Nordcurrent

What Nordcurrent does

Nordcurrent is a privately held, bootstrapped video game developer and publisher founded in 2002 and headquartered in Vilnius, Lithuania, with development studios in Odesa and Dnipro (Ukraine), Warsaw (Poland), and Gothenburg (Sweden) and a team of more than 360 employees. The company operates across mobile (iOS, Android, Amazon), PC (GOG, Epic Games Store, Steam, own storefront), and console (PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch), publishing a portfolio of more than 50 titles over 20+ years.

Its flagship product is Cooking Fever, a time-management cooking game that has accumulated nearly 400 million downloads and 15 million monthly active users since launch, complemented by adjacent mobile franchises such as Airplane Chefs, Cooking Fever Duels, Happy Clinic, Pocket Styler, Murder in the Alps, and Murder by Choice. Nordcurrent's technology stack is built around cross-platform casual game deployment with native in-app payment integrations across Apple, Google, Amazon, WeChat Pay, and Alipay, and a live-operations analytics layer anchored on Devtodev, Adjust, and Localytics. The company is actively pivoting into premium PC/console markets via the Nordcurrent Labs publishing imprint and acquired studio River End Games, with recent releases including Chains of Freedom (tactical adventure), Eriksholm: The Stolen Dream (narrative stealth), Go Home Annie (SCP-universe thriller), and I Am Machine (rogue-lite).

Revenue is generated through three primary streams: freemium mobile games with in-app purchases of virtual currency and items; monthly subscription services layered on top of select titles; and one-time perpetual licenses for premium PC and console games. The customer base is purely B2C consumer gamers distributed globally, with a horizontal segmentation spanning casual mobile players and premium PC/console audiences. Nordcurrent is owned and led by CEO and co-founder Victoria Trofimova, has remained bootstrapped without venture capital funding, and has executed three acquisitions since 2018 (Blam! Games Studios, RinGames, River End Games) to expand geographic reach, development capacity, and platform coverage.

Name

Nordcurrent

Legal name

Nordcurrent Group UAB

Website

https://nordcurrent.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Nordcurrent is a privately held, bootstrapped mobile and PC/console game developer and publisher headquartered in Vilnius, Lithuania, serving global consumer gamers via titles like Cooking Fever (400M+ downloads) and a 50+ game portfolio.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Casual Mobile Games

NAICS

Software Publishers (513210), Hobby, Toy, and Game Retailers (45912)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Digital Game Distribution Platforms & Storefronts (PC/Mobile/Console) (MPAFABAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Game Subscription & Membership Services (BPAMAKAD), PC Digital Game Stores & Launchers (MPAFACAA)

Keywords

• Casual mobile games
• Time management games
• Hidden object games
• Game development publishing
• Freemium games

Headquarters

HQ city

Vilnius

HQ country

Lithuania

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Free-to-play with In-app Purchases: Core revenue model for mobile games like Cooking Fever and Airplane Chefs, where players download games for free and purchase virtual currency, items, and boosts. The games feature time-management mechanics with restaurant/cooking themes.
2. Virtual Currency and Items: Players purchase virtual currency (coins, gems, diamonds) and in-game items to enhance gameplay progress. Purchases are handled through app stores with NEON COMMERCE, INC. acting as merchant of record for certain transactions.
3. Subscription Services: Nordcurrent offers subscription-based services that renew automatically until cancellation, providing access to special features and benefits within games.
4. Nordcurrent Labs Publishing: New PC/console titles are published through Nordcurrent Labs imprint, including titles from acquired studios like River End Games working on unannounced projects.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Nordcurrent develops and publishes a portfolio of casual games across mobile, PC, and console platforms. Its flagship time-management cooking game Cooking Fever has reached nearly 400 million downloads and 15 million monthly active users, complemented by a diversified catalog spanning hidden object mysteries, hospital management, fashion styling, PvP cooking duels, and recently premium narrative-driven PC and console titles such as Chains of Freedom and Eriksholm: The Stolen Dream. Revenue is generated primarily through freemium mobile games with in-app purchases, supplemented by premium game sales on PC/console storefronts and subscription services.

Product overview

Nordcurrent is a game developer and publisher offering a portfolio of casual games across mobile (iOS/Android), PC/Mac, and console platforms. The core portfolio includes the flagship Cooking Fever time-management cooking game with nearly 400 million downloads, complemented by similar cooking games (Airplane Chefs, Cooking Fever Duels), interactive crime novels (Murder in the Alps, Murder by Choice), hospital management (Happy Clinic), fashion (Pocket Styler), and puzzle games (Bake a Cake, Matchland Quest). The company has expanded into PC/console gaming with titles like Chains of Freedom, Eriksholm: The Stolen Dream, Fireside, and I Am Machine, as well as action RPGs (Ocean's Heart, Greedventory). Games are available through major app stores (Apple App Store, Google Play, Amazon) and PC platforms (GOG, Epic Games Store, Steam). Nordcurrent operates development studios in Lithuania, Ukraine, Poland, and Sweden following strategic acquisitions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Cooking Fever Nordcurrent's flagship time-management cooking game where players cook meals and desserts from restaurants around the world. The game features nearly 400 million downloads and 15 million monthly active users, making it the company's biggest hit. Available on iOS, Android, and Amazon.
• Airplane Chefs A time-management cooking game set in the sky where players prepare meals for airplane passengers, extending the Cooking Fever formula with aviation-themed restaurant management across global routes. Available on iOS and Android.
• Chains of Freedom A supernatural tactical adventure game featuring fast-paced combat where players fight through a machine-ruled world. Published under Nordcurrent Labs and released on GOG, Epic Games Store, PlayStation, and Xbox.
• Murder in the Alps A fully interactive crime novel set in the 1930s Alps where players solve mysteries as journalist Anna Myers, featuring hidden object gameplay, puzzles, and character interactions. Available on mobile platforms.
• Murder by Choice An interactive crime novel adventure game for murder mystery fans featuring thrilling hidden object gameplay and branching storylines. Available on mobile platforms.
• Happy Clinic A hospital management game where players turn their hospital into an unstoppable healthcare juggernaut with management, expansion, and treatment gameplay. Available on mobile platforms.
• Pocket Styler A fashion game where players become trendsetters in a modern world of fashion influencers, combining fashion design and social gameplay mechanics. Available on mobile platforms.
• Cooking Fever Duels A competitive PvP time-management cooking game featuring real-time online battles, leaderboards, tournaments, and avatar collections. Available on mobile platforms.
• Go Home Annie A twisted psychological thriller and original story set in the SCP universe where players test artificially created paranormal events and solve puzzles as an SCP Foundation employee. Available on PC platforms.
• I Am Machine An isometric rogue-lite adventure game set in a post-apocalyptic world where players control Erik, a man-turned-robot, fighting waves of enemies and adapting to ever-changing levels. Available on PC and console platforms.
• Eriksholm: The Stolen Dream An isometric narrative-driven stealth game set in the city of Eriksholm, featuring stealth mechanics and story-driven gameplay. Available on Epic Games Store, PlayStation, and Xbox.
• Fireside A social multiplayer game where players make friends, trade items, and chat around a virtual campfire, featuring multiplayer social interaction mechanics. Available on GOG, Epic Games Store, and Nintendo Switch.
• Greedventory A humorous adventure game where players become the hero they really don't want to be, featuring unconventional protagonist gameplay. Available on GOG.
• Decision: Red Daze An action-adventure survival game set in a dangerous world where players must survive constant threats. Available on GOG.
• Ocean's Heart A retro-inspired action RPG with modern trimmings, featuring classic RPG exploration and combat mechanics in a pixel art style. Available on GOG and Nintendo Switch.
• Bake a Cake A colorful match-3 puzzle game where players open dessert shops around the globe, combining puzzle mechanics with interior design and recipe unlocking. Available on mobile platforms.
• Matchland Quest A match-3 puzzle game featuring engaging quests, story-driven gameplay with memorable characters, and daily and seasonal events. Available on mobile platforms.

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly 400 million cumulative downloads for Cooking Fever
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration20 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Amplifier Game InvestminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 November 2023Amplifier Game Invest supported River End Games (founded in 2020) before Nordcurrent's acquisition of the studio. This was a prior investor relationship that contributed to River End Games' formation.
• River End GamescoreOthers · 15 November 2023Nordcurrent acquired Swedish game studio River End Games to expand beyond mobile into PC and console gaming markets. River End Games continues as a separate entity working on an unannounced project planned for 2025 launch, published through Nordcurrent Labs.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Peak Games: Peak Games (Toon Blast, Toy Blast) is a direct competitor in casual puzzle mobile games with similar IAP mechanics and a focus on evergreen live titles.
• Outfit7: Outfit7 (Talking Tom, My Talking Angela) is a Slovenia-based casual mobile developer/publisher with similar size, multi-platform distribution, and IAP-driven casual gameplay.
• Voodoo: Voodoo is a major publisher of hyper-casual mobile games, comparable to Nordcurrent in mobile-first casual publishing and reliance on ad-monetized gameplay.
• Jam City: Jam City develops and publishes mobile casual and narrative games (Disney Mirrorverse, Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery) — closely comparable to Nordcurrent's mobile-first and emerging premium/console strategy.
• Rovio Entertainment: Rovio (Angry Birds franchise) is a Nordic mobile-first casual developer/publisher with comparable scale, multi-platform distribution, and franchise-driven IP strategy.
• Playrix: Playrix is one of the largest casual mobile game developers globally (Homescapes, Gardenscapes), competing head-to-head with Nordcurrent in the time-management and casual puzzle categories with comparable IAP monetization.

Broad incumbents

• King Digital Entertainment: King (Activision Blizzard) operates Candy Crush and a broad portfolio of casual mobile hits. It is a much larger incumbent in the same casual puzzle/time-management space where Cooking Fever competes.
• Zynga (Scopely): Zynga (now part of Take-Two via Scopely) is a global leader in free-to-play mobile social games, overlapping with Nordcurrent in casual IAP and live-ops models.

Regional players

• 11 bit studios: 11 bit studios is a Warsaw, Poland-based developer/publisher of premium PC and console titles (Frostpunk, This War of Mine). It is regionally proximate to Nordcurrent's Polish studio and relevant to its PC/console expansion ambitions.

Emerging players

• Dream Games: Dream Games (Royal Match) is a high-growth mobile puzzle developer competing in the same casual IAP space and increasingly a benchmark for premium-quality casual mobile execution.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/nordcurrent
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nordcurrent
• Instagraminstagram.com/nordcurrent
• Xx.com/nordcurrent

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A3 records

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Nordcurrent