Casual gaming studio QuriousBit bags $2 million funding from Lumikai, General Catalyst

(L-R) QuriousBit founders Ramakrishna Reddy Y L and Shubham Joshi

Casual puzzle gaming studio QuriousBit said on September 27 that it has raised $2 million in seed funding to build puzzle games for global audiences.

Lumikai, a gaming and interactive media venture fund, led the investment round, with General Catalyst joining as co-investors.

QuriousBit was founded by former PlaySimple executives Ramakrishna Reddy Y L and Shubham Joshi. Together, they have previously built games that have clocked over 125 million app installs and generated a combined revenue of over $350 million, including seven titles with positive EBITDA margins, the company said in a statement.

"We see a huge opportunity in casual puzzle games beyond match-3 and blast genres. We believe some of these genres are ripe to disrupt with innovative core gameplay mechanics and deeper narratives. Our aim is to build a world-class gaming studio based out of India, entertaining global audiences," said founder Ramakrishna Reddy Y L.

The startup said it plans to use the funds raised to build puzzle games with a focus on "rich narratives" across various sub-genres in the casual gaming market that is "untapped and underserved." The proceeds will also be used to hire talent.

"A fresh and innovative approach both in game design and distribution is imperative to achieve category leading success in the highly competitive global casual gaming market given current market conditions. Ram and Shubham’s deep thinking, category expertise, and design orientation deeply impressed us," said Salone Sehgal, Founding General Partner, Lumikai.

Anand Chandrasekaran, Partner at General Catalyst said they are "believers of audacious founders from India building for the world."

"When we met Rama and Shubham, we became fans of their deep expertise, having driven the growth of PlaySimple's games to over $100M in revenues, resulting in one of the best exits in the Indian ecosystem to date," he said.

India's casual gaming space has seen a slew of seed funding rounds in the past year, reflecting the country's growing potential as a global gaming hub.

HighXP, a gaming studio that is building social casual games, raised $2.2 million in seed funding led by 3one4 Capital with participation from Prime Venture Partners and Gemba Capital in June 2023.

While casual gaming startup Giga Fun Studios raised $2.4 million in seed funding led by gaming and interactive media-focused venture fund Lumikai and early-stage investment firm Fireside Ventures in January 2023.

Game development studio Bombay Play also raised $7 million in its Series A funding round led by Kalaari Capital with participation from investors such as Winzo, AdvantEdge VC, AMEA Ventures in April 2022.

India is the fastest-growing video games market in Asia, both in terms of revenue and gamers, with its mobile and PC gaming revenue projected to reach $868 million in 2023, according to Niko Partners, a market research and consulting firm that covers video games, e-sports, and streaming in the continent.

This is set to grow at a five-year compound annual growth rate of 17.2 percent to touch $1.58 billion by 2027. These figures do not include revenue generated by real money games.