"Investors have become more demanding about the availability of a prototype and even primary game metrics," Grigory Bortnik from InvestGame on the results of 2023

We continue to summarize the results of 2023 with the gaming (or related to the gaming sector) teams. Next up is an interview with Grigory Bortnik, editor—in-chief of the InvestGame analytical resource.

What year was it for the resource? What have you done that you would like to highlight in terms of achievements?

This year turned out to be quite successful for InvestGame — we crossed the threshold of 5 thousand subscribers on our weekly digest, where we cover all the deals of the past week every Monday. We have also implemented several new collaborations with international companies, including Xsolla and Taylor Wessing.

In addition, we have launched an archive with all the key PDF reports on the gaming market over the past year, as well as conducted a retrospective analysis of our database to track how the trend towards the use of AI is beginning to cover the industry.

How has the market changed for investment companies that invest in games?

Investment funds and strategic investors have become significantly more cautious and conservative in their decisions. If earlier we observed how blockchain game developers attracted significant investment rounds, sometimes at the concept stage, and the Embracer Group carried out huge transactions almost every month, today such activity has significantly decreased.

Due to the current situation in public markets, increased interest rates and rising capital prices, investors have become more cautious about potential targets, which has affected not only the number of new investments, but also the management of internal assets. Staff cuts, studio closures and refusal to re-invest have unfortunately become the current reality of our market.

However, despite the significant deterioration of the investment climate, we still see that investor activity is higher than in the pre-crisis period. In addition, many funds and companies have significant undistributed amounts for new investments, which gives reason to expect an increase in investor activity when the current situation stabilizes.

What has changed in the investment plan for game studios?

Compared to 2021 and 2022, attracting investments has become much more difficult, both for novice teams and for studios at late stages of development.

Investors have become more demanding about the availability of a prototype and even primary game metrics, which only a small part of startups reach. Nevertheless, it is still easier to find financing now than in the pre-crisis years. The number of investors has increased: more funds have appeared, gaming companies have established investment processes, and many investors from other industries saw a promising business in games.

The situation has changed significantly for the later stage rounds

What are the company's plans for next year?

We plan to continue to monitor market trends and strive to be the most reliable and useful source of information about investments in the gaming industry. We are looking for new formats, improving our statistics and working on introducing new functionality. You will learn more about the details later.