Image: Manticore Games
Manticore Games is developing a platform called Core, which aims to redefine game creation, distribution and play.
On Tuesday (24 September), California-based Manticore Games announced that it has raised $30m in a Series B financing round.
The round was led by Benchmark, with additional funding from Correlation Ventures, Bitkraft Esports Ventures, M Ventures, Arrive, Sapphire Sport, Tuesday Capital and SV Angel.
To date, Manticore Games has raised at least $45m. It has yet to even launch its product, having been in stealth mode since it was founded in 2016.
The company is led by Frederic Descamps and Jordan Maynard, who collectively have experience making games with companies including EA, Zynga, Xfire, Trion Worlds and A Bit Lucky.
Returning investor and Benchmark general partner Mitch Lasky said: “Frederic and Jordan founded Manticore on a revolutionary idea.
“They saw the opportunity to radically simplify the way high-quality 3D games are created and published … to open up gaming to the explosion of innovative user-generated content that has transformed other media.”
Core
The gaming start-up is developing a platform called Core, which it describes as a “digital playground and community designed to unleash imagination and redefine game creation, distribution and play”.
The platform is designed to be used by individuals with little or no experience in game development. Users who create games on Core will be able to monetise their creations.
‘Developing successful multiplayer online games today is extremely arduous and mostly reserved for well-resourced teams’
– FREDERIC DESCAMPS
According to TechCrunch, the start-up remains in stealth, meaning the founders are still holding back details about the project. Descamps and Maynard did reveal that the platform is built on the Unreal Engine. There’s no launch timeline available as of yet.
Descamps, CEO and co-founder of Manticore Games, said: “Core’s mission is to empower and discover a whole new generation of creators.
“Developing successful multiplayer online games today is extremely arduous and mostly reserved for well-resourced teams. Core frees creators from those constraints and allows their creativity to thrive with experimentation and collaboration.”
Maynard, who acts as chief creative officer at Manticore, added: “Under the hood, we have built incredibly sophisticated technology with an easy-to-use interface for creating high quality games without the art and coding overhead.
“The result is a platform that is radically accessible, yet enables extremely high quality graphics and gameplay. We can’t wait to be blown away by the innovation and imagination of Core creators.”
