Lightforge Games has raised an impressive $15 million from high-profile investors.
Lightforge Games, an all-remote game studio founded by veterans from Epic Games, Blizzard Entertainment, and countless other prestigious developers, has today revealed it has raised $15 million of Series A funding in order to realize its desire to create storytelling-rich experiences–including a major RPG that’s already in the works.
The Lightforge team, which has also attracted talent with experience at AAA outfits including Riot Games, BioWare, Respawn Entertainment, and Zenimax Online, has been responsible for creating games including Fortnite, World of Warcraft, Overwatch, Elder Scrolls Online, Diablo 3, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Hearthstone, and StarCraft 2.
Its newest project–an unannounced title that combines elements of Minecraft or Roblox with tabletop-RPG-inspired, open-ended narratives–is already being built using Unreal Engine 5.
The funding round, which was led by BITKRAFT Ventures, saw participation from Galaxy Interactive, NetEase, and Dune Ventures–and a whole host of big names from the world of gaming, who are acting as angel investors, including:
- Imane “Pokimane” Anys and her agency RTS;
- Kevin Lin (co-founder of Twitch);
- Nate Mitchell (co-founder of Oculus);
- Dennis “Thresh” Fong (legendary gamer and ESL Hall of Famer)
- Matthew Ball (CEO of Epyllion);
- Sheri Bryant (co-founder and former CEO of Geek & Sundry);
- Holly Liu (co-founder of Kabam);
- Kristian Segerstrale (CEO of Super Evil Megacorp); and
- Thomas Vu (producer of Arcane: League of Legends).
Founded in 2020, Lightforge Games now employs 18 developers and has ambitious growth targets; the company is already hiring, with plans to add more roles in the coming weeks and months. The studio, which joins the likes of fellow new developer Gardens by offering the ability for all its members to work from home, has also embraced an open salary policy.
Matt Schembari, CEO of Lightforge, said his team was building a game that “looks to push the boundaries of the stories and worlds players can create together,” adding that the $15 million raised by this round of funding, powered by its high-profile partners, would help the company meet its “ambitious goals.”
Matt Schembari, CEO of Lightforge Games.
Moritz Baier-Lentz, partner at BITKRAFT Ventures, continued: “The Lightforge team’s credentials speak for themselves, but their vision really came to life for us when we had a chance to look behind the scenes and see the amazing progress that the team had made in such a short time.
“It’s already an incredibly fun and captivating experience, and I’m not surprised that this group of exceptional founders and executives across gaming, streaming, and interactive media are rallying behind the Lightforge team to take them to the next level, and cheer them on as they continue to push the boundaries and perception of video games.”
