GameSamba
GameSamba is a privately-held developer and publisher of free-to-play mobile and browser games built on licensed anime and entertainment IPs (Naruto, Tokyo Ghoul, Star Trek, Fairy Tail), serving global anime fans and casual gamers via app stores, browser portals, and regional publishing partners.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersLynnwood, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingSoftware
What GameSamba does
GameSamba, Inc. is a privately-held game developer and publisher founded in 2010 and headquartered in Everett (Lynnwood), Washington, with additional studios in Hong Kong and Tokyo. The company builds free-to-play mobile and browser games around licensed anime and entertainment intellectual property, with a portfolio that includes mobile MMOARPGs and action RPGs such as NARUTO: SLUGFEST and the Tokyo Ghoul series, and browser-based strategy titles in the Star Trek, Fairy Tail, and Attack on Titan universes. Core technology comprises a proprietary 3D mobile gaming engine supporting iOS and Android, and an HTML5 browser engine that replaced Flash for the Star Trek Alien Domain: Incursion title; products feature 50-plus character rosters, bond/team-building mechanics, and PvP modes.
The business model is freemium at the player level: games are free to download and play, with monetization driven by in-game virtual item purchases and a proprietary virtual currency (Samba Coins) issued via Points Cards; certain legacy titles are offered on a monthly subscription basis. Distribution spans the Apple App Store, Google Play Store, and direct browser access on gamesamba.com subdomains, supplemented by a network of regional publishing partners covering North America, Europe, Southeast Asia, East Asia, South Korea, the Middle East, and Oceania. Customers are individual anime, manga, and franchise fans (e.g., Naruto, Tokyo Ghoul, Star Trek enthusiasts) acquired primarily through product-led free-to-play onboarding, social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube), community forums, and event marketing such as Anime Expo.
GameSamba is led by CEO Jacky Yung and operates with 11-50 employees. The company holds core licensing agreements with CBS (Star Trek), SHUEISHA, TV TOKYO Corporation, and Studio Pierrot (Naruto), and KODANSHA (Tokyo Ghoul), alongside a strategic alliance with Funimation for North American anime distribution. Key milestones include the July 2019 NARUTO SLUGFEST press conference, the 2020-2021 global website launch, and the April 2021 cease of operations for Tokyo Ghoul: Dark War. No funding rounds, public listings, parent entities, or institutional investors are disclosed in the input data.
GameSamba firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- GameSamba
- Legal name
- GameSamba, Inc.
- Website
- https://gamesamba.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- GameSamba is a privately-held developer and publisher of free-to-play mobile and browser games built on licensed anime and entertainment IPs (Naruto, Tokyo Ghoul, Star Trek, Fairy Tail), serving global anime fans and casual gamers via app stores, browser portals, and regional publishing partners.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
GameSamba industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Mobile and Browser Gaming
- NAICS
- Software Publishers (5132)
- SIC
- Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Mobile & F2P Game Studios (MPAFAAAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Mobile Game Publishing & App Game Stores (BPAMAKAB), Digital Game Distribution Platforms & Storefronts (PC/Mobile/Console) (MPAFABAB)
Keywords
Where GameSamba is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Lynnwood
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices3 records
Markets served
GameSamba business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Free-to-Play In-Game Purchases: Players can download and play games for free, with monetization through purchase of in-game virtual items, characters, and enhancements. Games like Tokyo Ghoul: Dark War and Naruto: Slugfest follow this model.
- Points Cards (Samba Coins): Sale of Gamesamba Points Cards representing virtual currency (Samba Coins) that can be exchanged for game-specific points used to acquire virtual items in games. Electronic goods purchases are non-refundable once downloaded or used.
- Optional Subscription Games: For games not free-to-play, players pay a monthly subscription fee. In this model, all game items are available in-game.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Free-to-play access with optional in-game purchases |
| Subscription | Monthly | Optional monthly subscription for non-free games |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
GameSamba product offering
Product offeringCore offering
GameSamba develops and publishes free-to-play mobile and browser-based games built around licensed anime, manga, and entertainment IPs such as Naruto, Tokyo Ghoul, Star Trek, and Fairy Tail. The company operates under a freemium model where games are free to download and play, with revenue generated through in-game purchases of virtual items and its proprietary Samba Coins virtual currency, supplemented by optional monthly subscriptions for select titles.
Product overview
GameSamba is a developer and publisher of free-to-play mobile and browser games. The company's portfolio consists of licensed anime-based games including mobile MMOARPGs (NARUTO: SLUGFEST), mobile action RPGs (Tokyo Ghoul: Break the Chains, Tokyo Ghoul: Dark War), and browser-based strategy MMOs (Star Trek: Alien Domain, Star Trek Alien Domain: Incursion, FAIRY TAIL: HERO'S JOURNEY, Attack on Titan: Assault). GameSamba also developed the mobile game '18: Dream World' which was later adapted into an anime. Revenue is generated through virtual item sales and in-game currency (Samba Coins). The company operates studios in Seattle, Hong Kong, and Tokyo, and partners with major IP holders including CBS, KODANSHA, SHUEISHA, TV TOKYO, Studio Pierrot, and Funimation.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Quantifiable outcome
- World's first authorized Naruto 3D MMOARPG mobile game
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use GameSamba
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
GameSamba technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration5 records
Feature3 records
GameSamba partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- FunimationstrategicFunimation is described as a strategic alliance partner and leader in bringing Japanese anime to North America. GameSamba has formed strategic alliances with Funimation for anime-related content and distribution.
Scale indicators2 records
Expansion highlights4 records
GameSamba competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Nexon Co., Ltd. Nexon is a major global publisher of free-to-play mobile and PC games with multiple anime-styled franchises (e.g., Kartrider, Dungeon & Fighter mobile). A broad incumbent with comparable F2P monetization model targeting similar demographics, though at meaningfully larger scope.
- Bandai Namco Entertainment: Bandai Namco is one of the largest anime-based game publishers worldwide and frequently owns or co-owns the underlying anime IPs (including Naruto mobile/console titles). Overlaps with GameSamba in target audience and IP category but operates at vastly larger scale and as an incumbent, often the licensor rather than licensee.
- Cygames, Inc. Cygames is a Japanese developer/publisher of major mobile and PC anime-style F2P games (Granblue Fantasy, Uma Musume, Princess Connect). Closely aligned F2P mobile business model and target audience with GameSamba, though Cygames primarily owns its IPs while GameSamba licenses.
- GREE, Inc. GREE is a Japanese mobile/online game publisher that historically operated F2P social and anime-licensed titles globally. Comparable free-to-play mobile business model and anime-IP focus, but at a much larger scale than GameSamba and with broader portfolio reach.
- DeNA Co., Ltd. DeNA is a long-established Japanese mobile game publisher/operator with global F2P titles and licensed-IP collaborations (e.g., Pokémon Masters). A larger, broadly-scoped incumbent in the mobile F2P space with overlapping licensed-IP strategy versus GameSamba.
Direct peers
- miHoYo (HoYoverse): miHoYo/HoYoverse is a global mobile/PC game publisher behind Genshin Impact and Honkai, with anime-styled free-to-play action RPGs targeting the same fandom as GameSamba's Naruto and Tokyo Ghoul titles. Closely comparable mobile F2P business model and global anime-skewed player base.
- KLab Inc. KLab is a Japanese mobile game developer and publisher best known for licensed anime-based rhythm and RPG games (e.g., Love Live!, Bleach). Like GameSamba, KLab primarily monetizes third-party anime/manga IPs through free-to-play mobile titles, making it one of the closest direct competitors in licensed anime mobile F2P.
- Crunchyroll Games: Crunchyroll Games is the gaming arm of Crunchyroll, focused on mobile games tied to its anime catalog and licensing relationships with Japanese IP holders. Directly comparable to GameSamba's strategy of converting popular anime/manga IP into F2P mobile games for global audiences, and through the Funimation partnership GameSamba already has a relationship with this network.
Others
- Kodansha Ltd. Tokyo Ghoul and Attack on Titan IP holder and licensing partner of GameSamba. Listed here as an upstream enabler/rights-holder rather than direct competitor; useful for understanding the supply-side of GameSamba's content pipeline.
- Funimation (Sony's Crunchyroll subsidiary): Funimation is a strategic partner of GameSamba and a leading anime licensing/distribution platform in North America. It is an ecosystem enabler rather than a direct competitor — overlap through anime IP rights — but useful to benchmark for the North American anime distribution adjacency.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
GameSamba social profiles
Digital presenceGameSamba financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
GameSamba leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
GameSamba funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
GameSamba M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about GameSamba
What does GameSamba do?
GameSamba develops and publishes free-to-play mobile and browser-based games built around licensed anime, manga, and entertainment IPs such as Naruto, Tokyo Ghoul, Star Trek, and Fairy Tail. The company operates under a freemium model where games are free to download and play, with revenue generated through in-game purchases of virtual items and its proprietary Samba Coins virtual currency, supplemented by optional monthly subscriptions for select titles.
Is GameSamba a public or private company?
GameSamba is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was GameSamba founded?
GameSamba was founded in 2010. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is GameSamba based?
GameSamba is headquartered in Lynnwood, United States, in the North America region.
How does GameSamba make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Free-to-Play In-Game Purchases are the primary driver. The others are points Cards (Samba Coins) and optional Subscription Games.
Who are GameSamba's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Nexon Co., Ltd., Bandai Namco Entertainment, Cygames, Inc., GREE, Inc. and DeNA Co., Ltd.. Direct peers are miHoYo (HoYoverse), KLab Inc. and Crunchyroll Games. Others are Kodansha Ltd. and Funimation (Sony's Crunchyroll subsidiary).
Does GameSamba have an API?
No public API is recorded for GameSamba.
What industry is GameSamba in?
GameSamba's product category is Mobile and Browser Gaming. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAFAAAB, Mobile & F2P Game Studios, with a secondary code of BPAMAKAB, Mobile Game Publishing & App Game Stores. Its NAICS code is 5132 and its SIC code is 7900.