Savvy Games Group, the gaming powerhouse backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), is actively exploring new investment and partnership opportunities in China as a cornerstone of its global expansion strategy. The move signals a deeper push into Asia’s largest gaming market to fuel the Kingdom’s ambition of becoming a worldwide hub for the industry.
A Strategic Push into Asia’s Largest Market
During a recent visit to Shanghai, Savvy executives highlighted the immense potential of the Chinese market, citing its vast consumer base and world-class talent pool. Brian Ward, CEO of Savvy, confirmed the company is actively seeking partnerships in the region.
“China is a fantastic market because it’s a big one, and secondly, there’s some of the best talent in the world,” Ward stated. “There are some genres of games you might not even try to make elsewhere in the world now.”
He added that Savvy hopes to forge new partnerships or investments in the local market, emphasizing the company’s focus on emerging and Asian markets, particularly in the PC, console, and hardcore gaming genres.
Vision 2030 and a Global Gaming Hub
This strategic interest in China is directly aligned with Saudi Vision 2030, the Kingdom’s national framework to diversify its economy away from oil. A key goal of this initiative is to establish Saudi Arabia as a global epicenter for gaming and esports by 2030, aiming to create 39,000 local jobs and contribute US$13.3 billion to the country’s GDP.
Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan Al Saud, Vice-Chairman of Savvy, noted the unique strength of the Chinese market.
“What is unique to China is its ability to be successful in games and esports without an international market,” the prince said, pointing to the massive local success of Tencent’s Delta Force, which attracted nearly 13 million daily active users shortly after its launch. “There’re very few markets anywhere else where you can get that kind of growth locally.”
Inspired by Chinese Innovation
The leadership at Savvy has also been impressed by the quality of games emerging from China. Prince Faisal specifically praised the critically acclaimed action RPG Black Myth: Wukong from Chinese developer Game Science.
“It was one of the best games that I have ever played,” he said. “There are groups of young men and women in Saudi who are now coming together to create games, which gives us the opportunity to get to a point where we can create something like Black Myth: Wukong.”
Savvy’s last major investment in China was in 2023, when it acquired a 30% stake in Tencent-backed Hero Esports for US$265 million. The company also holds significant stakes in global gaming giants like Activision Blizzard, Scopely, Nintendo, and Capcom.
About Savvy Games Group
Savvy Games Group is a games and esports company established in 2021 and wholly owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF). With a mission to drive the long-term growth and development of the global games and esports sector, Savvy is building a leading industry champion through strategic investments, acquisitions, and the development of its own gaming studios.
Source: Tech in Asia
