Interview
Why is Saudi Arabia buying up the video game industry?
- Electronic Arts (EA), America's third-largest gaming company, is being acquired for $55 billion by a consortium led by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), marking a strategic pivot to dominate the global gaming industry.
- Saudi Arabia's PIF is backing Savvy Games with a $38 billion investment vehicle to construct a gaming empire, having already acquired Scopely (maker of Monopoly Go) and the gaming division of Niantic (Pokémon GO).
- The PIF holds significant equity stakes in major industry players including Nintendo, Take-Two Interactive (Grand Theft Auto), Capcom, Nexon, NCSoft, and Embracer Group (which owns Tomb Raider).
- Saudi Arabia acquired ESL and Faceit for $1.5 billion, now controlling approximately 40% of the global esports market.
- Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman personally champions the sector, citing a vision to create a "Disney of video games" and utilizing competitive gaming to build live entertainment experiences.
- The Kingdom aims to diversify its economy away from oil by creating 39,000 gaming-related jobs by 2030, including training programs established with local women's universities for game design.
- Analysts note the strategy includes potential "game washing" to improve Saudi Arabia's global image, leveraging the gaming industry's dominance (valued higher than cinema, streaming, and music combined) to project soft power.
- A specific strategic focus targets the 330 million Arabic-speaking gamers, a demographic larger than those in the US or Western Europe, to promote Middle Eastern culture through native storytelling.
- Saudi officials cite the success of the Chinese game Black Myth Wukong as a model for adapting national myths and legends into globally successful media.
- While immediate changes to existing Western franchises like The Sims regarding LGBT themes are not anticipated, future content may increasingly reflect a "Saudi accent."
- Ubisoft recently confirmed that new levels for the Assassin's Creed franchise will be set in Saudi Arabia to align with the Kingdom's tourism promotion efforts.
- The acquisition of the Fatal Fury developer by a Saudi foundation coincided with the addition of Cristiano Ronaldo as a playable character, signaling increased integration between Saudi sports assets and gaming IP.
- Concerns exist that Saudi financial influence could lead to content self-censorship similar to Hollywood's caution regarding sensitive subjects in the Chinese market.