Savvy Games Group and Xsolla have partnered together in order to launch a game development academy in Saudi Arabia.
Efforts are being made in order to "create economic opportunities" for Middle Eastern game developers. By extension, the new deal puts Xsolla in bed with the country's state-owned Public Investment Fund.
More Job Opportunities
Under the partnership between Savvy Games Group and Xsolla, the latter promises to help create 3,600 new jobs by the end of 2030.
There are several key initiatives that will be launched as part of the deal, including incubator and accelerator programs, industry events, and funding for development projects.
On top of this, Xsolla will also create a regional office in Riyadh with services that are focused on business, product, and technology development.
This is to "help developers and publishers scale and grow their games in the Middle East and the Kingdom," according to GameDeveloper.
The CEO of Savvy Games Group, Brian Ward, also called the partnership with Xsolla a "significant step forward" in their mission to elevate Saudi Arabia's games and esports ecosystem. He added that they were creating jobs and building a vibrant and sustainable industry.
The situation comes as the state-backed firm has released its annual report for the past year as it discusses its strategic goals.
Following the establishment of its own development house at Steer Studios and investments in global games firms, it has grown to more than 3,500 employees worldwide across 22 countries, said PocketGamer.
The company's acquisitions include the $4.9 billion deal for Monopoly GO! and Stumble Guys developer Scopely, esports firm ESL FACEIT Group, and competitive gaming technology and infrastructure firm Vindex.
Growing Saudi Arabia's Gaming Industry
Savvy Games Group has also invested $265 million in esports events operator VSPO for a 30% stake and the former owns an 8.1% equity stake in Embracer Group.
It had previously pulled out of a deal to invest another $2 billion in the latter, sparking mass layoffs and later a restructuring plan.
The efforts to support Saudi Arabia's game industry come as the Middle Eastern country is making efforts to accelerate its growth in the games and esports industries. It is also using a very inorganic means, which is speed.
Savvy Games Group is investing a lot of funds into gaming, with $37 billion from the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund already earmarked for games.
The success only helps the Middle Eastern nation to reach its goal if more jobs are created to offset the inevitable decline of the oil economy, according to VentureBeat.
