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The Top 50 UK Game Makers 2025

The Top 50 UK Game Makers 2025

Launched during Pocket Gamer Connects London 2025, we’ve crafted a brand new list to celebrate the UK’s creative games industry talent: The Top 50 UK Game Makers.

The UK games industry has a long history, establishing itself as one of the most well-respected game development hubs in the world, with its influence spreading far and wide. And it’s still going strong today.

This list (in a similar format to PocketGamer.biz's Top 50 Mobile Game Makers 2024 list) aims to promote some of the country’s top developers and publishers across all platforms, taking into account factors like creativity, stature and yes, business success, reflecting studios of all sizes.

The vast array of company types in the UK is as impressive as their number. We’ve highlighted small indie teams that have worked on innovative and inspiring new titles, right to the studios that have been acquired for billions of dollars and have launched some of the biggest games of all time. In one case, perhaps the biggest.

Despite restricting the criteria of the list to the UK, it’s impossible to include all the best teams – for that, we’d need a lot more than 50 entries. A big congratulations to those that made it onto the list. Even outside the top 50, it’s clear the UK games industry has a remarkable abundance of talent.


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  • 50 Wales Interactive

    Wales Interactive logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Sker Ritual
    • The Isle Tide Hotel
    • Ten Dates

    Hailing from Wales, the aptly named Wales Interactive has gone through a few evolutions over the years, releasing a whole host of titles.

    It found much of its fame specialising in FMV titles, starting with Splendy Games’ The Bunker, first released in 2016. It continued on with the niche, working on titles including Late Shift, Five Dates, The Isle Tide Hotel and more, becoming a leader in the revival of the genre.

    More recently, it pivoted again, developing zombie survival FPS Sker Ritual, playable as both single-player and multiplayer. According to the company itself, the title was its most successful ever and became a Steam Top Seller, a feat all the more impressive given it was built by a team of just five staff.

    Wales Interactive is a true chameleon of the UK games industry, always able to adapt and find new niches.


  • 49 Fireshine Games

    Fireshine Games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Shadows of Doubt
    • REKA

    Fireshine Games (formerly known as Sold Out) is a global video game publisher headquartered in the UK. Founded in 2014, the company initially focused on physical distribution of indie games before expanding into digital publishing and full-game development.

    Fireshine has built a diverse portfolio, publishing titles across various genres and platforms. Notable releases include Disjunction, a cyberpunk action-stealth RPG, Core Keeper, the popular mining sandbox adventure, Balatro Special Edition, The Lies Of P and many more. Core Keeper achieved significant commercial success, selling over one million copies within its first few months of early access. Meanwhile, its work with ColePowered Games publishing Shadows of Doubt last year was a big success for the UK company.

    Fireshine's growth has been marked by strategic partnerships and acquisitions, strengthening its position in the industry.


  • 48 Sad Owl Studios

    Sad Owl Studios logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Viewfinder

    These lists can often focus heavily on the business aspect of games companies. Whether that’s games generating significant revenue, M&A activity or sheer number of players. However, innovative game design is what ultimately keeps the industry spinning for the long-term.

    One of the UK’s most promising developers is Sad Owl Studios, the team behind the unique puzzle platformer Viewfinder. Available across PC and PlayStation, the title has players walk around its carefully crafted world with an instant camera. Take a snap of the world around you, and then bring that picture to life to solve puzzles and navigate the landscape.

    It's a truly unique title and it’s no wonder the Scottish studio won the accolade for Best British Video Game at the Bafta’s last year. It’s UK indie creativity at its finest.


  • 47 Outright Games

    Outright Games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Bluey: The Videogame
    • Monster High Skulltimate Secrets
    • Barbie Project Friendship
    • TRANSFORMERS: Galactic Trials
    • Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants Unleashed

    Outright Games is a British publisher with a focus on licenced games for children, housing a catalogue spanning popular franchises like Ben 10, PAW Patrol, Ice Age and Peppa Pig. After publishing on PC and console in its early days, Outright Games expanded to mobile in 2020 with L.O.L. Surprise! Movie Maker and later established a fully fledged mobile division in 2021.

    Fast-forward to 2024, and Outright Games published 10 new games across the year including My Little Pony: A Zephyr Heights Mystery, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants Unleashed and Transformers: Galactic Trials. Monster High: Skulltimate was also launched in collaboration with Mattel.

    Of course, 2024 also saw the launch of Outright Games’ own eShop, featuring its catalogue of best sellers and a range of limited-time offers as an extra incentive. A busy year indeed.


  • 46 Inkle Studios

    Inkle Studios logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • A Highland Song

    Inkle is renowned for its innovative approach to interactive narrative in games. The studio quickly gained recognition with its adaptation of Steve Jackson's Sorcery! gamebook series, released in episodic form between 2013 and 2016. This ambitious project showcased Inkle's expertise in crafting compelling interactive stories with meaningful player choices.

    Further acclaim followed with 80 Days (2014), a critically acclaimed adaptation of Jules Verne's "Around the World in Eighty Days," which garnered numerous awards and nominations for its unique blend of adventure, exploration, and narrative. Inkle's commitment to pushing the boundaries of interactive storytelling continued with Heaven's Vault (2019), an archaeological adventure featuring a unique language decipherment system.

    The studio’s most recent release, A Highland Song, has received widespread critical acclaim and award nominations for its narrative, gameplay, audio and voice acting.


  • 45 The Indie Stone

    The Indie Stone logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Project Zomboid

    The Indie Stone may have started out as a small four-person team in the UK and Canada, but with a flagship like Project Zomboid, growth was inevitable. These days, development of this zombie survival title takes place not only in the UK and Canada, but in the US, France, Germany, and Australia too.

    First released more than a decade ago, Project Zomboid is still being actively supported and after a years-long wait, launched its latest major update, Build 42 Unstable, in December 2024. The latest version expanded the in-game map, added underground areas and high-rise buildings, randomised the wilderness, revamped the crafting system and even added a new fishing mechanic.

    It's a major evolution for an indie title that started out primarily around looting pre-apocalypse goods; nowadays, survival is just as much about future planning and creating anew.


  • 44 Sporty Group

    Sporty Group logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Sociable Soccer

    Sporty Group, a global leader in consumer and internet and technology, established itself within the sports entertainment sector with a diverse portfolio that spans from the popular betting platform SportBet to SportyTV, which secured long-term rights to broadcast various football leagues last year.

    But more importantly for this list, 2024 marked the company’s expansion into the games industry with the acquisition of Sociable Soccer from Tower Studios in July. Originally created by renowned developer Jon Hare as a spiritual successor to Sensible Soccer, the title offers an arcade-style approach to football. The acquisition underscores Sporty Group's commitment to diversifying its portfolio and ability to grant more offerings to its millions of users. 

    The collaboration has already borne fruit, with Jon Hare spearheading a new football project, Sporty FC. Backed by Sporty Group's financial resources, the team has grown significantly as it develops its next vision for football games.

     


  • 43 First Touch Games

    First Touch Games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Score! Hero
    • Dream League Soccer

    First Touch Games specialises in 3D football and sports games and has been active in the space since 2011. With popular titles such as Dream League Soccer, Score Hero, and Score Match, the studio has achieved over 1 billion downloads and topped Apple App Store charts on numerous occasions. 

    Closing out 2024, First Touch Games released Dream League Soccer 2025, the latest instalment in its flagship series that attracts over 20 million monthly active players. The newest iteration introduced enhanced gameplay mechanics and expanded customisation options.

    Beyond new game launches, the studio also showed its commitment to the broader games industry by donating its UK revenue to Special Effect. This charitable organisation helps individuals with disabilities discover newly accessible ways to enjoy gaming.

    Flying under the radar with little publicity for its work, First Touch Games continues to be a competitive player in the popular sports genre of the market.


  • 42 4J Studios

    4J Studios logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Reforj
    • Minecraft

    Everyone knows Minecraft, the global sensation from Swedish developer Mojang, now owned by Microsoft. What you may not know — if you’re from outside of the UK at least — is that 4J has been a key partner for the title, working on the game’s console versions.

    Following its Minecraft success, 4J Studios has shifted its focus towards developing new and original IP. This includes the creation of the studio’s own voxel-based ‘Elements’ game engine, which the studio is using to create its next original title ‘Reforj’ (with prominent Minecraft YouTube star ‘Stampy’ as part of the development team).

    Beyond game development, co-founders van der Kuyl and Burns are actively involved in supporting the Scottish technology sector, running a venture capital fund investing in promising startups. At the same time, both are passionate advocates for digital education initiatives across Scotland, aiming to nurture the next generation of talent in the digital industries.


  • 41 Lockwood Publishing

    Lockwood Publishing logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Avakin Life

    UK-based Lockwood Publishing has been at the forefront of creating social and virtual experiences for over a decade. Best known for its flagship title, Avakin Life, the studio has built an online world that has seen substantial growth over the years.

    With over 250 million registered accounts and millions of players across iOS and Android, the title has shown longevity and has had to adapt to the increased popularity of traditional social media platforms.

    While the metaverse concept has gained more mainstream attention over recent years, Lockwood Publishing has been exploring its possibilities for years and shows it is committed to continuing to evolve within this space. Avakin Life is still seeing updates and changes to its creator economy, with users gaining new ways to personalise and customise their own unique environments. 


  • 40 Dlala Studios

    Dlala Studios logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Disney Illusion Island

    Independent game developer Dlala Studios has worked across many titles over the past decade, such as Janksy and Overruled, which it created in partnership with Team17. More recently, the studio collaborated with Rare to revive the popular arcade classic Battletoads. 

    Following the release of Battletoads, Dlala took on a major project with Disney to develop Disney Illusion Island. The game celebrated its first anniversary in 2024. Reflecting on the studio's work ethic at the Games Growth Summit, CEO AJ Grand-Scutton highlighted Dlala's proactive approach to project planning and pitching. 

    This work ethic was recognised at the 2024 TIGA Awards, where the team won the award for Best Small Studio. An accolade that aims to recognise those with fewer than 49 employees and those who produce commercially and critically successful games.


  • 39 Sports Interactive

    Sports Interactive logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Football Manager 2024

    Founded in 1994, London-based game studio Sports Interactive has cemented its place in the world of immersive sports management games, known for chiefly for its marketleading Football Manager series.

    2024 was another big year for the studio, marked by recognition at the Develop: Star Awards, where the studio received the Lifetime Achievement Award and earned additional nominations for the Sustainability Star Award and Best Mobile Game.

    Furthering its ambitions, Sports Interactive also partnered with FIFAe to launch the inaugural FIFA World Cup of Football Manager. This event brought players together to compete for a $100,000 prize pool. 

    Despite facing challenges with the development of the next Football Manager instalment, which saw delays due to a "difficult development cycle", the series has a long history of success, which the studio will hope to continue when the game finally launches in March.


  • 38 Kinetic Games

    Kinetic Games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Phasmophobia

    On a mission to create "the most unique, genre-defining games", Kinetic Games released its first title Phasmophobia on Steam in September 2020. More than four years later and that goal has surely been realised, with over 600,000 Steam reviews and an "Overwhelmingly Positive" rating for the game.

    A psychological horror title, Phasmophobia’s atmosphere, gameplay and community engagement have worked to sustain its popularity long-term, as it crossed another major milestone in 2024: 20 million lifetime sales.
    The year also marked Phasmophobia’s expansion to consoles — namely PS5, PS VR2, and Xbox Series X and S — where it surpassed one million sales within just 35 days.

    Kinetic Games has also been busy overhauling in-game aesthetics, including new layouts and entirely new areas within Phasmophobia’s Bleasdale Farmhouse like the tea room, living room and trophy room. A "large overhaul" affecting every in-game contract has also been promised for 2025.


  • 37 Team17

    Team17 logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Dredge
    • Amber Isle
    • Blasphemous 2

    Indie video games veteran Team17 has more than three decades of experience to its name and over 90 premium games in its portfolio, developing in all genres from simulation to turn-based tactics. The team has developed titles in many of the industry’s best-known series like Worms and Overcooked 2, and most recently made the 80s-inspired horror adventure game Killer Frequency.

    Team17’s publishing portfolio is even more diverse, with the likes of Dredge, Golf with Your Friends and Moving Out among its releases. Most recently, Team17 published Warcana, Amber Isle, Border Bots VR, Sworn and more all within 2024, plus the visionOS version of What the Golf?

    After suffering layoffs in 2023, the company named Rashid Varachia as its new CFO and COO in October 2024, replacing Mark Crawford and bringing experience from Jagex and Codemasters.


  • 36 Mediatonic

    Mediatonic logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Fall Guys

    Mediatonic’s rise to being one of the UK games industry’s top developers was a fairly quiet one. It gradually expanded its team and opened new offices over the years, including Brighton and Leamington Spa, as well as its London HQ.

    Its first big success on mobile came with New Yahtzee with Buddines, built in partnership with publisher Scopely. That title has been a monster hit, generating $778 million in gross revenue from player spending to date, and remains a strong earner.

    But it was Fall Guys where the developer was truly welcomed as a big name on the global stage, garnering as many as 50 million players. Its initial popularity was enough to attract the overtures of Epic Games, which acquired the studio in 2021.

    While it’s not been immune to widespread layoffs — severely so, in fact — Mediatonic continues operating, with Fall Guys landing on mobile platforms last year.


  • 35 Rebellion

    Rebellion logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Sniper Elite 5
    • Sniper Elite VR: Winter Warrior
    • Sniper Elite: Resistance

    Best known for stealth-based tactical shooter series Sniper Elite, Rebellion is an Oxfordian developer with over 32 years of history. Over the decades, the studio has worked on titles in famous franchises like Aliens vs Predator, Star Wars Battlefront and Harry Potter, while more recent releases have generally focused on its own, original IP.

    Rebellion’s latest launches include Zombie Army VR, Sniper Elite VR: Winter Warriors and Sniper Elite 5.

    Up next, Sniper Elite: Resistance and Atomfall are both coming in early 2025, set to release on PlayStation, Xbox and PC. Atomfall will take place in Northern England specifically, turning the charm of the English countryside into fictional quarantine zones filled with cults and mysticism.

    Rebellion also has strong ties to the media industry at large, going beyond video games with subsidiaries in film, tabletop games and comic book publishing. Across its many businesses, Rebellion employs almost 500 people.


  • 34 Tag Games

    Tag Games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Stumble Guys

    Initially focused on Java-based mobile titles, Tag Games quickly adapted to the rise of smartphones, producing games for iOS and Android.

    While Tag initially produced games utilising its own original IP, the studio quickly became a recognised expert and trusted partner for brand owners moving into the mobile games space. In recent years the studio has produced titles for franchises such as Doctor Who, Wallace & Gromit, Might & Magic, Moshi Monsters, Downton Abbey and Angry Birds. 

    In 2023, Tag Games was acquired by mobile gaming giant Scopely. This acquisition saw Tag Games take on responsibility for Scopely’s hugely successful multiplayer party game, Stumble Guys, further cementing the studio’s position in the mobile gaming landscape. This transition marks a new chapter for the studio, now operating as a key part of the global publishing group.


  • 33 Ndemic Creations

    Ndemic Creations logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • After Inc.
    • Plague Inc.
    • Rebel Inc.

    Over a decade on from the release of hit strategy title Plague Inc., which has attracted more than 190 million players, developer Ndemic Creations has proven it still deserves its place in the simulation spotlight with After Inc., which landed in the latter portion of 2024.

    Unlike Plague Inc.’s darker goal of infecting the world with a pathogen, After Inc. treads a somewhat lighter path around the player’s quest to rebuild civilisation after the apocalypse. To this end, Ndemic’s latest release combines city builder, strategy and "mini 4X" genres into quite the unique blend.

    Ndemic’s success through the years has allowed the UK-based indie studio to donate hundreds of thousands of dollars to charities, including the WHO during the real-world Coronavirus pandemic.

    Following successes with Plague Inc. and Rebel Inc., Ndemic will be hoping to make it a hattrick with After Inc.


  • 32 Newfangled Games

    Newfangled Games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Paper Trail

    Norwich-based Newfangled Games was founded by acclaimed indie developer Henry Hoffman, along with his brother and art director Frederick, in 2019. 

    Having sold his previous studio Fiddlesticks and the IP to the colour-shifting puzzle title Hue to Curve Games, Hoffman embarked on creating a more sustainable development studio where he would endeavour to work healthier hours and have more detachment from what he was making. 

    The firm’s debut title, Paper Trail, launched last year on a variety of platforms including Netflix, PC, PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One, Series X and S, and Nintendo Switch. Prior to its release, the game won over 25 awards and accolades from trade shows around the world, as well as receiving a double-page feature in Edge magazine. Since coming out Paper Trail has received acclaim.


  • 31 Trailmix Games

    Trailmix Games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Love & Pies

    UK developer Trailmix has a vision to create "snackable yet nourishing" games, making waves in the industry ever since its founding by King veterans in late 2017. Garnering the industry’s attention from the offset, Trailmix landed Supercell as an early investor years before its debut title Love & Pies released.

    And once that casual title did land in players’ hands, Supercell soon came back for more - committing $60 million to Trailmix in exchange for a majority stake in the developer.

    Love & Pies, still Trailmix’s sole title, launched in 2021 and, according to AppMagic estimates, made over $26 million gross in 2024.

    Over the past year, Trailmix has also undergone a recruitment drive, welcoming 27 new members to its team, launched a podcast and won two Green Game Jam awards. Meanwhile, in October 2023, it expanded from the UK’s shores to open a studio in Berlin, too.


  • 30 Poncle

    Poncle logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Vampire Survivors
    • Vampire Survivors: Ode to Castlevania

    Vampire Survivors instantly became a global hit, spawning an array of copycats and even numerous mobile game ads utilising its gameplay style.

    Developed by Poncle, developed in creator Luca Galante’s spare time, the title quickly gained popularity on Steam and other platforms.

    The game's simple yet addictive gameplay, combining bullet-hell action with roguelike elements and RPG progression, resonated with a wide audience. Players control a character who automatically attacks hordes of monsters, collecting experience and upgrades to become increasingly powerful.

    The game's ongoing popularity has led to ports across multiple devices and game platforms (including Tesla cars), along with a TV series to be co-created with Galante. Vampire Survivors also scooped multiple awards including a BAFTA, D.I.C.E. and a Golden Joystick.

    While Galente has yet to reveal the studio’s next move, the success of its inaugural game positions Poncle as one of the UKs hottest indie stars.


  • 29 Rocksteady Studios

    Rocksteady Studios logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League

    Rocksteady was one of the UK’s premier developers. It had a flawless track record and almost single handedly proved that licensed games can be of a high quality with its Batman: Arkham trilogy. The title was critically acclaimed and a blockbuster success around the world. 

    After almost a decade without a brand new release, the London-based team launched Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League at the start of 2024. The game was neither a critical or commercial hit, with publisher Warner Bros saying that it was going to take a $200 million loss on the title.

    The studio is ending development work on Suicide Squad in January and is helping out Avalanche Software with an upcoming director’s cut of Hogwarts Legacy. Rocksteady might have had a tough year, but hopefully the highly talented team gets another chance to shine and focus back on what it does best.


  • 28 Kwalee

    Kwalee logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Draw it
    • Text Express: Word Adventure
    • Object Hunt
    • ROBOBEAT
    • In Sink: A Co-op Escape Adventure

    To date, Kwalee has published over 70 titles that have cumulatively been downloaded over one billion times. The firm boasts 30 million monthly active players, too. 

    During 2024, the company started to branch outward, launching the publishing platform Hitseeker in March. Since its initial release, the firm has launched an Arabic-language version of the service to support developers in the bustling MENA region.

    If that wasn’t enough, the company moved into casual games with Text Express: Word Adventure, and invested €1.5 million ($1.57 million) into French mobile game studio 8SEC. 

    The company has also snapped up a 3.58% minority stake in fellow publisher, indie label Devolver Digital, in an attempt to move beyond its core mobile business. That’s on top of partnering with Microids.

    From its hypercasual roots, the company now spans various platforms and genres, establishing itself as a top UK publisher.


  • 27 Hutch Games

    Hutch Games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • F1 Clash
    • Top Drives
    • Forza Customs

    London-based Hutch Games has managed to carve out a very lucrative niche for itself in the mobile racing game genre.

    Despite having a rocky launch in 2017, the company’s flagship racing title, the trading card-themed Top Drives, has made over $149.9 million in gross revenue since its release. Eight years after its initial launch, the title is waning in popularity somewhat, but it’s still generating almost $1m a month in revenue. 

    In 2023, Hutch announced that it was working with Forza developer Turn 10 on a new standalone mobile title: Forza Customs. Launched in November 2023, it combines Forza’s art direction with Hutch’s mobile live-ops expertise. 

    Hutch entered a new racing world in February 2024 with the release of NASCAR Manager on iOS and Android. 

    Managing to secure licensing agreements with numerous car brands, Microsoft’s Forza IP and NASCAR is surely a vote of confidence in Hutch’s business.  


  • 26 Fusebox Games

    Fusebox Games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Love Island The Game

    Founded in 2016, London-based Fusebox Games is best known for its suite of mobile interactive fiction titles, such as Love Island: The Game. To date, that title has been downloaded over 25 million times. The second iteration of the game – launched in 2022 – has made over $25 million in revenue, including $2.83 million in July 2024 alone. 

    By the first half of 2024, 92% of the company’s total revenue came from in-app purchases, speaking to a very dedicated audience. In fact, last year was the company’s most lucrative yet.

    ITV Studios – which runs the reality show Love Island – appears to be happy with Fusebox’s work so far, extending its global partnership with the developer for another three years at the start of 2024. 

    All of this work led to India’s Nazara acquiring the studio for £21.2 million ($27.2 million) in an all-cash deal in August 2024. 


  • 25 nDreams

    nDreams logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Vendetta Forever
    • Frenzies
    • Little Cities: Diorama
    • Ghostbusters: Rise of the Ghost Lord
    • Synapse

    After its brief dalliance in virtual worlds with PlayStation Home, Farnborough-based nDreams has become a market leader in a different kind of virtual world: VR.

    In recent years the company has had success, both with its own IP, such as chaotic PvP shooter Frenzies, gunfighting action title Fracked and psychic shooter, all of which were met with critical acclaim. The company is also a top-tier virtual reality publisher, working on the likes of PowerWash Simulator VR.

    In 2024, nDreams made its debut on Apple’s Vision Pro headset with Little Cities: Diorama, a project made by the company’s own Near Light studio and developer Purple Yonder. 

    At the end of 2023, nDreams was acquired by Aonic Group in a deal worth $110 million. It’s not all been plain sailing — it laid off 17.5% of staff in September 2024 — but nDreams remains one of the world’s premier VR studios.


  • 24 Creative Assembly

    Creative Assembly logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Total War: Pharaoh
    • Total War: Warhammer III

    As the UK’s oldest development studio, Horsham-based Creative Assembly has seen it all, though has been lucky to see more ups than downs. 

    In recent years, things have been tricky for the company; its mega-budget online shooter Hyenas was cancelled by publisher Sega at the end of 2023, resulting in layoffs, and the studio was set to refocus on its bread and butter, real-time strategy games. 

    For now, that strategy appears to be working; Sega’s financials show that CA’s Total War franchise sold 1.24 million copies in the first half of fiscal year 2024/25. That puts it in line with the Japanese firm’s flagship other brands Like A Dragon, Sonic and Persona. 

    Creative Assembly is still finding time to branch out. The firm announced in October that it is working on a sequel to Alien: Isolation, which is currently in the early stages of development.


  • 23 Playdemic

    Playdemic logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Golf Clash

    On the surface, Playdemic doesn’t appear to have done much in recent years. The last big news to surround the Manchester-based company was its $1.4 billion acquisition by Electronic Arts back in 2021 and there haven’t been any new projects from the studio since.

    But why would there be when its debut title, Golf Clash, is still performing so well? AppMagic data shows that the game has made over $930 million in revenue since its 2016 release and it is still making around $9 million every single month. This is in no small part due to Playdemic’s live-operations expertise, which has seen the studio continue to support Golf Clash with new content on a very regular timetable years after its release. 

    At a time when EA is clearly reevaluating its mobile business, closing projects left and right, Golf Clash appears safe.


  • 22 NaturalMotion Games

    NaturalMotion Games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • CSR Racing 2
    • Star Wars Hunters
    • CSR Racing 3

    It’s been a mixed year for NaturalMotion. On the one hand, the company’s back catalogue is performing well; racing title CSR 2 has surpassed $835.7 million in gross revenue over its lifetime since its initial 2016 launch, making it one of the UK’s most successful mobile game releases ever. 

    Meanwhile, a follow-up to that game – CSR 3 – is currently in soft launch in Indonesia, South Africa and Malaysia, and is a much needed new hit for the studio. 

    On the other hand, after years of anticipation, NaturalMotion and Zynga’s Star Wars project – Hunters – finally launched in June 2024. Despite being, by all accounts, a solid game (winning an honourable mention for Game of the Year at the Pocket Gamer Mobile Games Award), the arena battler didn’t review particularly well and has made just $4.1 million in revenue to date, according to AppMagic. 


  • 21 Chucklefish

    Chucklefish logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Wargroove 2
    • Wildfrost
    • Loco Motive

    London-based Chucklefish is still perhaps best known for initially publishing cosy farming sim Stardew Valley, even though it hasn’t worked on the game since 2022. But the company boasts a suite of pixel-art hits, both made by itself – the Wargroove series and Witchbrook – or by other studios, such as the excellent Wildfrost, which was nominated for Mobile Game of the Year at the Pocket Gamer Awards 2024, and Eastwood. 

    Following its Switch and PC launch in 2023, the company brought its fantasy card game Wildfrost to iOS and Android in April, while upcoming pixel art role-playing game Witchbrook was recently listed at No.16 in The PC Gaming Show’s list of the 25 most wanted PC games of 2025 and beyond. 

    Chucklefish also recently released the point-and-click adventure title Loco Motive from Robust Games. 


  • 20 Curve Games

    Curve Games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Human Fall Flat
    • Dungeons of Hinterberg
    • For The King II

    Through its numerous iterations, London-based Curve Games has always been a champion and advocate for indie developers. 

    Over the years, the publisher has built up quite a roster of content, something that it has continued to do by signing partnerships, such as the two-game deal it recently inked with Dundee-based 4J Studios — another company on this list.

    While Curve continues to ink new deals, its back catalogue is still doing the numbers. The 2016 physics platformer hit Human Fall Flat has sold over 50 million copies and – having brought the game to myriad console platforms, PC and VR. Human Fall Flat also went straight to No.1 on Switch in China following its release. 

    More recently, Curve Games has ramped up its operations in Asia, more than doubling its resources in China with the establishment of a new business development unit.


  • 19 Sumo Digital

    Sumo Digital logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Still Wakes the Deep
    • The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
    • A Little to the Left

    For a long time now, Sumo Digital has been a go-to trusted co-development partner for some of the world’s biggest games companies. Over its history, the studio has contributed to IP including Hitman, Call of Duty and Forza Horizon.

    More recently, the company has top Warner Bros and Rocksteady’s Suicide Squad Kill the Justice League, too. It’s perhaps no surprise, then, that the company was acquired by Chinese tech and entertainment giant Tencent for $1.3 billion back in 2021. 

    More recently, Sumo has been bolstering its skillset, acquiring UK studio Midoki to boost its live-service capabilities. 

    Sumo is also the parent of The Chinese Room, which released the critically acclaimed Still Wakes the Deep in 2024 and is set to launch action RPG Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 in 2025 with Paradox Interactive. 


  • 18 King

    King logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Farm Heroes Saga

    King London’s studio is best known for its work on Farm Heroes Saga. The title has grossed $1.2 billion in revenue since 2015, per AppMagic data, and still makes over $6 million in revenue every single month. The developer also contributes to the publisher’s flagship Candy Crush Saga brand, which has made north of $20 billion as the world’s most successful match-3 title, while the entire Candy Crush series has been downloaded five billion times. 

    Along with the rest of Activision Blizzard, King was acquired by Microsoft in a record $75.4 billion deal at the end of 2023. In trying to justify the deal to various antitrust and competition bodies around the world, the Xbox firm insisted that King was a key reason for the acquisition, giving it a foothold in the mobile space.


  • 17 Jagex

    Jagex logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • RuneScape
    • Old School RuneScape

    Once again, the last year or so has been a period of change for Jagex. Having been acquired by private equity giant The Carlyle Group in 2021, the company was sold to Six Nations backer CVC Capital and Haveli Investments at the start of 2024 in a deal worth north of £900 million ($1.1 billion). 

    Even after all these years, Jagex’s main bread and butter is still RuneScape, which has generated well over $1 billion in lifetime revenue. At the last official count, back in 2022, RuneScape and its retro-themed counterpart Old School RuneScape boasted 2.3 million subscribers between them. Both titles have also come to mobile in recent years, with RuneScape making over $55.3 million, while Old School RuneScape has raked in $119.4 million.  

    The company is looking to capitalise on the IP further with a new open-world survival game set in the fantasy universe. 


  • 16 Codemasters

    Codemasters logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • F1 24
    • EA Sports WRC
    • F1 23
    • Grid Legends

    One of the oldest and most iconic UK studios, Codemasters has firmly established itself as a dominant force within the racing genre, holding the license to Formula 1 as well as the World Rally Championship, which it had secured for the first time since 2002. That’s on top of working on its IP in the space, such as Dirt Rally. 

    This racing expertise, and more importantly the studio’s proven ability to launch successful games in the genre, is undoubtedly why Electronic Arts was prepared to pay $1.2 billion for Codemasters back in 2021, beating rival US publishing giant Take-Two in a bidding war. 

    Titles over the past 18 months include F1 24, the warmly received EA Esports WRC, and F1 23. There are few other racing game developers (even more so outside of the UK) that can match Codemasters’ experience and success in the space.


  • 15 Dambuster Studios

    Dambuster Studios logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Dead Island 2

    Over the course of 12 years, three different studios worked on Dead Island 2. Many thought the project was in development hell due to a near-complete news blackout. Then it emerged that Dambuster was helming the project ahead of its 2023 release. 

    After all that, it was something of a surprise then when the final product was not only good, but actually a very well-put-together game. Dambuster was the developer that managed to get the long-awaited, chaotic undead romp finally out of the door and to a positive critical reception no less.

    To date it has sold over three million copies, being a rare positive piece of good news for Embracer Group’s PC and console arm. Since release, Dambuster has continued to support the game after launch with story content that has been met with well by its fans. 


  • 14 Dovetail Games

    Dovetail Games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Train Sim World 5
    • City Transport Simulator: Tram
    • Bassmaster Fishing

    In 2024, simulation specialist Dovetail Games turned 15. Over the course of its lifetime, the company – initially founded as Railsimulator.com – has managed to attract fans from over 130 countries and has created more than 700 pieces of DLC for its flagship title, Train Simulator Classic. Dovetail also recently partnered with Just Add Water to make its virtual reality debut with Train Sim World VR: New York. 

    In 2023, Dovetail was bought by French games company Focus Entertainment in an all-cash deal. The terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. For the fiscal year ending March 2024, Dovetail made £16.6 million ($21 million) in revenue, a 5% increase year-on-year, something that it attributes to its regular DLC releases. The company is also wildly efficient, with an 82% gross margin for the financial year. 

    Dovetail is a firm leader in the lucrative simulation space.


  • 13 Magmatic Games

    Magmatic Games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Travel Town

    In recent years, the merge genre has increasingly carved out a significant market in the puzzle games space on mobile. London-based Magmatic Games has ridden this wave with its debut game Travel Town - Merge Adventure raking in over $443 million in revenue to date, generating more than 51.8 million times to date. 

    Since its release, the game has overtaken Metacore’s Merge Mansion, which was previously the leading light in the genre and still maintains healthy revenues. That’s no small feat, particularly given the backing of Supercell and marketing campaigns that have featured the likes of Pedro Pascal.

    Travel Town has in fact performed so well during the first half of 2024 that it contributed to a 107% increase in revenue for the merge-two genre as a whole, according to AppMagic.

    It’s no wonder the studio is now quietly part of Coin Master developer Moon Active. 


  • 12 Frontier Developments

    Frontier Developments logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • PLanet Coaster 2
    • F1 Manager 2024
    • Jurassice World Evolution 2
    • Elite Dangerous


    As with the games industry at large, Frontier Developments has had to weather some tricky tides in the last few years. 

    The company had a tough 2023, after which it refocused its attention to its core business. Since then it has doubled down on what has worked for it before; management titles. All of its simulation titles – Planet Coaster, Planet Zoo, Jurassic World Evolution and Jurassic World Evolution 2 – have all made over $100 million in gross revenue to date and Frontier says that they were all profitable within a month of release.

    So it’s natural that the company would release another one of these titles in Planet Coaster 2, which debuted in November 2024 to overall positive reviews.
    It's been a tough few years for many studios, but the studio, which also boasts Elite: Dangerous in its portfolio, looks to be climbing back to its best.


  • 11 Tripledot Studios

    Tripledot Studios logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Woodoku
    • Triple Tile
    • Solitaire
    • Get Color

    London-based Tripledot Studios was founded with the ambition of creating “the Apollo program” for video games, as well as – more recently – being the “next Activision Blizzard”.

    A rather PR-laden ambition, but the company has undoubtedly succeeded in shooting for the stars with many of its releases. Woodooku has been downloaded over 156 million times, while Triple Tile boasts 82.9 million installs and Solitaire: Classic Card Games has been downloaded 43.1 million times. Tripledot also claims to have reached over 100 million people to date.

    Such is the studio's success, the company's top executives were named on the games-focused Sunday Times Rich List this year. In 2023, Tripledot was picked by the Financial Times as the fastest-growing company in Europe.

    In 2024, the casual games firm expanded further with the acquisition of the developer of Get Colour, Hey Colour and Math Crossword, Zephyr Mobile, for an undisclosed fee.


  • 10 Space Ape Games

    Space Ape Games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Chrome Valley Customs
    • Beatstar
    • Country Star
    • Transformers: Earth Wars
    • Fastlane: Road to Revenge 

    In a crowded field, Space Ape is a top name in the London mobile games scene. Founded in 2012, the company was recently fully acquired by Finnish mobile giant Supercell, which previously purchased a majority investment in the studio in 2017. 

    Since its inception, Space Ape’s titles have been played by over 180 million people around the world and have generated over $500 million in revenue. 

    The classic car-themed match-three title Chrome Valley Customs, which launched in February 2023, alone has made north of $60 million from playing spending, according to AppMagic data. 

    When it was released, it was Space Ape’s biggest launch in the developer’s 11-year history. While Chrome Valley Customs’ monthly revenue is certainly down from its height at the end of 2023, the game is still making close to $1 million in revenue every month. Since its release, it has been the top grossing new match-3 game on the market, beating the likes of Dream Games’ Royal Kingdom (which only recently received a global release after a limited soft launch) and Century Games’ Truck Star. If that wasn’t enough, it has actually generated more revenue than both of those games combined (and Magic Tavern’s Modern Community, too), per AppMagic estimates. 

    It’s perhaps no surprise then that Space Ape is growing the Chrome Valley Customs development team; at launch, it was 50 staff strong, but the studio wants it to be north of 90 soon.  

    Though the future is clearly bright for Chrome Valley Customs, it still isn’t Space Ape’s biggest game yet by revenue. 2021’s Beatstar still continues to do the numbers, grossing over $125 million and bringing in more than 60 million players since its release. 

    Long an expert in live ops, and shifting to a more Supercell-like culture ahead of its acquisition, the studio’s future looks right now it’s more closely entwined with the famous Finnish developer’s operations. Perhaps it can provide Supercell’s next hit, too, made in London.


  • 9 Playground Games

    Playground Games  logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Forza Horizon 5
    • Forza Horizon 4
    • Fable

    The UK’s games industry has a long history of building globally successful racing games, becoming a world-renowned hub for the genre across platforms.

    Playground Games has made itself a key part of that reputation, working on the wildly popular Forza Horizon series. The studio took the successful Forza series, dropping the franchise into an open-world setting. It was so successful, in fact, that it saw four more entries in the franchise.

    A common story with UK studios over the years, its success attracted the attention of a buyer, with Microsoft purchasing the team in 2018. Since then, the developer has quietly become one of the Xbox firm’s crown jewels.

    Now you may be thinking: Playground Games hasn’t released a new game since 2021, when it debuted Forza Horizon 5. But as is common in the modern market, the studio has continued to support that game ever since as a live title with new content and balancing patches over four years after its release. Forza Horizon 5 brought in 4.5 million players via Xbox Game Pass when it launched, the highest level for an Xbox Game Studios title at the time, and went on to hit 20 million players within its first seven months. 

    Notable, over on Steam, at the time of writing Forza Horizon 4 ranks 57th for daily players, while Forza Horizon 5 ranks 72nd, reflecting the series’ ongoing popularity despite the lack of a new release.

    Looking ahead, Playground Games has been entrusted with the keys to the Fable franchise, previously developed by the now defunct legendary UK games studio Lionhead. The reboot of the series is set to launch this year and will be one of Microsoft’s flagship launches in 2025 as it looks to firmly establish a regular cadence of hit launches. Perhaps that’s why the company opened its third studio space earlier in 2024. 


  • 8 Playstack

    Playstack logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Balatro
    • The Rise of the Golden Idol
    • The Entropy Centre
    • The Last Faith
    • Mortal Shell

    One of the most notable global indie game success stories of 2024 was undoubtedly LocalThunk’s smash hit card game Balatro.

    It also further established UK publisher Playstack on the global stage — though not to play down its string of other great titles including The Rise of the Golden Idol, The Entropy Centre, and Mortal Shell, to name a few.

    Founded back in 2016, PlayStack is an indie label that initially focused on mobile games, shifting to publishing titles on PC and console in 2020.  

    But its most notable success story is arguably the highly addictive roguelike poker title Balatro. The title has shifted over 3.5 million copies since its initial PC release back in February. Within its first eight hours on sale, the game grossed $1 million in revenue, too. 

    Such is the hype around the title, it’s one of the few examples of a game launching with both an Apple Arcade subscription release and a wider App Store/Google Play launch. Released on iOS and Android in September, it has made $6.8 million in gross revenue, according to AppMagic estimates. Credit should also go to the companies for the quick turnaround of Balatro’s mobile release — ensuring it pipped inevitable competitors to the platform.

    Meanwhile, the title took home two accolades at the Pocket Gamer Awards: Best Digital Board Game of the Year and Best Mobile Port. Balatro also won three prizes at The Game Awards, including Mobile Game of the Year, Best Independent Game and Best Debut Indie Game. 

    This year also saw PlayStack dip its toes into the water of Early Access over on Steam with survival crafting title Abiotic Factor. That game sold over 600,000 copies within its first three months on sale after its May launch. 

    The UK isn’t short of great publishers (unfortunately we can’t fit them all onto this list), so standing out in a crowded field is a significant achievement.


  • 7 Facepunch Studios

    Facepunch Studios logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Rust
    • Garry's Mod

    Founded back in 2004, Garry Newman’s Birmingham-based Facepunch Studios is quietly a huge deal in the PC space, collectively selling over 38.6 million games – and 31.9 million skins – across its 19-and-a-half-year history. 

    The developer is best known for two projects; Garry’s Mod, a sandbox title that borrows assets from games that use Valve’s Source engine, such as Half-Life 2, Team Fortress 2 and Portal 2. The title was one of the first indie games on Steam and has shifted over 20 million copies to date. More recently, it has garnered fresh attention due to it featuring many of the same assets used in the hit, viral web series Skibidi Toilet, which recently saw a movie deal with director Michael Bay.

    Garry’s Mod is hugely influential, with the game’s Prop Hunt mode – created by Andrew "AMT" Theis and released via the title – being the inspiration for similar modes in Call of Duty games, Fortnite and Genshin Impact. 

    Facepunch’s other crown jewel is the multiplayer survival game Rust, which first launched in 2013 as an Early Access title. To date, the title has sold over 12.5 million copies and regularly boasts a dedicated community that often helps it be one of the games on Steam with the highest concurrent player figure on the platform. Even now, over six years since its initial release, Rust ranks No. 18 in the Top Sellers rankings on Steam. 

    Not content to sit on its laurels, Facepunch has for some time now been working on a spiritual successor to Garry’s Mod called Sandbox – stylised as s&box – which currently does not have a release date. 

    Founder Garry Newman is also reportedly one of the wealthiest people in the UK games industry. The inaugural Sunday Times Gaming Rich List, released last year, pegs his net worth at £335 million ($426 million), making him the sixth most valuable person in the sector. 


  • 6 Rare

    Rare logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Sea of Thieves

    You’ll be hard-pressed to find a British studio that is more romanticised than Rare – and with good reason, too. Founded in 1985, the Twycross-based developer is behind some of the most famous and iconic games ever to be released. People of a particular generation will have many happy memories of chaotic multiplayer sessions on GoldenEye and Perfect Dark or enjoying the platforming of Donkey Kong Country. 

    These days, Rare is a very different beast but is no less successful or influential. The company’s most recent release, 2018’s Sea of Thieves, is an open-world multiplayer pirate romp inspired by the likes of Eve, DayZ and Rust, that marks the studio’s first venture into live-service titles while keeping that Rare flavour of chaotic fun and charm. Despite receiving mixed reviews on launch, the game is Microsoft’s most successful original IP for the eighth generation of consoles. To date, the game has been played by more than 40 million people. 

    The pirate romp has also become a key part of Microsoft’s multi-platform strategy, being one of the first games to come to PlayStation in April 2024. Sea of Thieves is also Rare’s first title to appear on Sony hardware, too, having previously been brought to Steam in 2020. More recently, the company has increasingly given the reins to fans, allowing them to host their own events and, more recently, have private servers for Sea of Thieves. 

    The success of Sea of Thieves is arguably a big return to form for Rare, and like Hello Games (also on this list), shows the grit, determination and creativity UK studios possess to find success.

    Now, the company is working on a new action-adventure title called Everwild. The project was announced in November 2019 and has reportedly been rebooted once. Can Rare follow-up Sea of Thieves with a hit and provide a new killer game for the Xbox Game Pass? Don’t bet against Rare.


  • 5 Miniclip

    Miniclip logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • PowerWash Simulator
    • 8 Ball Pool

    Miniclip is arguably one of the most smartly run games businesses in the industry, consistently evolving with the market and making astute acquisitions to ensure it never gets left behind.

    Long a big name in the browser game space, since 2018 it has shifted its focus much more towards mobile titles on the back of the mega success of 8 Ball Pool. The title launched back in October 2010 and while we don’t have data for the entire time it’s been out, AppMagic estimates that between January 2015 and December 2024, the title has generated $1.2 billion in gross revenue and boasts over 1.1 billion downloads. 

    Despite the rather hostile macroeconomic environment the games industry has experienced over recent years, Miniclip says that it is launching more games than ever before, with recent hits including 2023’s Triple Match 3D. There’s also a new game on the way from Subway Surfers studio Sybo, which Miniclip acquired back in 2022. That title is expected to release in soft launch at some point in the near future.   

    Since then, the company has made two other big-ticket purchases. Miniclip recently picked up casual games publisher Easybrain, which it acquired from troubled European games firm Embracer Group for $1.2 billion. The company’s portfolio of puzzle and casual titles – including Sudoku.com, Pixel Art - Color by Number, Blockdoku, Killer Sudoku, Nonogram.com, Groovepad, Jigsaw Puzzles – have been installed over 1.5 billion times to date. 

    Not content with having an incredibly successful mobile games business, Miniclip has also expanded into PC and console games with the acquisition of PowerWash Simulator and Velocity maker FuturLab. No figure has been placed on that deal, but Powerwash Simulator has brought in over 12 million players since its Steam Early Access debut back in 2021. The deal for the UK studio adds another string to the bow of the Tencent-owned Miniclip, one of Europe’s top games companies with a significant UK presence.


  • 4 Ninja Theory

    Ninja Theory logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Senua's Saga: Hellblade II

    For a long time now, Cambridge-based Ninja Theory has proven its expertise in the third-person action space. The company cut its teeth working with other publishers on the likes of Heavenly Sword, Enslaved: Odyssey to the West and DmC: Devil May Cry. But in the middle of the 2010s, the studio realised which way the wind was blowing; triple-A projects were going to require higher budgets, but publishers were going to be more afraid to fund games.

    After failing to secure financing for some of the games it was pitching, Ninja Theory started to conceive of a more sustainable way of funding triple-A games, one which involved smaller budgets and teams, but the same high production values that consumers had come to expect. The developer would also retain the IP. The result of this was Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice, which was created with around 20 staff and received funding from less common arenas for games studios including Wellcome Trust, which typically funds scientific research. 

    The title launched in August 2017 to critical and commercial acclaim. Hellblade was profitable within just three months of its launch on the back of 500,000 copies and $13 million in revenue. Over 6.3 million people have played the game since its release. 

    It’s perhaps no surprise then that Microsoft acquired Ninja Theory in 2018 to bolster its Xbox Game Studios line-up. The following year, the studio announced a follow-up to Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice called Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II which would boast both a bigger budget and a much larger development team. The game launched in 2024 to critical acclaim, though there hasn’t been any sales information released about the title to date. 

    Meanwhile, Ninja Theory is also working on an experimental horror title called Project Mara, for which it is aiming to create “mental terror” rendered in photorealistic graphics.


  • 3 Ustwo games

    Ustwo games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Monument Valley 3
    • Monument Valley 2
    • Monument Valley
    • Desta: The Memories Between

    Over its lifetime, London-based Ustwo has never been afraid to evolve and try new things; the London developer has always been an innovative and creative force within the industry. 

    Founded all the way back in 2004, the company’s origins lie not necessarily in video games, but rather in digital design, including user interfaces. In 2011, Ustwo fully dipped its toes in mobile games with Whale Trail, but it wasn’t until 2014 that the company received massive recognition with the release of Monument Valley. The title and its 2017 sequel would revolutionise the way people looked at mobile games and together have been downloaded over 160 million times. 

    Since then the company has been unafraid to try new business models and hardware out; along the way Ustwo has experimented with virtual reality with 2015’s Land’s End, while in 2019, the studio was a champion of the Apple Arcade subscription with Assemble With Care. Ustwo has even tried its hand at activism with 2020’s Alba: A Wildlife Adventure, committing to plant a tree for every copy of the game sold or downloaded. 

    That same year, Ustwo partnered with Netflix, first for the roguelike dodgeball title Desta: The Memories Between, which made its debut on the streaming platform, before coming to Switch and PC, and would go on to win the Diversity Award at the 2023 TIGA Awards. More recently, Ustwo brought the eagerly-awaited Monument Valley 3 to Netflix via streaming service’s games label in December 2024, saying that their decision was the result of a lack of visibility on Apple’s App Store. 

    It’s still early days yet for the game, but it has been downloaded over 1.7 million times to date and has been met with a positive reception from critics and fans. If there’s one studio world renowned for delightful, polished experiences on mobile, it’s Ustwo with its Monument Valley series, and it’s struck gold again.


  • 2 Rockstar North

    Rockstar North logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • Grand Theft Auto V
    • Grand Theft Auto Online
    • Grand Theft Auto VI

    When you think of British development studios, is there any more famous than Rockstar North? Founded as DMA Design back in 1988, the Edinburgh-based outfit has been at the forefront of the games industry for most of its existence, most recently with Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2, in addition to their respective online modes. 

    GTA V’s list of achievements are both numerous and impressive. The open-world crime romp has not only shifted 205 million copies since its September 2013 release, but has reportedly made over $8.9 billion in total and ranks as the second-best-selling game of all time, coming in behind Mojang’s blocky blockbuster Minecraft. As if that wasn’t enough, GTA V is the most profitable entertainment product ever made, making back its reported £170 million ($265 million) budget multiple times over during its lifetime. The title has also been released across three different console generations, too.  

    A key part of the considerable amount of revenue GTA V has generated will have come from GTA Online, which continues to be a huge source of income for Rockstar North and its parent company Take-Two Interactive.  

    Meanwhile, Red Dead Redemption 2 has sold 67 million units since its 2018 debut. Next to GTA V, that might sound like small numbers but the open-world cowboy title is the sixth best-selling game of all time and also comes with an online mode that is both popular and rather lucrative. 

    Rockstar North is now working on the eagerly awaited sequel, GTA 6, which is set to launch in 2025. The hype surrounding the blockbuster-in-waiting is already at fever pitch and the game’s reveal trailer has clocked up 226.9 million views on the official Rockstar YouTube account. 

    The studio continues to be one of the most successful developers on the planet with a game over a decade old. GTA 6, if it does indeed release this year, will surely be another multi-billion dollar hit made in the UK.


  • 1 Hello Games

    Hello Games logo

    SOFTOGRAPHY

    • No Man's Sky
    • Light No Fire
    • The Last Campfire
    • Stage Fright

    Everyone enjoys a comeback story and you’ll find no finer example in the British games industry of such a narrative than Guildford-based Hello Games. 

    Having cut its teeth with smaller titles in its Joe Danger series, the studio moved to a much more ambitious sci-fi game that harnessed procedural generation techniques to build out an entire universe that featured up to 18 quintillion possible planets. 

    No Man’s Sky debuted in 2016 amid unbelievable hype, but it initially failed to meet expectations, with consumers feeling that there was a substantial gap between what had been promised and what the project had delivered. The result was a wave of negativity around the studio and No Man’s Sky soon became one of the lowest-rated games on Steam.

    Undeterred by the backlash, Hello Games got to work on improving the title, releasing several major updates that have turned No Man’s Sky into a feature-rich and very well-received experience that has become a semi-regular in the Steam Top 10 rankings when new content drops. To date, there have been 34 major updates to the game that have introduced everything from multiplayer to mech armour to new enemy types. 

    On Steam, No Man’s Sky boasts Very Positive reviews, a far cry from its initial release. In 2022, the title has sold north of 10 million copies and Hello Games has only continued to add to No Man’s Sky at a regular pace. 

    Since No Man’s Sky, Hello Games has expanded its portfolio with puzzle video game The Last Campfire, while it’s currently working on its next ambitious venture: survival game Light No Figure. More recently, the company announced that it was partnering with Overcooked developer Ghost Town Games to publish upcoming co-op romp Stage Fright. 

    Hello Games sums up game development creativity, ambitiousness and resolve, shining in a space where many others have tried and failed to keep their games alive for years. That’s why it’s our pick for number one in 2025.


COO, Steel Media Ltd

Dave is a writer, editor and manager. As our COO, he gets involved in all areas of the business, from front-page editorial to behind-the-scenes event strategy. He began his career in games and entertainment journalism in 1997 and has since worked in multiple roles in the media. You can contact him with any general queries about Pocket Gamer, PC Games Insider or Steel Media's other websites, conferences and initiatives.