Tivola Publishing

What Tivola Publishing does

Tivola Publishing, operating as Tivola Games GmbH, is a privately held German game developer and publisher founded in 1995 in Berlin and now headquartered in Hamburg-Altona. The company specializes in family-friendly, casual video games — predominantly cute animal and pet simulation titles — across mobile (iOS, Android), PC (Steam), and modern consoles (Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X|S). Its active catalog includes mobile franchises such as Cat Rescue Story (Deutscher Computerspielpreis 2024 Best Mobile Game winner), Dog Hotel (18M+ downloads), Horse World – Show Jumping, Wildshade, Pet World – My Animal Hospital (2M+ installs), Petventures, and Buster's Journey, plus console/PC titles Wildshade Unicorn Champions and Animal Hospital (published by Nacon) and the 2025 flagship release Ed & Edda: GRAND PRIX – Racing Champions, developed with MACK Magic/Europa-Park and Funatics. Technology is built primarily on the Unity game engine with Blender and Substance Painter for art production, and the company distributes through standard mobile storefronts, Steam, console stores, and console-publishing partnerships.

The business model is predominantly one-time license sales of premium and freemium games through app stores and digital storefronts, supplemented by licensing/royalty arrangements (Nacon for console publishing, Europa-Park/MACK Magic for IP co-development, and DLC such as the government-co-funded 'Goes Europa-Park' expansion). Pricing is set at standard app-store and retail levels and is not publicly disclosed on the company's own website. Tivola has no disclosed venture capital, private equity, or parent-company ownership and operates as an independent studio led by CEO Florian Bohn with a team of approximately 10 people plus interns. Forward, the company is investing in a prototype for Pet Universe (next PETWorld installment) using Gamecity Hamburg funding, indicating continued franchise-pipeline development alongside the new console/PC publishing direction.

Name

Tivola Publishing

Legal name

Tivola Games GmbH

Website

https://tivola.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Tivola Publishing (Tivola Games GmbH) is a Hamburg-based independent German game developer and publisher founded in 1995, specializing in family-friendly pet and animal simulation games for mobile, PC, and consoles, serving families and casual gamers globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Hamburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Mobile Game Sales: Premium and freemium mobile games sold through iOS App Store and Google Play. Notable titles include Cat Rescue Story (DCP 2024 winner), Dog Hotel (18M+ downloads), and Horse World series. Revenue from initial purchase and potentially in-app purchases.
2. Console and PC Game Sales: Premium games for PC (Steam), Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S. Ed & Edda: GRAND PRIX released 2025 with DLC expansions. Wildshade Unicorn Champions and Animal Hospital published on consoles.
3. Console Publishing Partnerships: Some titles published on consoles through partners like Nacon (France) who publishes Animal Hospital and Wildshade Unicorn Champions on console platforms.
4. Licensing and IP Partnerships: Licensing proprietary IP for third-party development; Ed & Edda developed with MACK Magic/Europa-Park and Funatics; DLC content expansions (Goes Europa-Park DLC)

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Tivola Publishing (Tivola Games GmbH) is an international developer and publisher of family-friendly video games for PC, console, and mobile platforms. Its catalog centers on cute simulation and casual games, frequently featuring animals, with flagship franchises in the PETWorld and Horse World series alongside titles such as Cat Rescue Story, Wildshade Unicorn Champions, Animal Hospital, and the 2025 cross-platform racing release Ed & Edda: GRAND PRIX – Racing Champions.

Product overview

Tivola Publishing (Tivola Games) is an international developer and publisher of family-friendly video games for PC and console, with over 30 years of history. The company specializes in cute simulation and casual games, many featuring animals. The product portfolio includes mobile games (Cat Rescue Story, Horse World Show Jumping, Petventures, Buster's Journey) and premium console/PC titles (Wildshade Unicorn Champions, Animal Hospital, Ed & Edda: GRAND PRIX Racing Champions). The company has a strong focus on animal-themed games and has expanded from PC and mobile to include console releases, particularly through partnerships with publishers like Nacon and licensing deals with Europa-Park.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Cat Rescue Story Cat rescue simulation game where players take in stray cats, care for and feed them, play mini-games, renovate and decorate an old house, and find new homes for cats. Includes a mystery storyline about a great-aunt's disappearance. Targets families and casual mobile players.
• Pet World – Mein Tierheim Animal shelter simulation game where players rescue, care for, and rehome animals. Best-selling mobile app in the PETWorld franchise.
• Pet World – Meine Tierklinik Animal clinic simulation game where players diagnose and treat animals as a veterinarian. Part of the PETWorld franchise with 2M+ installs.
• Dog Hotel / Cat Hotel Pet hotel management simulations where players take in, care for, and rehome cats and dogs. Dog Hotel surpassed 18 million downloads globally.
• Animal Hospital Veterinary hospital management simulation where players decorate facilities, treat animals from around the world (cats, dogs, pandas, foxes, koalas, unicorns), and play mini-games for diagnosis. Available on console via Nacon.
• Petventures – Animal Stories Animal care simulation set in a mountain valley featuring 49 unique animal characters, Zanda the red panda guide, an expedition system for environmental restoration, and an animal story scrapbook.
• Horse World – Show Jumping Show jumping simulation with international tournaments across real-world locations, horse care and customization, and a course builder tool for designing custom obstacles. Part of the Horse World series.
• Wildshade – Fantasy Horse Racing / Wildshade Unicorn Champions Fantasy horse and unicorn racing game where players ride unicorns, win tournaments, unlock and breed over 50 unicorns (creating hundreds of coat/mane combinations), and compete across 40 fantasy racecourses with local multiplayer for up to 4 players.
• Buster's Journey Hidden object game featuring Buster the rescue dog who helps and rescues animals in need. Players search for hidden objects, train Buster with commands, and complete levels to save animals.
• Ed & Edda: GRAND PRIX – Racing Champions Cross-platform kart racing game based on Europa-Park's Ed & Edda mascots. Features 12 European racetracks, 8 playable characters, car customization, power-ups, and split-screen multiplayer for 2-4 players. Designed for family-friendly local play on PC and consoles.
• Ed & Edda: GRAND PRIX – Goes Europa-Park DLC Paid DLC expansion for Ed & Edda: GRAND PRIX – Racing Champions adding four new Europa-Park inspired tracks, four new playable characters, and a new roller coaster challenge mode.

Quantifiable outcome

• Dog Hotel: 18M+ downloads globally
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• FunaticscoreTechnology or Integration · 19 August 2025Co-development partner for Ed & Edda: GRAND PRIX - Racing Champions. Funatics (also known as Jumpgate AB) handles development alongside Tivola for the flagship racing game.
• Gamecity HamburgcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Prototype funding awarded for 'Pet Universe', the next installment in the popular PETWorld game series. Gamecity Hamburg supports Hamburg-based game developers with prototype funding.
• MACK Magic / Europa-ParkflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 August 2024Strategic partnership for Ed & Edda: GRAND PRIX - Racing Champions, a kart racing game based on the Europa-Park mascots from the GRAND PRIX OF EUROPE motion picture. MACK Magic is part of the 245-year-old Mack family business (MACK Rides, Europa-Park). Tivola serves as developer and publisher in cooperation with Europa-Park.
• NaconcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2023French publisher Nacon publishes Animal Hospital and Wildshade Unicorn Champions on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 & 5, and Xbox X/S. Tivola developed the games; Nacon handles console publishing distribution.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Outfit7: Slovenian mobile game studio best known for the Talking Tom franchise – a family-friendly, animal-character mobile game IP portfolio serving the same casual, mass-market demographic Tivola targets.
• Wooga: Berlin-based mobile casual games developer (June's Journey, Pearl's Peril) – a comparable German indie-mid-market studio focused on story-driven, accessible simulation titles for a broad mobile audience.
• Daedalic Entertainment: Hamburg-headquartered indie developer/publisher known for adventure and family-oriented titles – directly comparable on German geographic footprint and indie-to-mid-market scaling on multi-platform releases.
• HandyGames: German indie publisher (THQ Nordic family) producing mobile and console games across multiple genres – closely comparable on multi-platform indie operations and Germany-EU heritage.

Regional players

• InnoGames: Hamburg-based online/mobile game company (Forge of Empires, Elvenar) – overlaps with Tivola's German gaming ecosystem and casual, broad-audience simulation focus while operating at significantly larger scale.
• Gameforge: German publisher/developer of online and mobile games (Ikariam, Travian) – comparable German heritage in operating live casual simulation titles over multi-year horizons.
• Flaregames (Kolibri Games): German casual mobile studio – comparable German mid-market developer with similar mobile simulation lineage and EU distribution footprint.

Broad incumbents

• Nacon: French-listed console publisher and Tivola's distribution partner on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, and Xbox. Overlaps with Tivola via portfolio publishing of family-friendly simulation and racing titles.
• Playrix: Major casual mobile developer (Homescapes, Farmscapes) – comparable on casual simulation gameplay and premium mobile genre strategy, though operating at substantially larger scale.

Others

• Ravensburger: German family entertainment company spanning board games, puzzles, and digital titles – shares Tivola's family-friendly, child-safe brand positioning and German consumer DNA without being a direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/TivolaPublishing
• Facebookfacebook.com/tivola
• Instagraminstagram.com/tivolagames
• Xx.com/tivola
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/tivola-publishing-gmbh

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Tivola Publishing