London-based game-maker raises further £4.5m in funding

Space Ape hailed as London’s answer to Rovio, creator of Angry Birds.

Space Ape Games, a London-based mobile games studio has received £4.5 million of investment from investors in a third round of funding.

Following global success of their combat adventure game, Samurai Siege, the studio received further funding from investors that have previously backed successes such as Spotify and Facebook. The latest round of funding was led by Northzone but also included existing investors like Accel Partners, Initial Capital and Connect Ventures.

£7 million raised so far

Space Apes have said the next six months will see the studio ramp up marketing, as well as hiring between 30 and 40 new staff. Many now believe the London firm could grow to rival Rovio, the makers of Angry Birds.

The founders of Space Ape Games hold impressive credentials, as they are former Playfish, EA, and Mind Candy employees.

“We’ve built one of the best teams in the world to make the highest quality, most commercially successful mobile games, and we continue growing,” said Space Ape Games co-founder and CEO, John Earner. “The latest funding will help us realise this vision as we speed headlong into our growth plans for 2015.”

Second title unveiled: ‘Rival Kingdoms: Age of Ruin’

Coinciding with funding is a new title, due to be released early 2015 on both iOS and Android. Mr Earner said the studio listened to players’ opinions to produce a game that “breaks the mould in the mobile RTS genre.”

“We want to lead the way in making core games accessible on mobile devices in a way that accommodates our players’ busy modern lives,” he added.