The country will showcase 10 innovative gaming companies at the leading gaming conference in San Francisco
SAN FRANCISCO, March 11, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The Chilean gaming industry has experienced monumental growth in the past 20 years. With over 70 companies generating $12 million in combined annual revenues, Chilean studios have developed top-rated games that have been internationally recognized.
It all started in 2002 when Esteban Sosnikan and Chilean entrepreneurs launched Wanako Games, the largest game development studio in Latin America based in Santiago, Chile. Wanako Games is globally known for producing Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime and Doritos Crash Course. Two decades later, Chile continues to develop world acclaimed video games of the highest caliber that compete with the major players around the globe.
"It is worth noting that the video games sub sector has experienced significant development in recent years, registering a growth of 50.4% in 2022-2023, equivalent to almost US$ 10 million, consolidating its position as an integral part of the creative industries", said Ian Frederick, Trade Commissioner in Los Angeles at ProChile.
Game Developers Conference 2024
ProChile, the governmental organization responsible for promoting Chilean goods and services in foreign markets, will represent the South American country at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco on March 18th to 22nd at the Moscone Center. Ten Chilean companies will have a presence including: AOne Games; ACE Team; UlpoMedia; Octeto Studios; Niebla Games; IguanaBee; Abstract Digital; Dual Effect; Rain Cup Games Studio; Playme Studios.
The Game Developers Conference (GDC) brings the game development community together to exchange ideas, solve problems, and shape the future of the industry across five days of education, inspiration, and networking. Chile will represent programmers, artists, producers, game designers, audio professionals, and business leaders from ten of the country's most notable gaming companies at booth P1581 to reveal the latest innovations in Chilean video games.
Chile's Evolving Gaming Industry
Top-rated games developed by Chilean companies include Zeno Clash created by ACE Team that was named Independent Game of the Year by PC Gamer in 2009 and was featured as a Top 100 PC Game. The ACE team developed two additional globally renowned games: Deadly Tower (2016) and The Eternal Cylinder (2021), which were recognized as the Best Games Latin America at the BIG Festival in Brazil. The Eternal Cylinder was also nominated for the Seumas McNally Grand Prize and the Excellence in Visual Art category at the 2022 Independent Games Festival.
Over the course of the past 20 years the Chilean gaming industry has received increased interest from global players. In 2018, the mobile game developer TinyBytes raised $1.4 million from Initial Capital and London Venture Partners in their first major investment in a Latin American video game company. In 2020 the ACE Team and Critical Failure were among the recipients of Epic MegaGrants, a program designed by Epic Games to service and assist professionals in the gaming industry who are doing outstanding work with Unreal Engine or enhancing open-source capabilities for the 3D graphics community.
In 2022, the gaming sector achieved four impressive milestones including the recognition of Games and BCS Studios that were selected among 13 companies to participate in the Digital Dragons Accelerator– a program created by the Krakow Technology Park to support foreign startups to develop their businesses in Poland. Additionally, Time Hunters Studios signed a contract with Nintendo to develop Shintaro's Curse and The Soul Severing Blade. Kongregate acquired Gamaga, another mobile game developer, to expand its NFT and blockchain initiatives. Resulting in a transaction that valued Gamaga at between $5 million and $7 million. Lastly, Niebla Games was chosen to join Google Play's Indie Games Accelerator, a three-month digital program for high-potential indie games studios.
At the BIG Festival 2023 held in Sao Paulo (Brazil), the video game "What Lies in the Multiverse" won the award for Best Latin American Game. Developed by the Chilean companies Studio Voyager and IguanaBee, the game won in this category over titles from Argentina, Peru, Uruguay and Guatemala.
This is the second consecutive year that a Chilean videogame has won at BIG Festival: in 2022, "The Eternal Cylinder" -from the national company ACE Team in conjunction with Good Shepherd- triumphed in the same category.
About ProChile
ProChile is the Chilean Government Exports Promotion Bureau, an agency within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which aims to promote Chile's exports of goods and services to the world. ProChile has a network of 56 international commercial offices to connect Chilean exporters with potential importers around the world. Prochile has US-based offices in Los Angeles, Miami, New York and Washington D.C.
ProChile supports the diversification of the country's exports for the promotion of inclusive foreign trade that incorporates the gender perspective and focus on SME's, the attraction of foreign investment and tourism, all of which contribute to and strengthen the country's image.
Media Contact
Alejandra Pinedo, Colangelo & Partners, (646) 624-2885, [email protected]
SOURCE Colangelo & Partners
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