Savvy Games Group, with support from the Public Investment Fund (PIF), the company wants to foster partnerships with leading Japanese video game companies such as Nintendo and Capcom, according to Nikkei Asia. The aim is to attract investments and help with the localization of the games for the Middle Eastern audience.
Concentration on Localization and Industry Development
Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan Al Saud, the vice chair of Savvy Games Group, said that cooperation is crucial for localized products.
Our goal is to assist Japanese intellectual properties in expanding to an area that has not been well developed in terms of localization
Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan Al Saud, vice chair of Savvy Games Group
He made this statement after his trip to Tokyo, where he met with various Japanese gaming firms.
Gamers Without Borders
Setting up a Gaming Center in Saudi Arabia
Savvy’s strategic plan is to make Saudi Arabia the industry’s focal point. This hub will be concerned with localizing foreign games and training young Saudi engineers to promote a domestic gaming industry.
Our long-term vision is to develop games; we want to create a global hub for gaming and eSports
Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan Al Saud, vice chair of Savvy Games Group
Some of the major Japanese game developers the Prince has invited to open their offices in the Middle East include Nintendo, Bandai, Capcom, and Konami Group. Today, these companies conduct their Middle Eastern business from their European headquarters.
Financial Support and Future Strategies
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman leads Savvy and is instrumental in marketing the gaming sector in Saudi Arabia under the Vision 2030 plan to diversify the economy. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) granted Savvy 142 billion riyals ($37. 9 billion).
Brian Ward, Savvy’s CEO, described the intention to leverage the PIF-owned stocks to improve relations with Japanese firms. According to the March 2023 financial statements, PIF has large stakes in Nintendo, 8%, and Capcom, 6%. Moreover, PIF purchased mobile game developer Scopely for $4. 9 billion in 2023 and two esports event companies for $1. 5 billion in 2022.
About 75% of the 142 billion riyal budget is left unutilized, and M&As are expected to outpace internal growth investments. Savvy is looking at acquisitions of “genre-leading titles” and aims to step up its esports division by refining digital platform elements such as live streaming and fan engagement tools.
Brian Ward, Savvy’s CEO
Savvy also plans to augment its game development capacity and aims to develop games for third-party consoles. Today, the emphasis is on mobile games. Ward said that if a third-party partnership exists, the in-house studio’s team may expand from 80 to 200 developers by early 2026.
