently social, and gaming is becoming essential in people’s everyday social lives,” said Play Ventures Founding Partner Harri Manninen. “Social First’s team has extremely ambitious goals for their game, and they have already built an enthusiastic community around their early playtests with amazing results.”
