Griffin Gaming Partners Fund Eyes Indie Video games, Transmedia Potential

Griffin Gaming Partners, a Santa Monica-based enterprise fund targeted on gaming with $1.5 billion below administration, is launching a brand new fund targeted on promising indie video games with potential past gaming.

The Special Opportunities Fund, value $100 million, “aims to provide a new model for venture capital investment in gaming, focusing on project-based financing with simple terms, in which funding is provided in exchange for a share of a game’s revenue,” the corporate said.

Going past generally used equity-based investments, the purpose of the fund is to supply “a better way of getting capital into the hands of indie studios, many of which are not equipped for or interested in traditional equity-based investment.”

Amid the success of indie builders in creating breakout hits with modest budgets, Griffin identified “a need for and the opportunity in fair funding solutions for small studios.”

Tim Bender, CEO of Hooded Horse, serves as managing director of the fund, which Griffin mentioned has already invested in 15 titles, together with 9 introduced initiatives. The initiatives symbolize a mixture of titles, from self-published video games to these signed with a writer, together with a number of revealed by Hooded Horse.

The fund additionally options such advisors as movie and tv producer Dylan Clark (The Batman, The Penguin, Miami Vice), together with such model stewards as Russell Binder (Five Nights at Freddy’s, Angry Birds, The Walking Dead, Dead by Daylight).

“Indie games represent one of the fastest-growing segments of the interactive entertainment market today,” says Griffin managing director and co-founder Nick Tuosto. “We know developers want a flexible, transparent financing solution, and we’re excited to support their ambitions through the dedicated Special Opportunities Fund. Griffin has been honing its strategy since its formation, and we are proud to bring this new initiative to market with an investment team we believe is uniquely positioned to help exceptional developers realize their full potential.”

The firm additionally sees room for these video games to maneuver into different types of storytelling. “We’re very excited for the transmedia potential of this fund,” mentioned Griffin managing director and co-founder Peter Levin. “The very essence of these games and the contemplative nature of their development lead to sticky player communities and loyal followings.” And the business expertise supporting the fund “shows we’re serious about unlocking opportunities for these titles outside of gaming,” he highlighted.

The six unannounced video games that the fund has invested in are a sci-fi grand technique recreation “based on a popular book and TV franchise,” a Gladiator administration simulation, “a God game with physics mechanics,” a dinosaur multiplayer role-playing recreation (RPG), a sci-fi house motion role-playing recreation (ARPG), and a “fantasy ARPG with base-building.”

The 9 introduced video games that Griffin Gaming’s Special Opportunities Fund has invested in are:

Menace The sci-fi turn-based tactical RPG was created by Overhype Studios (Battle Brothers) and has offered over 250,000 copies in lower than three months.

Begone Beast The top-down co-op horror recreation for as much as 4 gamers encompasses a mix of exploration, fight, and character customization throughout an array of procedurally generated maps.

Expedition: Into Darkness A dungeon crawler and extraction recreation in a darkish fantasy setting with co-op gameplay.

Vaunted The sci-fi turn-based RPG options single-player and co-op recreation modes.

Gilded Destiny: This hex-based grand technique title is ready within the Industrial Age.

Darkwood 2 The top-down survival horror recreation is the sequel to the best-selling Darkwood.

Kinstrife The high-fidelity medieval RPG is ready in “an authentic open world with physics-based combat.”

Highland Keep The open-world survival craft recreation, set in medieval Scotland, options base constructing, colony administration, and real-time motion fight.

Hellforged This extraction/loot-driven bullet-heaven recreation focuses on discovering “epic gear to fight off waves of demons.”