The gaming industry is poised for innovation and growth as Web3, the Metaverse, and other new technologies enter the market. The venture capital firms below are tapped into the most disruptive entrepreneurs and startups in the gaming industry.
Keep reading to learn more about the VC firms changing the interactive entertainment industry and what each one is looking for from a new startup.
Best Gaming VCs
Each firm below has different requirements and restrictions when working with startups. You’ll get insights into what stage of startups the firms invest in, as well as a few facts that will help you determine which one is right for you.
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Get Started1. Hiro Capital
- Location: Luxembourg
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture, Late-Stage Venture
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Telltale, Soccerverse, Loric Games
Hiro Capital is a London- and Luxembourg-based venture capital firm founded in 2019 by Cherry Freeman and Luke Alvarez. The firm was launched to build a future of entertainment and games. The company is committed to investing in startups in the UK, Europe, and North American territories. Any entrepreneur starting a video game, esport, streaming, and digital sport is able to seek funding from Hiro.
Founders Alvarez and Freeman have 20+ years of experience building and growing gaming businesses. They have each contributed to successful startups in the past and know what it’s like going from startup to IPO. Companies disrupting the industry through the Metaverse and Web 3.0 technology are also welcomed at Hiro.
2. NFX
- Location: San Francisco, California
- Stage: Pre-Seed, Seed
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Starfish Space, Triple Whale, Azra Games
Another much-hyped venture capital firm is NFX, founded in 2015 by James Currier, Gigi Levy-Weiss, and Pete Flint. It is a San-Francisco based firm that primarily invests in businesses that are using network effects to build new business models and opportunities. The company supports gaming as well as a number of other ventures like generative AI, proptech, space, fintech, and crypto.
NFX has backed many successful startups such as Houzz, Poshmark, and Lyft. Their vision for the future is to support the most innovative startups using network effects. The founders have built 10 different companies with exits totaling more than $10 billion.
3. Dreamcraft
- Location: Copenhagen, Denmark
- Stage: Convertible Note, Early-Stage Venture, Seed, Venture
- Notable Portfolio Companies: The Football Company, FuelSave, Humani
The founders at Dreamcraft consider themselves hands-on venture engineers more than investors. That means the tech-driven companies they invest in get not only funding support, but a wealth of resources and network connections.
The firm invests in pre-seed to Series A companies located in the Nordic and European area. Startups in gaming, esports, D2C, B2B SaaS, and decarbonization are all prioritized at Hiro.
4. Griffin Gaming Partners
- Location: Los Angeles, California
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture, Late-Stage Venture, Seed
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Hardball Games, Nexus, Modl.ai
Griffin Gaming Partners is a Los Angeles-based venture capital firm founded in 2020 by Peter Levin and Nick Earl. The firm came into the business with an aim to invest in gaming startups and companies that are using modern technology to disrupt traditional industries. The firm has invested in various gaming industries, including esports, mobile gaming, and gaming infrastructure.
The firm is one of the largest VCs focused on gaming, with over $1 billion under management. The co-founders of Griffin Gaming Partners believe that the gaming industry will become one of the most significant revenue-generating industries in the future. Therefore, they want to invest in content, software infrastructure, social platforms, and gaming-related Web3 companies to fund the next gaming revolution.
5. BITKRAFT Ventures
- Location: San Francisco, California
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture, Seed
- Notable Portfolio Companies: CCP Games, Jungle, Redemption Games
BITKRAFT Venture is a popular venture capital firm built for gamers by gamers. It was founded in 2016 by Jens Hilgers to invest in gaming startups or companies that are leveraging modern gaming technology. This venture capital firm has invested in various industries, including gaming, Web3, and immersive technology.
The firm has been around since 1997 and can help contribute to the growth of a startup through its global presence and strategic network. Jens Hilger, the founder of BITKRAFT, has years of experience in the gaming and esports industry. Before starting his venture capital firm, he worked for many reputable organizations, such as ESL and Dojo Madness.
6. Play Ventures
- Location: Singapore
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Redemption Games, Azra Games, Nefta
In 2018, Harri Manninen and Henric Suuronen founded a Singapore and Helsinki-based venture capital firm with three principles they live by: investing early, supporting founders, and collaboration. Using this framework, Play Ventures looks to startups developing Web3 gaming studios, free-to-play games, and game services from across the globe.
The firm has a significant amount of investments for being a relatively new company. They invest in different categories to diversify their portfolio, like the Play Future Fund, which invests in blockchain and metaverse gaming companies. They also established an Angel investment arm of their company before Play Ventures.
7. Powerhouse Capital
- Location: Los Angeles, California
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture, Late-Stage Venture, Private Equity, Seed
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Cineshort, GAMURS Group, SuperTeam Games
Powerhouse believes in investing in the four pillars of global consumer media, including sight, sound, play, and live. These categories include industries like visual content, music, voice, audio, gaming, sports, and the experience economy.
The team is small, only consisting of four members: Salim Mitha, Ian Doody, David Ma, and Jill Royster. The firm has also partnered with leading media companies MasterClass, Wondery, The Athletic, Epic! Kids, and Scopely.
8. VGames
- Location: Tel Aviv, Israel
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture
- Notable Portfolio Companies: PeerPlay, ELYZIO, Return Entertainment
VGames is a newly-launched venture capital firm. They started their operations in 2020 and are currently based in Israel. Unlike other venture capital firms, VGames is solely dedicated to supporting gaming startups and accelerating the growth of the gaming industry. Eitan Reisel, the founder and managing partner of VGames, has ten years of experience in the gaming industry.
VGames believes in offering support to gaming startup owners throughout the entire cycle, from early stages to growth. Therefore, the firm plays an active role in offering financial support as well as strategic guidance to its portfolio companies. However, since the firm is newly launched, it does not yet contain a track record of backing successful organizations.
9. Northzone
- Location: United Kingdom
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture, Late-Stage Venture, Seed
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Medwing, Yonder, Katana
Northzone is a venture capital firm founded in 1996 that makes investments in early-stage or growth-stage technology companies, mainly in Europe and the United States. Bjorn Stray and Tellef Thorliefsson, founders of Northzone, launched this firm with a collective mission of supporting entrepreneurs to build transformative companies that disrupt traditional industries and change people’s lives for good.
Over the decades, Northzone has backed many companies but a few of the famous names, including Spotify, Trustpilot, and Avito. Currently, the firm focuses on industries such as consumer internet, ecommerce, software as a service, and healthcare technology. If you are looking for a reliable venture capital firm with decades of experience in building technology startups, Northzone is a perfect choice.
10. Flyer One Ventures
- Location: London, United Kingdom
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture, Seed, Venture
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Sheep, Greenscreens AI, 99math
Flyer One Ventures was founded in 2018 by Vital Laptenok as an international venture capital firm to fund startups from the CEE region. Initially, the firm invested in early-stage startups in the aviation and aerospace industries. However, with time, they have extended financial support to startups in gaming, B2B SaaS, mobile apps, and edtech.
The vision of Flyer One Ventures is to support promising startups that are developing innovative solutions for modern problems. They contribute a number of resources, including online marketing, product, financial, and legal expertise. The company also has experts in PR, branding, and R&D.
11. Konvoy
- Location: Denver, Colorado
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Pok Pok, The Mirror, Sanlo
In 2019, Konvoy was founded by three experienced entrepreneurs and operators that have a combined experience of over 70 years in the enterprise software industry. They started their firm with a mission to support startups innovating at the frontier of gaming. The founders are gamers themselves and love supporting entrepreneurs in building the next generation of video gaming companies.
The firm focuses on seed and Series A investments and has over 35 different active investments. Founders Josh and Jason Chapman are brothers and know what it means to treat their investments like families.
12. Transcend Fund
- Location: Menlo Park, California
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Gardens, Roboto Games, Methodical Games
Built by fellow game industry veterans, the Transcend Fund knows what it’s like to create and support digital entertainment companies. The sectors they invest in include gaming, Web3, and digital media. They focus on global trends that impact the digital entertainment market.
Entrepreneurs who consider themselves builders and storytellers will find common ground with the Transcend Fund. They leverage their vast experience and networks to help with product strategy, market validation, and building portfolio teams to exceptional outcomes.
13. The Games Fund
- Location: Los Angeles, California
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture, Seed
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Jarvi Games, Hypemasters, Kek Entertainment
The Games Fund is a venture capital firm that offers investments to game developers and gaming technologies and services. It was founded in 2020 by Ilya Eremeev, Maria Kockmola, and Sergey Titov with a vision to support promising gaming companies that are developing innovative technologies, gaming mechanics, and business models.
The firm believes that entrepreneurs with a combination of passion and the proper resources can build a great gaming company from the ground up. The founders are gamers themselves and follow a few key strengths when determining their investments, including speaking the same language, investing as early as possible, and building a strong track record.
14. Makers Fund
- Location: Singapore
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture, Seed
- Notable Portfolio Companies: FRVR, Voldexno, Netspeak
Makers Fund believes in startups that concentrate on gaming or interactive entertainment. They are looking for ambitious and innovative founders they can support through the early-stage issues most startups face. The core values of Makers Fund consist of embracing the industry, having faith in founders, and charging forward with trust.
It doesn’t matter what part of the world a startup comes from, Makers Fund is open to investing globally and across content, platforms, and technologies. The team has invested in over 60 different companies and is made up of investors, engineers, creatives, and data scientists.
15. Galaxy Interactive
- Location: New York, New York
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture, Late-Stage Venture, Seed
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Oasys, Monoly, Bitmark
Galaxy Interactive is a venture capital firm that focuses on the interactive industry. They invest in the intersection of content, technology, social commerce, and video games. They also invest in startups that build the infrastructure for immersive virtual worlds.
Their portfolio consists of the most innovative startups that enable and amplify the agency through integrating digital and physical lives.
Founder Sam Englebardt is an established media and technology investor and content producer. He has been behind or created a large range of traditional and digital businesses as well as films and television shows.
16. Andreessen Horowitz
- Location: Menlo Park, California
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture, Late-Stage Venture
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Affirm, Airbnb
As one of the largest investment firms in the world, Andreessen Horowitz has invested in a wide range of startups, including gaming-related companies. Their investments in gaming consist of companies that develop virtual reality, augmented reality, social gaming, and game engines.
With over $16 billion in assets under management, Andreessen Horowitz has the resources to support gaming companies through all stages of growth. Their team includes former entrepreneurs, engineers, and operators to provide strategic guidance for their portfolio companies.
17. 1Up Ventures
- Location: Kirkland, Washington
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture, Seed, Late-Stage Venture
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Wildseed Games, Return Entertainment, Atom Switch
1Up Ventures is a venture capital firm focused on investments in the gaming industry. The firm was founded in 2020 by six highly experienced gaming industry professionals, including Ed Fries, the founder of Xbox, and David Gardner, former CEO of EA. The firm’s vision is to support aspiring entrepreneurs dedicated to creating innovative gaming experiences to meet the expectations of a modern gamer.
This venture capital firm has a clear mission to build a diverse and inclusive community of game developers that are talented, experienced, and creative. The firm already has two different funds raised for its portfolio companies.
18. March Capital
- Location: Santa Monica, California
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture, Late-Stage Venture
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Expel, Parallel Domain, DISQO
March Capital has been making strategic investments in the gaming industry since 2014. The firm splits its investments in two different types of companies, including those entrepreneurs at the early stages of growth and those that are late-stage companies poised for hyper-growth.
The firm hopes to create a platform that helps accelerate the growth rate from a company’s success. The entire system includes high global impact, a system of access, engagement and support, and mentorship. Startups will also receive help with customer acquisition and future financial support.
19. Science
- Location: Santa Monica, California
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture, Seed
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Liquid Death, Arrive, DogVacay
Science is more than just a gaming investment firm, it also focuses on other key sectors like ecommerce, products, marketplaces, and networks. Entrepreneurs can work with Science in different capacities, including a studio where the VC firm works with entrepreneurs on building their first company, or ventures, where entrepreneurs who already have companies can seek investments.
With over 60 companies invested and eight different businesses acquired, Science has the experience to help any stage startup. Over the last nine years, Science has had over $5 billion in exits and invests in companies that have authentic brands, include mobile entertainment, or are in the esports industry.
20. Sisu Game Ventures
- Location: Helsinki, Finland
- Stage: Early-Stage Venture, Seed, Venture
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Esports Coaching Academy, Unagi, Tribo Games
Like some of the other firms on this list, Sisu Game Ventures was built by game developers to help other developers realize their true vision for a gaming future. They invest in early-stage startups, and they are solely focused on gaming.
Active since 2014, the company has deep roots in the Nordic regions but has invested globally in startups with promising futures. The company prefers to be the first investment in a company, including pre-revenue games. The company holds the Nordic tradition of open collaboration, which they believe helps accelerate the development of the companies they work with.