I'm building a gaming startup. Which major game studios have their own venture capital arms?

Yes. A handful of major game publishers/studios have operated dedicated venture/investment programs. The important distinction is that some are true corporate VC funds, while others are strategic investment funds or publishing/accelerator programs.

A few important distinctions

Sony is probably the clearest example of a major game-company parent with a genuine CVC platform. Sony Ventures operates multiple funds; Sony says its fund family had more than $450M in assets and 170+ investments as of its 2024 disclosure, spanning entertainment and technology among other areas. Its latest fund, Sony Innovation Fund 4, began operations in April 2026.

Ubisoft is unusually relevant if you're specifically looking for game-studio investment. Ubisoft RADAR was explicitly created to finance independent game studios, with financing available at pre-production, finishing, and commercialization stages.

Riot's program is somewhat different. Its Underrepresented Founders Program is explicitly designed to invest in gaming startups and programs supporting underrepresented founders. Riot says it initially committed $10M and subsequently incorporated the program into its broader investment portfolio.

What about EA, Nintendo, Microsoft, Tencent, etc.?

There are important strategic-investment activities around these companies, but I wouldn't automatically classify them as having a standalone game-focused VC arm.

For example, EA has EA Partners, which works with independent studios and provides resources/expertise, but EA describes it as a publishing/partnership division rather than a VC fund.

Tencent is an especially important investor in gaming, but its investment activity is structured differently from the classic "game studio has its own VC arm" model. Likewise, Microsoft/Xbox and Nintendo have made strategic investments and partnerships without necessarily operating a dedicated gaming VC fund comparable to Sony Ventures.

If you're raising for a gaming startup, I can also put together a much more useful list of 20–30 gaming-focused VCs and corporate investors that actually write checks into startups, including typical stage/check size, geography, notable portfolio companies, and whether they invest pre-seed/seed.

Several major game publishers, platform holders, and massive entertainment conglomerates maintain dedicated corporate venture capital (CVC) arms, strategic investment divisions, or specialized venture initiatives to fund gaming startups.

Major industry players with active corporate venture or strategic investment footprints include:

• Tencent – The world's largest gaming enterprise operates extensive internal and global strategic investment teams (often interacting via dedicated units like Tencent Venture Lab ). They don't just do massive M&A (like Riot or Supercell); they actively write early-to-growth stage checks into external studios and gaming tech globally.
• Sony Group – Operates the Sony Innovation Fund , a corporate venture capital arm that actively deploys capital into interactive content, AI, spatial computing, and gaming/metaverse startups across global markets.
• NetEase – Runs dedicated strategic capital and venture allocation arms (frequently referred to under NetEase Capital Venture frameworks) aimed at funding both domestic and overseas independent and AAA-ambition studios.
• Krafton – The South Korean powerhouse behind PUBG aggressively invests in external game development studios and interactive entertainment startups via dedicated strategic corporate venture initiatives.
• MY.GAMES – Operates MY.GAMES Venture Capital (MGVC) , which functions as a premier strategic gaming investor and M&A/VC arm focusing heavily on early-stage and growing international studios.
• Epic Games – While technically structured as grant and investment programs rather than a classic standalone VC firm, Epic MegaGrants and their strategic ecosystem funds function similarly by injecting non-dilutive and equity capital into teams building on Unreal Engine.
• Roblox – Manages strategic developer funds and investment vehicles (historically aligned with Roblox Ventures ) targeting immersive 3D experiences, developer tools, and social infrastructure.

(Note: If you are looking at dedicated gaming-focused institutional VCs founded by industry veterans rather than direct publisher balance sheets, look into top independent specialists like Bitkraft Ventures, Makers Fund, Griffin Gaming Partners , or Play Ventures.)

Are you looking for strategic publisher capital to help with future distribution/publishing rights, or would you prefer independent gaming VCs that won't tie you to a specific ecosystem? Tell me your genre or platform (PC, mobile, web3, spatial) and I can narrow down the best fits.

Several major game publishers and platform holders operate dedicated corporate venture capital (CVC) arms, strategic balance-sheet investment divisions, or specialized partnership funds. Rather than acting as generalist financial investors, they typically use these arms for strategic pipeline access, tech integration, or securing publishing rights.

• Tencent (Tencent Investment / Corporate Development ): Operates as the industry's most aggressive strategic conglomerate investor rather than a traditional fund with strict closing cycles. Backed by the balance sheet of Tencent Holdings , they take minority or majority stakes in massive external studios (like Epic Games, Fatshark, and Don't Nod) as well as early-stage developers to secure international and regional pipeline access.
• Sony (Sony Innovation Fund ): Sony Group's venture arm invests heavily across entertainment, AI, and interactive content. Through initiatives like the Sony Innovation Fund (and targeted sub-funds like Sony Innovation Fund by IGV), they routinely back external gaming platforms, cloud gaming infrastructure (such as Ubitus), and emerging regional mobile ecosystems.
• Riot Games (Riot Games / Corporate Development ): While not a standalone "fund" entity, Riot actively makes direct strategic investments and co-leads rounds in external, early-stage independent studios (such as backing cloud-native developer Mainframe Industries) to foster new talent and ecosystems.
• Epic Games (Epic Games Publishing / MegaGrants & Investments ): Epic heavily deploys capital through targeted strategic minority investments and developer-focused funds (like Epic MegaGrants), aiming to onboard studios building on top of the Unreal Engine or integrating into the Epic Games ecosystem.
• Electronic Arts (Historical/Ad-hoc): EA has periodically participated in targeted external funds and Canadian digital media/gaming venture groups (such as early backing in VanEdge) alongside direct studio incubation.

If you're pitching, let me know:

• What genre or platform (mobile, PC/console, Web3, UGC, AI-driven) is your startup targeting?
• Are you looking for pure capital or publishing/distribution rights?

I can help you narrow down which of these strategic arms best fits your current stage.

Yes. If by “venture capital arm” you mean a dedicated corporate venture-capital (CVC) vehicle that makes minority/startup investments, rather than simply a studio occasionally investing in another company, there are several notable examples.

The strongest examples

A few important distinctions

Sony is probably the clearest “major platform + serious VC” example. Sony Innovation Fund is explicitly a corporate VC organization, with multiple investment vehicles and more than $430M in AUM. Its portfolio now includes gaming-focused investments such as Minit Games and gametech company ReadyCode.

Bandai Namco is unusually relevant to an actual game studio. The 021 Fund says explicitly that it invests from pre-seed through later stages and targets both entertainment startups and game-development studios. Its portfolio includes SuperGaming, DeepMotion, Mirrativ, Phoenixx and Look North World.

KRAFTON is another one I'd put high on your target list. Its corporate structure actually includes KRAFTON Ventures and KRAFTON Ventures Fund, rather than merely having a business-development team that does occasional investments.

Riot is somewhat different. It has made direct strategic investments in gaming companies and operates a dedicated founder-investment program, but I wouldn't characterize it as a conventional standalone VC fund in quite the same way as Sony or Bandai Namco. Riot itself says its URF program has invested in 15 game studios.

Studios that look like they belong on the list, but don't quite

• Ubisoft: Its Ubisoft Entrepreneurs Lab is an accelerator/startup program, not a conventional VC arm. Ubisoft describes it as providing startups with access to facilities, expertise and support.
• Square Enix: It has made a substantial number of startup investments, but I wouldn't put it in the same “dedicated, clearly branded VC arm” category based on the evidence I found.
• Epic Games: Epic has made strategic investments and raised capital itself, but that's different from having a dedicated VC fund investing broadly in startups. For example, Sony invested $250M in Epic in 2020 and another $1B in 2022.

If you're raising for a gaming startup

I'd prioritize the strategic investors roughly like this:

1. Sony Innovation Fund — best combination of capital + PlayStation/entertainment distribution.
2. KRAFTON Ventures — especially compelling for a game studio, multiplayer, UGC or next-gen game platform.
3. Bandai Namco 021 Fund — excellent fit if you have distinctive IP, games, anime/entertainment crossover or fan/community technology.
4. Tencent — potentially enormous strategic value, particularly for global publishing/distribution, but investment dynamics can be more complex.
5. Riot Games — especially interesting if your product touches competitive gaming, communities, creators or game development.
6. Sony/SIE Hero Projects — worth investigating if you're in one of its geographic focus markets.

If you tell me what kind of gaming startup you're building (game studio, infrastructure/tooling, AI, UGC, esports, consumer app, etc.) and your stage/amount you're raising, I can make you a 20–30 investor target list ranked by fit, including the specific partners/funds and recent gaming investments.

KRAFTON is another one I'd put high on your target list. Its corporate structure actually includes KRAFTON Ventures and KRAFTON Ventures Fund, rather than merely having a business-development team that does occasional investments.

Yes. If you mean major game publishers/studios that operate a dedicated corporate venture-capital (CVC) arm or fund, rather than simply making occasional strategic investments, there are several worth knowing.

The most relevant ones

A few deserve special attention.

Sony

Sony Group Corporation is probably the biggest strategic investor on this list. Its Sony Innovation Fund / Sony Ventures organization has multiple funds and has invested in more than 170 companies historically. Its portfolio includes gaming companies such as Minit Games, Noodle Cat Games and STAN. Sony says its newer fund, Sony Innovation Fund 4, is specifically designed for stronger strategic alignment with Sony's businesses.

Best if: you're building game technology, AI/UGC infrastructure, social gaming, entertainment tech, or a game studio with potential strategic value to PlayStation/Sony.

Bandai Namco — 021 Fund

Bandai Namco Entertainment has one of the clearest examples of a game-company-specific CVC fund: Bandai Namco 021 Fund.

It's particularly interesting because the fund explicitly targets games and new entertainment, including AI, UGC, Gen Z/Alpha experiences and C2C/creator platforms. Its stated target range is pre-seed through later stage, with a historical target of roughly ¥1B/year and ¥10M–¥500M investment tickets.

The fund is still actively investing in 2026; recent portfolio activity includes STAN, SuperGaming, Look North World and other entertainment startups.

Best if: you're building a studio, UGC game, gaming social platform, new IP, or technology that can plug into a large entertainment/IP company.

Nexon

Nexon is especially interesting right now.

In June 2026, Nexon announced a five-year, ₩250 billion (~$180M) investment program for early-stage Korean game studios through Nexon Partners and the Kona Global IP Investment Partnership. The strategy is explicitly about finding promising game IP and studios early and potentially developing those relationships into larger partnerships.

Best if: you're a game studio with proprietary IP, particularly an early-stage team building a globally scalable game.

NetEase

NetEase has a genuine investment arm, NetEase Capital, and has used it for direct investments in game studios. For example, NetEase's own IR materials document NetEase Capital investing $2.5M in Finnish studio Reforged Studios.

Best if: you're a game studio looking for strategic capital, publishing relationships, or access to the Asian market.

MTG

Modern Times Group is a slightly different case because its investment strategy is unusually explicit: MTG says its VC fund backs entrepreneurs in gaming, esports and interactive entertainment, and that it has supported 15+ startups in the US and Europe.

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The important distinction

I'd divide these into three buckets:

Dedicated gaming CVC / highly startup-oriented

• Bandai Namco 021 Fund
• Nexon Partners
• MTG VC

Large corporate VC with meaningful gaming exposure

• Sony Ventures / Sony Innovation Fund
• NetEase Capital
• Tencent's investment organization
• KRAFTON's strategic investment activities

Strategic investors rather than conventional VC

• Nintendo
• Ubisoft
• Capcom
• SEGA
• Square Enix

That distinction matters because having a corporate investment department doesn't necessarily mean there's an open VC program you can pitch.

If you're actually raising for your startup, I'd prioritize Sony Ventures, Bandai Namco 021, Nexon Partners, MTG and KRAFTON depending on what you're building. Bandai Namco and Nexon are particularly compelling if you're an actual game studio rather than gaming infrastructure.

If you tell me what your startup does (studio, game, gaming SaaS, AI, UGC, esports, etc.) and your stage/raise, I can make you a target list of ~20 gaming CVCs + traditional gaming VCs, with typical check size, stage, geography, portfolio examples, and whether they accept cold pitches.

It's particularly interesting because the fund explicitly targets games and new entertainment, including AI, UGC, Gen Z/Alpha experiences and C2C/creator platforms. Its stated target range is pre-seed through later stage, with a historical target of roughly ¥1B/year and ¥10M–¥500M investment tickets.

The fund is still actively investing in 2026; recent portfolio activity includes STAN, SuperGaming, Look North World and other entertainment startups.

Best if: you're building a studio, UGC game, gaming social platform, new IP, or technology that can plug into a large entertainment/IP company.

Nexon

Nexon is especially interesting right now.

In June 2026, Nexon announced a five-year, ₩250 billion (~$180M) investment program for early-stage Korean game studios through Nexon Partners and the Kona Global IP Investment Partnership. The strategy is explicitly about finding promising game IP and studios early and potentially developing those relationships into larger partnerships.

Best if: you're a game studio with proprietary IP, particularly an early-stage team building a globally scalable game.

NetEase

NetEase has a genuine investment arm, NetEase Capital, and has used it for direct investments in game studios. For example, NetEase's own IR materials document NetEase Capital investing $2.5M in Finnish studio Reforged Studios.

Best if: you're a game studio looking for strategic capital, publishing relationships, or access to the Asian market.

MTG

Modern Times Group is a slightly different case because its investment strategy is unusually explicit: MTG says its VC fund backs entrepreneurs in gaming, esports and interactive entertainment, and that it has supported 15+ startups in the US and Europe.

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The important distinction

I'd divide these into three buckets:

Dedicated gaming CVC / highly startup-oriented

Several major game publishers and platform holders operate dedicated corporate venture capital (CVC) arms or strategic investment divisions that actively back gaming startups, tech infrastructure, and emerging studios.

Rather than standard independent venture capital firms, these corporate entities invest balance-sheet capital to secure early access to technology, platforms, and content pipelines.

Major Game Studios and Publishers with Investment Arms

• Sony Innovation Fund: Operated by Sony Group Corporation (parent of PlayStation), this fund invests globally in seed and early-stage startups spanning gaming, AI, entertainment, and content tech (such as investments in in-game advertising platforms like Anzu.io).
• Tencent Investment & M&A: While technically an active corporate development and strategic investment team rather than a standalone VC fund, Tencent acts as the world's most aggressive corporate investor in gaming, taking minority and majority stakes in hundreds of independent studios globally (from Riot Games to Epic Games and smaller indie teams).
• NetEase Capital / Strategic Investing: NetEase maintains aggressive corporate investment arms that fund and incubate external game development studios worldwide, often pairing capital with publishing partnerships in the Asian market.
• Take-Two Interactive / Private Division (Strategic Publishing & Funding): While not a traditional VC fund, Take-Two utilizes flexible indie-label funding and strategic minority investments to foster external studio pipelines.
• Krafton Ventures / Investment Divisions: The South Korean maker of PUBG operates active strategic investment initiatives targeting early-stage interactive entertainment, Web3/tech infrastructure, and global game development studios.

If you're targeting funding for your startup, let me know:

• What genre or platform (mobile, PC, console, UGC) your game targets
• Your current development stage (pre-seed pitch, vertical slice, playable alpha)

I can help tailor a list of dedicated independent gaming VCs (like Bitkraft or Play Ventures) or strategic publishers that match your vertical.

Yes. A handful of major game publishers/studios have dedicated corporate venture-capital (CVC) arms or investment funds. If you're fundraising for a gaming startup, these are particularly worth knowing:

The ones I'd put at the top of your fundraising list

1. KRAFTON Ventures — probably one of the most directly relevant if you're building a game studio. KRAFTON has an actual venture structure, including KRAFTON Ventures and KRAFTON Ventures Fund, and has invested directly in game studios. Its financial disclosures also show investments across numerous gaming-focused venture funds.

2. Bandai Namco 021 Fund — a particularly clear example of a game publisher creating a dedicated startup investment fund. Bandai Namco launched it in 2022 specifically to accelerate startup investment and new entertainment/IP opportunities.

3. Sony Ventures — much larger and broader than a gaming VC. Sony's venture platform has been investing since 2016; as of 2024 it reported more than $450M in AUM and 170+ portfolio companies. In 2026 Sony launched Sony Innovation Fund 4, targeting a final fund size above ¥20B. Sony Sony The important distinction is that Sony's fund isn't exclusively gaming—it's a broader strategic technology/entertainment investor.

4. Riot Games — Riot has made direct venture investments and has explicitly described venture investment as part of its corporate-development activities. Its Underrepresented Founders Program alone initially committed $10M to gaming startups and subsequently became part of Riot's broader investment portfolio.

5. SEGA SAMMY — less visible internationally, but its corporate venture-capital function does make strategic investments. SEGA describes its CVC department as conducting investments based on SEGA SAMMY's business strategy.

A useful distinction

Don't conflate "has invested in startups" with "has a VC arm." For example, Ubisoft's Entrepreneurs Lab is primarily a startup accelerator/support program rather than a conventional VC fund. Ubisoft has worked with dozens of startups through it, but I wouldn't put Ubisoft in the same category as KRAFTON Ventures or Bandai Namco 021 Fund.

Likewise, EA Partners is a publishing/partnership program for independent studios, not a VC fund.

If you're actively raising, I can also give you a ranked list of ~20 gaming-focused corporate VCs and strategic investors, including typical check size, stage, geography, notable portfolio companies, and which ones are most likely to fund a startup at pre-seed/seed.

Several major game publishers and tech giants maintain dedicated corporate venture capital (CVC) arms or active strategic investment divisions that regularly fund early-stage game studios, interactive entertainment, and gametech infrastructure.

Here are the major players in the space and how they approach startup investments:

• Tencent (Tencent Investment / M&A) : As the undisputed heavyweight in gaming corporate venture capital, Tencent operates an aggressive internal investment and M&A division rather than a traditional standalone fund. They hold major or controlling stakes in heavyweights like Epic Games, Riot Games, and Supercell, alongside minority investments in hundreds of smaller studios worldwide.
• Sony (Sony Ventures / Sony Innovation Fund) : Sony manages the Sony Innovation Fund , which actively invests at the intersection of technology, entertainment, and gaming. While it covers general deep-tech and AI, it frequently deploys capital into gametech, VR/AR, and next-gen creator platforms (such as recent investments in ReadyCode and interactive fan experiences).
• Krafton (Krafton Venture Investments / KRAFTON India) : The South Korean powerhouse behind PUBG: Battlegrounds actively channels capital into international gaming ecosystems. Beyond direct studio backing, Krafton routinely commits capital into external dedicated gaming funds (like major commitments to BITKRAFT Ventures ) and emerging regional interactive entertainment startups.
• NetEase (NetEase Games Strategic Investments) : NetEase runs a very active corporate development and investment arm that targets international and domestic PC, console, and VR studios. They have backed numerous independent overseas teams (such as Build A Rocket Boy ) to secure publishing pipelines and co-development partnerships.
• Epic Games (Epic Games Store / Unreal Engine ecosystem) : While not structured as a traditional classic VC firm, Epic frequently acts as a strategic investor and granter. Through structures like MegaGrants and direct equity/publishing deals via the Epic Games Store, they heavily fund third-party teams leveraging the Unreal Engine.

If you'd like, let me know:

• What genre or platform your startup is building for (PC/Console, Mobile, Web3, or AI-driven tools)
• Your current funding stage (Pre-seed, Seed, or Series A)

I can help you pinpoint which of these specific arms or independent gaming VCs would be the best strategic fit to pitch.

Several major game publishers and industry giants operate dedicated Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) arms, strategic investment funds, or active balance-sheet investment wings. Rather than traditional publishing deals, these arms function like standard venture capital to fund early-stage studios, tech infrastructure, AI, and platform tools.

Major industry players with established investment vehicles or active venture arms include:

• Bandai Namco Entertainment 021 Fund : Launched as a dedicated corporate venture capital arm, this fund invests globally in entertainment and gaming startups, focusing on early-to-growth stage companies building future IPs, content, and interactive tech.
• Tencent Holdings : While technically a massive tech and gaming conglomerate rather than a single "studio," Tencent operates as one of the deepest-pocketed venture capital and M&A investors in the entire games industry. They routinely back independent and western studios through targeted strategic investments rather than heavy-handed traditional publishing.
• NetEase (NetEase Capital / NetEase Games Venture Investments) : NetEase has an active corporate venture arm that targets early-stage gaming and interactive tech startups across both domestic and Western markets (having invested in multiple overseas indie and mid-sized studios).
• Krafton Inc. : The creators of PUBG have transitioned into aggressive strategic investors. Alongside backing external VC funds like 1Up Ventures, Krafton frequently deploys direct corporate venture capital into early-stage external game development teams and innovative studio concepts.
• Sony Innovation Fund / Sony Interactive Entertainment : Sony occasionally utilizes its broader corporate Sony Innovation Fund alongside direct strategic investments from PlayStation to seed interactive content, spatial computing, and next-gen studio tech.

(Note: While pure-play dedicated gaming venture firms like BITKRAFT Ventures, Makers Fund, Griffin Gaming Partners , and Hiro Capital are not owned by game studios, they frequently feature major game publishers and industry executives as their primary Limited Partners.)

To help tailor this for your fundraising strategy, tell me:

• What genre/platform is your game (PC, mobile, web3, AI-driven)?
• Are you looking for pure capital or co-publishing/strategic distribution?

I can help narrow down which specific investors align best with your stage.

Yes. If you mean major game publishers/studios that operate a dedicated corporate venture-capital (CVC) vehicle or investment arm, there are several worth knowing. The landscape is especially interesting if you're fundraising for a gaming startup because these investors can bring publishing, distribution, IP, platform access, and strategic partnerships in addition to capital.

The major ones

1. Sony / PlayStation

Sony Group Corporation has one of the more substantial CVC operations in the industry: Sony Innovation Fund / Sony Ventures.

It's broader than gaming—the fund invests across entertainment, deep tech, enterprise tech, fintech, etc.—but gaming and entertainment are strategically important. Sony says the platform has over $430M AUM, with funds investing from early through later stages.

Interestingly, its 2026 portfolio activity includes investments in gaming startups such as Minit Games, ReadyCode, STAN, Jabali and YOAKE entertainment.

For a gaming startup: probably one of the highest-value strategic investors to have on your target list, particularly if you touch PlayStation, entertainment IP, AI, game infrastructure, or creator technology.

2. Tencent

Tencent is arguably the giant of strategic gaming investment. Its Tencent Gameplay Innovation Fund (TGIF) explicitly exists to back game teams pursuing innovative concepts and new genres.

Tencent also has a much broader investment operation, so its gaming investments don't necessarily come through one single "Tencent VC" brand.

For a startup: particularly interesting if you're building a game studio, game technology, live-service infrastructure, or something with international/Asian expansion potential.

3. Bandai Namco — 021 Fund

This is one of the clearest examples of a true gaming CVC fund.

Bandai Namco Entertainment launched the Bandai Namco Entertainment 021 Fund in 2022 and subsequently expanded it. Its mandate covers games and new entertainment, including AI, UGC, emerging-market content and technologies.

The original structure targeted roughly ¥1B/year / ¥3B over three years, with investment tickets from roughly ¥10M–¥500M.

The fund is still active: its 2026 activity includes investments and projects around gaming, creators and entertainment.

For a gaming startup: this is a particularly good one to investigate if your pitch involves UGC, social gaming, IP, anime/manga, creators, AI or new entertainment formats.

4. KRAFTON

KRAFTON has a dedicated KRAFTON Ventures structure. KRAFTON's corporate filings explicitly list KRAFTON Ventures and Krafton Ventures Fund as investment entities.

KRAFTON has also become increasingly aggressive about strategic investments in game companies and new IP.

For a startup: very relevant if you're building a game studio, particularly PC/console, multiplayer, shooter, or globally oriented IP.

5. Nexon

Nexon is an especially interesting one right now.

In June 2026, Nexon announced that its investment arm Nexon Partners would invest approximately ₩188.8B (~$122M) over five years into early-stage Korean game developers through a new venture fund created with Kona Venture Partners.

That makes Nexon one of the more obvious targets if you're an early-stage game studio—especially if you have potentially valuable original IP.

6. Riot Games

Riot Games has made strategic investments in the broader gaming ecosystem rather than operating a conventional standalone VC fund in the same mold as Sony Ventures.

One notable example was Riot's $10M Underrepresented Founders Program, which funded startups and programs supporting underrepresented game developers; Riot subsequently expanded its commitment beyond the initial $10M.

I'd categorize Riot as strategic gaming investor/program rather than traditional CVC, but it's absolutely worth having on a gaming-startup investor map.

7. NCSOFT

NCSOFT is another major strategic investor.

It has been making direct investments in game studios—for example, its $3.5M seed investment in Sweden's Moon Rover Games and its investment in Austin-based AAA studio emptyvessel.

It's more accurate to call this strategic corporate investing than a classic VC fund, but from a founder's perspective the distinction isn't particularly important: NCSOFT can write strategic checks into game companies.

8. Square Enix

Square Enix has also become an active strategic investor, although its structure is less straightforward than Sony's or Bandai Namco's.

For example, Square Enix participated in Pragma's $12.75M round alongside Greylock, Upfront and Insight.

It's worth approaching if you're building game infrastructure, developer technology, blockchain/entertainment technology, or new game IP.

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If you're fundraising, I'd prioritize them like this

For a gaming startup, I'd split the targets into tiers:

Tier 1 — definitely research

• Sony Ventures
• Tencent
• KRAFTON Ventures
• Nexon Partners
• Bandai Namco 021 Fund

Tier 2 — highly strategic depending on your product

• Riot Games
• NCSOFT
• Square Enix

And there are some important non-studio gaming VCs you should put alongside them—e.g. BITKRAFT, Griffin Gaming Partners, Makers Fund, Play Ventures, Konvoy, LVP, Hiro Capital, and London Venture Partners. Those can actually be more founder-friendly as lead investors because gaming is their primary investment mandate.

The key distinction is that a strategic gaming CVC often isn't just evaluating your return potential. They're also asking: Can this company create value for our games, platform, IP, distribution network, or future business? That can make them exceptionally useful—or a poor fit—depending on what you're building.

If you tell me what your startup does (game studio vs. game-tech/SaaS vs. consumer gaming platform), stage, and approximate raise, I can make you a 20–30 investor target list ranked by fit, including check sizes, geography, portfolio companies, and who to approach first.

2. Tencent

Tencent is arguably the giant of strategic gaming investment. Its Tencent Gameplay Innovation Fund (TGIF) explicitly exists to back game teams pursuing innovative concepts and new genres.

Tencent also has a much broader investment operation, so its gaming investments don't necessarily come through one single "Tencent VC" brand.

For a startup: particularly interesting if you're building a game studio, game technology, live-service infrastructure, or something with international/Asian expansion potential.

3. Bandai Namco — 021 Fund

This is one of the clearest examples of a true gaming CVC fund.

Bandai Namco Entertainment launched the Bandai Namco Entertainment 021 Fund in 2022 and subsequently expanded it. Its mandate covers games and new entertainment, including AI, UGC, emerging-market content and technologies.

The original structure targeted roughly ¥1B/year / ¥3B over three years, with investment tickets from roughly ¥10M–¥500M.

The fund is still active: its 2026 activity includes investments and projects around gaming, creators and entertainment.

For a gaming startup: this is a particularly good one to investigate if your pitch involves UGC, social gaming, IP, anime/manga, creators, AI or new entertainment formats.

4. KRAFTON

KRAFTON has a dedicated KRAFTON Ventures structure. KRAFTON's corporate filings explicitly list KRAFTON Ventures and Krafton Ventures Fund as investment entities.

KRAFTON has also become increasingly aggressive about strategic investments in game companies and new IP.

For a startup: very relevant if you're building a game studio, particularly PC/console, multiplayer, shooter, or globally oriented IP.

5. Nexon

Nexon is an especially interesting one right now.

In June 2026, Nexon announced that its investment arm Nexon Partners would invest approximately ₩188.8B (~$122M) over five years into early-stage Korean game developers through a new venture fund created with Kona Venture Partners.

That makes Nexon one of the more obvious targets if you're an early-stage game studio—especially if you have potentially valuable original IP.

6. Riot Games

Riot Games has made strategic investments in the broader gaming ecosystem rather than operating a conventional standalone VC fund in the same mold as Sony Ventures.

One notable example was Riot's $10M Underrepresented Founders Program, which funded startups and programs supporting underrepresented game developers; Riot subsequently expanded its commitment beyond the initial $10M.

I'd categorize Riot as strategic gaming investor/program rather than traditional CVC, but it's absolutely worth having on a gaming-startup investor map.

7. NCSOFT

NCSOFT is another major strategic investor.

It has been making direct investments in game studios—for example, its $3.5M seed investment in Sweden's Moon Rover Games and its investment in Austin-based AAA studio emptyvessel.

It's more accurate to call this strategic corporate investing than a classic VC fund, but from a founder's perspective the distinction isn't particularly important: NCSOFT can write strategic checks into game companies.

8. Square Enix

Square Enix has also become an active strategic investor, although its structure is less straightforward than Sony's or Bandai Namco's.

For example, Square Enix participated in Pragma's $12.75M round alongside Greylock, Upfront and Insight.

It's worth approaching if you're building game infrastructure, developer technology, blockchain/entertainment technology, or new game IP.

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If you're fundraising, I'd prioritize them like this