Gaming is now the fastest growing field driving Singapore’s digital economy, according to a 2023 report. The country has become a prominent hub for esports tournaments, winning its first SEA Games gold medal in 2023. And it was at the forefront of the GameFi craze in 2021 and 2022. The Singaporean government has also provided funding and support for multinational game developers to open offices here, with the hope that these studios will cultivate more local game developers.
Home to millions of players and several top AAA studios, Singapore is a burgeoning hotspot for video game development. Below, we explore some of the top Singapore gaming companies driving the industry forward.
Top Gaming Companies in Singapore
- Sony Interactive Entertainment
- Riot Games
- Ubisoft
- HoYoverse
- Garena
- Bandai Namco
Top Gaming Companies in Singapore
Founded in 2005 following a merger between toymaker Bandai and gaming and entertainment company Namco, Bandai Namco is video game publisher headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It owns several video game franchises, including Ace Combat, Dark Souls, and Pac-Man, with the titular yellow character serving as the company’s official mascot. Bandai Namco’s studio in Singapore is its “leading development center” in Asia, developing games and content for the Asian Pacific market.
Take-Two Interactive Software is known for its gaming franchises Grand Theft Auto, Borderlands and NBA 2K. It is the second-largest publicly traded game company in Europe and the Americas, with an estimated market cap of $23 billion. The American company’s Singapore location serves as the headquarters for its Asia operations.
Global gaming company Electronic Arts’ own brands include The Sims, Apex Legends and Plants v. Zombies. The company also markets games under other licensed brands, like FIFA, Star Wars and Madden NFL. Electronic Arts employs 13,000 people around the world, in more than 20 studios.
Ever since it released the online multiplayer League of Legends in 2009, Riot Games has remained a prominent fixture in the gaming industry. Since then, League has grown into one of the most-played PC games in the world, and a key driver in the rise of esports. And Riot Games has released several mobile games, including Legends of Runeterra and Teamfight Tactics. The Los Angeles-based company’s Asia Pacific headquarters is located in Singapore, which serves as both a studio and homebase for the region’s esports team.
2K publishes games across several different genres, including sports, action, role-playing and strategy. The company’s international growth is fueled by its plan to build and acquire smaller studios creating exciting content. 2K was founded in 2005 and has offices in 22 different locations around the world.
Game development company Whimsy Games offers services including mobile app development, UI/UX design and software development. The company is known for its original 2D and 3D art as well as its market trend analysis. Whimsy Games is headquartered in Ukraine, with additional locations in the UK, US and Singapore.
HoYoverse is the metaverse branch of miHoYo, the Chinese video game development and publishing company behind the popular action role-playing game Genshin Impact. In addition to games, the company has created various products like novels, comics, merchandise and an animated series. HoYoVerse has studios in Montreal, Los Angeles, Tokyo and Seoul, and opened its headquarters in Singapore in 2022, which serves as a key hub for the company’s global distribution and operation efforts.
Mobile Premier League offers free and paid games, including fantasy sports, sports games, board games and puzzles. Over 90 million users are registered on its platforms across Asia, Europe and North America, and the company hosts hundreds of millions of tournaments each month. Mobile Premier League has its headquarters in India and employs 800 people across locations in India, Singapore and New York.
Wargaming is a leader in the free-to-play massive multiplayer online gaming space. Over 200 million people play on its platforms, including World of Warships and World of Tanks. Headquartered in Cyprus, Wargaming’s Singapore location serves as the central office for Wargaming Asia.
Mobile-first gaming company Scopely makes both original and licensed IP games, including MARVEL Strike Force, Scrabble GO and Star Trek Fleet Command. It operates on a proprietary technology platform called Playgami, named for the company’s mission to inspire play and its design inspiration of origami. Scopely’s headquarters is in Culver City, California.
As the digital entertainment arm of parent company Sea Group, Garena is a game developer and publisher based in Singapore. In addition to producing several of its own free online games, the company distributes various game titles across Southeast Asia on its Garena PC platform, including multiplayer online battle arena games League of Legends and Heroes of Newerth, as well as football game FIFA Online 3 and first-person shooter game Point Blank. Garena is also a leading organizer of esports events across greater Southeast Asia.
PlayStation debuted its first gaming console in 1994. Today, it offers consoles, handheld gaming devices, online gaming services, smartphones and apps. Playstation employs nearly 13,000 people around the world, with offices in the US, UK, Japan and Singapore.
The Pokémon Company International is responsible for managing the Pokémon brand outside of Asia. Pokémon began as a trading card game in Japan in 1996 and has grown to include video games, animated series and films. The Pokémon Company International has its headquarters in Bellevue, Washington, with additional locations in Ireland, England and Singapore.
With an annual revenue of some $28.2 billion in 2023, Sony Interactive Entertainment is one of the largest video game makers in the world. The company primarily operates the PlayStation brand of video game consoles, as well as more than a dozen studios, which make popular titles like God of War, Marvel’s Spider-Man and The Last of Us. SIE has various corporate headquarters around the world — including one in Singapore, which controls the company’s Southeast Asia operations.
PLAYSTUDIOS develops and operates free-to-play games for mobile and social platforms. Its offerings focus on casino games, like myVEGAS Slots and myVEGAS Blackjack, but also include strategy games like Tetris, Sudoku and Solitaire. PLAYSTUDIOS has offices on three continents. In 2023, it opened a new Singapore studio in the Duxton Hill neighborhood.
Ubisoft is the game developer behind popular franchises like Far Cry, Just Dance and Assassin’s Creed, as well as the much-anticipated Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora game, which is based on the Avatar film franchise. Founded in France in the 1980s, Ubisoft opened its Singapore office in 2008, which is now the largest AAA studio in South East Asia, according to the company.
Gameloft mobile games are downloaded more than 1.5 million times every day. The company was one of the first to develop games for mobile phones in 2000 and now produces games for PCs, consoles and all major digital platforms. A Paris-based company, Gameloft has 17 game development studios worldwide.
NetEase Games works with intellectual property holders to develop and publish games in nine countries. Its most well-known games include Knives Out, Harry Potter and Magic Awakened. NetEase Games’ headquarters is in China, and it maintains offices around the globe. It is the fifth-largest gaming publisher in the world.
UK-based Electric Square specializes in character development and creating AAA console games. Known for its work on popular games like Assassin’s Creed, Nexus VR and Diablo IV, the company partners with major game developers to provide 2D and 3D animation services, platform support, technical art and world-building collaboration. Electric Square employs more than 250 multi-disciplinary game developers.
Activision Blizzard is known for its popular games like Candy Crush, Call of Duty and World of Warcraft. In addition to its gaming profile, the company also operates esports leagues and develops content for film and television. Activision Blizzard has nearly 500 million monthly users in 96 different countries.
