An indie company from Sweden has bought an Arab publisher of freeplay games for $17 million

Swedish indie company Stillfront Group has acquired 100% of the publisher of mobile social games Babil Games, based in Dubai and Amman, for $ 17 million.

According to the terms of the deal, Babil Games will receive $4.5 million. The rest of the money will be paid to the publisher based on the results of future sales.

The Swedes’ interest in the Middle East market is easy to understand. Despite the difficult situation in the region, today it earns more than the Eastern European games market, and is growing faster than the Latin American market.

Stillfront Group, whose head office is located in Linkoping, consists of five self-operating studios. The most famous among them is Coldwood Interactive, the author of the platformer about the knitted man Unravel (pictured). Each of the studios independently publishes and conducts its own projects.

The group itself positions itself as “an independent creator, publisher and distributor of digital games, planning to become a leading indie developer and publisher.”

As for Babil Games, it is a small game publisher that publishes and operates Asian titles in the Middle East. It consists of 12 people and is based in Dubai (UAE) and Amman (Jordan). Babil Games currently runs four strategic freeplay projects on mobile platforms and Facebook. In 2016, he will earn $3 million.

Sources: Stillfront Group, VentureBeat