Gardens raises $35M for its social role-playing world, doubling total funding to $70M
What's the deal? Gardens, a games studio building a social role-playing "strandbox" world, has raised more than $35 million in a late-stage round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners. The financing brings total funding raised to date to over $70 million.
Who's in? The syndicate includes Sequoia Capital, Index Ventures, Accel, Eric Schmidt's Innovation Endeavors, Yamauchi No.10, Zenith CapitalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Krafton, and Bayshore. Individual backers include Stewart ButterfieldDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, co-founder and former chief executive officer of Slack, and Thomas Dimson, co-creator of OpenAI's Sora.
Why it stands out: For Yamauchi No.10, the NintendoDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → family office, Gardens is the first and only gaming startup investment in over 100 years of the company's gaming legacy.
What's the money for? The capital will fund the launch and live operations of the studio's debut title, an unrevealed social role-playing game. Gardens is finalising additional closings on a rolling basis, with the full round expected to close by the end of the month.
What's the endgame? "Social roleplay means empowering players to be the engines of one another's adventures," said Stephen Bell, chief executive officer of Gardens. He added that the funding gives the studio "the room to ship a game of this scale properly, and to keep it alive and evolving for years to come."
What's changing on the board? Former TikTok chief operating officer V Pappas joins Gardens' board representing Lightspeed, while Krafton's Mike Hong also takes a board seat. Zenith Capital founder James Altman, a former Bethesda SoftworksDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → publishing director, will help manage the studio's publishing relationships.
The signal: A tier-one syndicate backing a pre-launch studio is notable at a time when much venture money chases automation. "Game studio funding is back," said Moritz Baier-Lentz, a former Lightspeed partner rejoining as a personal investor and advisor. The round sits among the larger pre-launch games deals, a bet that player-driven social worlds remain an underserved market.
Read more: gamesbeat.com
Image credit: Gardens
