What SOFTGAMES does

SOFTGAMES Mobile Entertainment Services GmbH is a Berlin-based, privately held developer of HTML5 instant games, founded in October 2006 by brothers Alexander (CEO) and Andre Krug (COO). The company builds casual, social games—including flagship titles Bubble Shooter Pro, Solitaire Home Story, Cookie Crush, Mahjong Story, and Matching Moments—that run instantly in browsers or inside messenger-app platforms without downloads. Its proprietary Instant Games Platform supports cross-platform play so users on different devices can compete in the same sessions.

The business reaches players through deep distribution partnerships with Facebook (launch partner for Messenger Instant Games in 2016, among only 14 globally), Samsung Instant Play (#1 Top Grossing IAP and IAA in 2023), and LINE QUICK GAME (Japan, 2019), supplemented by Google Play, the Apple App Store, and a direct web channel (e.g., solitairestory.com). SOFTGAMES reports 30M+ monthly active users, an 87% returning-visitor rate, 45+ minute average sessions, and a content library of 400+ in-house games distributed to a network of 2,000+ premium publishers.

Monetization is dual-track: in-app purchases (coins, boosters, premium content) and in-game advertising (pre-roll video, interstitial, rewarded video), historically supplemented by content licensing. The company also operates an advertising offering for global brands targeting its gaming audience. Since 2020 it has operated as a remote-first organization with offices in Berlin and Toronto, holds GDPR compliance, and has received Glassdoor "Superstar Employer" recognition. The company is privately held by its co-founders, has no disclosed venture capital or institutional investors, and has not publicly disclosed revenue.

Name

SOFTGAMES

Legal name

SOFTGAMES Mobile Entertainment Services GmbH

Website

https://softgames.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

SOFTGAMES is a Berlin-based developer of HTML5 instant games distributed via Facebook Instant Games, Samsung Instant Play, and LINE, monetizing through in-app purchases and advertising across 30M+ monthly active users worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Casual Mobile Gaming

NAICS

Doll, Toy, and Game Manufacturing (33993)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Casual/Hypercasual Game Studios (MPAFAAAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Mobile Game Publishing & App Game Stores (BPAMAKAB)

Keywords

• HTML5 instant games
• Casual mobile games
• In-game advertising
• Social puzzle games
• Mobile game development

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. In-App Purchases (IAP): Monetization through in-game purchases including coins, lives, special add-ons, boosters, and premium content. Players can purchase to enhance gameplay experience and progress faster.
2. In-Game Advertising: Revenue from advertising through pre-roll video, interstitial video/banner, and rewarded video formats. Advertisers can select targeted audiences from 30+ million active users across HTML5 games platform.
3. Content Licensing: Licensing of original game titles (50 HTML5 games licensed by 2013, 100+ original titles released by 2014) to a worldwide developer network and affiliate partners.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

SOFTGAMES develops casual, truly social HTML5 instant games that can be played instantly across all platforms without downloads or installation. The company distributes these games through platform partners (Facebook Instant Games, Samsung Instant Play, LINE QUICK GAME) and generates revenue via in-app purchases and in-game advertising. It also provides in-game advertising inventory to global brands seeking access to its 30M+ monthly active user base.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bubble Shooter Pro A highly successful hyper-social match-3 bubble shooter game that became the largest game on Facebook Instant Games and is played by millions of people around the world every day.
• Solitaire Home Story A comedy-drama narrative-based solitaire game where players play as Alice, an architect returning to her childhood ranch to rebuild what was lost. Features Klondike solitaire gameplay with additional twists, renovation storyline, and character interactions.
• Hexa Stack A satisfying puzzle game featuring clever hexagon stacking levels.
• Tile Hero A tile matching adventure game where players solve puzzles to save the town.
• Matching Moments A heartfelt match-your-way story game full of surprises.
• Puzzle Blocks Classic A classic puzzle blocks game available on Google Play and Facebook Instant Games.
• Solitaire Farm Seasons A sunny and casual Tri-peaks card game that combines classic Solitaire gameplay with a simplified farming simulation meta-layer where players earn crops to unlock, plant, and harvest.
• Solitaire Tripeaks A tri-peaks solitaire game available on Facebook Instant Games.
• Jewels Blitz A match-3 jewels game available on Facebook.
• Cookie Crush A match-3 hit game that grew from 0 to 3M users within a week and became the most successful Match-3 Instant Game. Released on LINE QUICK GAME (Japan) and Facebook Instant Games.
• Mahjong Story A fresh and dynamic Mahjong puzzle game featuring character May traveling around the world with her ferret best friend Jong, solving puzzles to clear levels and unlock rewards.
• Trivia Quiz A cross-language playable social quiz game where players from all over the world can compete together. Supports six different languages with localized content.
• In-Game Advertising Service Global in-game advertising service reaching 30+ million monthly active users. Offers brand-safe traffic, high viewability, and diverse demographic audience with various ad formats including Pre-Roll Video, Interstitial Video/Banner, and Rewarded Video ads.

Quantifiable outcome

• 30M+ Monthly Active Users with 87% returning visitor rate
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration10 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• LINEminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2019Partnership with Japan's no. 1 messenger app LINE to release Cookie Crush on LINE QUICK GAME. Cookie Crush was the only game of its genre on the platform, marking SOFTGAMES' first move into the Japanese Messenger Games market.
• Zynga, KING, JamCityminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Other launch partners with SOFTGAMES for Facebook Instant Games in 2016. Listed as fellow exclusive launch partners among only 14 companies globally.
• FacebookcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2016Facebook Instant Games launch partner in 2016 among only 14 others globally (including Zynga, KING, JamCity). SOFTGAMES develops and distributes instant games on Facebook's platform, with Bubble Shooter Pro becoming the largest game on Facebook Instant Games.
• SamsungcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership for Samsung Instant Play distribution. SOFTGAMES held #1 Top Grossing IAP and #1 Top Grossing IAA positions on Samsung Instant in 2023, demonstrating strong partnership value.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Zynga: Zynga was a fellow Facebook Instant Games launch partner in 2016 alongside SOFTGAMES, and operates in the same casual/social mobile gaming space with titles like Words With Friends and Zynga Poker. Both monetize via IAP and advertising on social platforms.
• Jam City: Jam City was the third named launch peer for Facebook Instant Games in 2016. It develops casual and narrative mobile games (Cookie Jam, Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery) targeting overlapping demographics to SOFTGAMES.
• Outfit7: Outfit7 (Talking Tom Gold Run, My Talking Tom Friends) is a casual mobile studio with global reach via advertising and IAP. Similar user demographics (casual, broad-audience) and distribution model to SOFTGAMES.
• King: King (owned by Activision Blizzard / Microsoft) is the other notable Facebook Instant Games launch peer of SOFTGAMES. King dominates match-3 (Candy Crush) which directly overlaps with SOFTGAMES' Bubble Shooter Pro and Cookie Crush. Same casual/social mobile audience.
• Playrix: Playrix is a leading casual mobile game developer behind Homescapes and Gardenscapes — narrative-driven match-3 titles that directly overlap with SOFTGAMES' Solitaire Home Story and Matching Moments. Comparable mid-core casual positioning.
• Wildlife Studios: Wildlife Studios is a Brazilian mobile/casual game developer with titles like Tennis Clash and Zooba. Comparable studio scale, casual audience, and advertising + IAP monetization strategy to SOFTGAMES.
• Rovio Entertainment: Rovio (Angry Birds franchise, now owned by Sega) develops casual mobile games with strong IAP and ad monetization. Comparable studio scale and casual genre focus to SOFTGAMES, though Rovio's IP is more established.
• Voodoo: Voodoo is one of the largest hypercasual mobile publishers globally. While SOFTGAMES leans more social-casual and Voodoo leans hypercasual, both rely on heavy advertising-based monetization and lightweight casual mechanics — making Voodoo a relevant operating-model comparable.

Emerging players

• PlaySimple: PlaySimple focuses on trivia and word puzzle games, partly overlapping with SOFTGAMES' Trivia Quiz and Mahjong Story titles. Comparable casual/word-game niche, similar distribution via app stores and Facebook ecosystem.

Broad incumbents

• Take-Two Interactive (Socialpoint): Take-Two owns Socialpoint, a casual mobile game studio (Dragon City, Monster Legends). Take-Two's broader portfolio positions it as a broad incumbent in casual/social mobile, with comparable title-level dynamics to SOFTGAMES.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/softgames
• Xx.com/softgames

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors3 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SOFTGAMES