Pole To Win

What Pole To Win does

Pole To Win operates globally under the 'Side' brand as a subsidiary of Pole To Win Holdings (Tokyo-headquartered parent), delivering outsourced game development services to video game publishers and developers. The company offers nine interconnected service modules: Game Development, Quality Assurance, Art Production, Localization, Audio Production, Player Support, Localization QA, Datasets, and IT Services, covering the full lifecycle from concept through live operations. It maintains a multi-region delivery footprint with offices in London, Paris, Braga, Tokyo, and Taipei, and serves a roster of more than 20 tier-1 gaming enterprises including EA, Ubisoft, Sony Interactive Entertainment, Disney, Riot Games, Bethesda, Square Enix, Sega, CD Projekt RED, Epic Games, and Zynga.

The business runs on a B2B professional services model priced via quote-based engagements, with services delivered through dedicated teams working alongside client studios. Its technical breadth spans all game genres and platforms, and it has begun positioning around AI-adjacent opportunities through a Datasets service for machine learning training data. Two acquisitions (5518 Studios in 2021 and Ghostpunch Games in 2024) and a 2024 corporate rebrand to the Side identity mark an explicit shift from QA-led vendor to full-cycle co-development partner. The company is private, with Teppei Tachibana serving as President and CEO, and it employs between 1,001 and 5,000 people according to firmographic data.

Revenue is not publicly disclosed and pricing is not transparent; the company competes on talent depth, multi-language capabilities, and embedded operational knowledge of major publisher pipelines rather than on proprietary technology or platform IP.

Name

Pole To Win

Legal name

Side

Website

https://ptw.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Pole To Win, operating globally as 'Side', is a private B2B game development services firm providing co-development, QA, art, audio, localization, player support, and datasets to more than 20 tier-1 video game publishers and developers across Europe, North America, and Asia-Pacific.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Game Development Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro primary industry

Creator Tools & Production (Overlays, Alerts, Encoding, Editing, Audio) (MPAFAEAC)

Keywords

• Game development services
• QA testing services
• Art production services
• Localization services
• Audio production services

Headquarters

HQ city

Larkspur

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel

Revenue model

1. Game Development Services: B2B services revenue from game development, QA, art production, audio production, and localization services delivered to game publishers and developers.
2. Player Support Services: Ongoing player support and customer service for live games.
3. IT Services: IT infrastructure and services supporting game development operations.
4. Localization Services: Game localization services as part of the broader game localization market projected to reach USD 4.08 billion by 2033.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

No source content was provided for Pole To Win in the input data, so a core offering description cannot be reliably produced.

Product overview

Side (a subsidiary of Pole To Win Holdings) operates as a game development services company offering a comprehensive suite of nine interconnected service modules. The core offering centers on Game Development and Quality Assurance as primary services, supported by specialized Art Production, Localization, Audio Production, Player Support, and Localization QA services. Additional offerings include Datasets (for AI/ML training data) and IT Services. The portfolio represents a full-service game co-development model where the company partners with studios (650+ developers and publishers) to bring games to life across all genres and platforms, with over 30 years of industry experience.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 30 years serving the gaming industry with consistent client relationships

Named customers19 records

Segments3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

19 partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• WB GamescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-term game development and localization services partnership with Warner Bros. Games subsidiary.
• ZyngacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGame development services partner for Zynga's mobile and social gaming portfolio.
• CD Project REDcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDevelopment services partnership with the studio known for The Witcher and Cyberpunk 2077.
• DisneycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGame development services partnership with Disney for Disney Studio game titles.
• EA (Electronic Arts)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerComprehensive game development and localization services partnership with Electronic Arts.
• Epic GamescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGame development services partner for Epic Games' portfolio including Fortnite and Unreal Engine-based titles.
• GearboxcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDevelopment partnership with Gearbox Software known for Borderlands series.
• NexoncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-term partnership with Korean game publisher Nexon for development and localization services.
• Riot GamescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDevelopment services partnership with Riot Games for League of Legends and other titles.
• SegacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGame development and localization services partnership with Sega.
• SIE (Sony Interactive Entertainment)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDevelopment services partnership with Sony's gaming division for PlayStation titles.
• Spike ChunsoftcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDevelopment and localization partnership with Japanese developer Spike Chunsoft.
• Square EnixcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing development and localization partnership with Square Enix for their global game releases.
• UbisoftcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerComprehensive game development services partnership with Ubisoft.
• 2KcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDevelopment services partnership with 2K Games for titles including NBA 2K and Borderlands.
• BethesdacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDevelopment partnership with Bethesda Game Studios for their RPG titles.
• RemedycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDevelopment services partnership with Remedy Entertainment known for Alan Wake and Control.
• Outright GamescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGame development and localization partnership with family-focused game publisher Outright Games.
• PlayfishcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDevelopment partnership with EA's social gaming subsidiary Playfish.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Virtuos: Virtuos is a major game development outsourcing studio specializing in co-development, art production, and engineering services for AAA publishers — a close functional analog to Pole To Win's Game Development and Art Production lines.
• Testronic: Testronic provides QA, localization QA, and player support services to game and media companies, directly competing with Pole To Win's QA, Localization QA, and Player Support service modules.
• Room 8 Group: Room 8 Group is a global game services provider offering co-development, art, QA, and live operations to publishers, overlapping with Pole To Win on the multi-service, multi-region delivery model.
• Keywords Studios: Keywords Studios is the largest pure-play provider of game development services (QA, localization, art, audio, player support) to global publishers, directly competing with Pole To Win across essentially every service line and customer.
• Amber: Amber is a game development and art production services company serving global publishers, directly comparable to Pole To Win on co-development and art production work for AAA and mid-tier studios.
• Lemon Sky Studios: Lemon Sky Studios is a game art and animation outsourcing provider working with major publishers, directly comparable to Pole To Win's Art Production service and the 3D modeling/animation work it delivers.
• GlobalStep: GlobalStep provides game testing, QA, and player support services, directly overlapping with Pole To Win's QA and Player Support offerings for the same publisher customer base.

Emerging players

• Scale AI: Scale AI is a high-growth data labeling and AI training data platform; it represents a potential disruptor and alternative for the Datasets service line Pole To Win is building.
• Appen: Appen is a large AI data annotation and training data provider; while not game-focused, it competes directly with Pole To Win's Datasets service line for AI/ML training data budgets.

Broad incumbents

• Sumo Digital: Sumo Digital is a larger game development and co-development studio (now part of Tencent) that, while primarily a developer rather than a services outsourcer, competes with Pole To Win on co-development engagements with major publishers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ptw
• Facebookfacebook.com/poletowininternational
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ptwintl

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A2 records

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Pole To Win