Korean online gaming publisher Nexon has announced a cash investment in exchange for a minority stake in US developer Rumble Entertainment, maker of F2P social titles for hardcore gamers on multiple platforms.
Nexon pioneered the free-to-play model in online games, and in 2011 raised US$1.2 billion to develop its core Asian online game business and expand in Western markets.
Rumble was founded in 2011 by CEO Greg Richardson, a former partner at private equity fund Elevation Partners. The new studio has three games in development: Kings Road, a medieval action RPG in beta on Facebook; Ballistic, an unreleased FPS; and Nightmare Guardians, a multiplayer mobile tower-defence game to launch later this year.
Nexon also recently funded US game start-up SecretNewCo, and intends to publish the studio’s upcoming first game. SecretNewCo was founded by former Zynga game design chief Brian Reynolds.
