Investors may have overlooked Africa’s gaming industry, but Evan and Shaz Greenwood haven’t. They’ve found a lucrative digital sweet spot in Africa’s $310-million gaming market.
If you thought computer games were all play and no pay – think again. Although, it takes a lot of sacrifice, just ask Evan and Shaz Greenwood, founders of Free Lives, who lived on instant noodles and steaks fried on a sandwich toaster as they built their digital gaming company. They made a game called Broforce and launched it in 2015. These days it’s worth more than $3.7 million – a gaming goldmine, they say.
“Broforce just keeps going. There is a lasting appeal. I think there is a community that’s driving it. Some of the people that play Broforce play it so much they keep evangelizing it to new people. It’s just at the top of their lists and they keep recommending it,” says Evan, founder and creative director of Free Lives.
It meant saying goodbye to penniless days sleeping on a couch, under flickering florescent lights, in a warehouse apartment in Muizenberg, near Cape Town. It has also meant hello to mansions on the winelands of Constantia; three-month workshops in Mauritius; and a full-time chef instead of noodles and burned steak.
“If left to my own devices I would never finish a game. It can always have more work done on it. It can always be better,” says Evan.
Behind closed doors and over the internet this little-known games industry has taken shape. If the names Broforce, Genital Jousting or Gorn don’t mean anything, they should if you like games. These quirky games have made Free Lives more money than most could make in several lifetimes behind a desk doing the bidding of others.
This is part of Africa’s $310-million gaming market, that is expected reach $642 million by 2021, according to the PwC report, Entertainment and media outlook: 2017-2021.
この記事は Forbes Africa の December 2017 - January 2018 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は Forbes Africa の December 2017 - January 2018 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
TRACK, WATCH, BEFRIEND
IN THE PRISTINE WILDERNESS OF GABON ARE THE MAJESTIC AND GENTLE WESTERN LOWLAND GORILLAS. A FIRSTHAND REPORT FROM OUR TRAVEL WRITER ON WHAT GOES INTO HABITUATING THEM.
CHALLENGING BUT NECESSARY: THE AI BALANCING PROBLEM
Artificial intelligence (AI) continues transforming many industries, providing unprecedented opportunities for innovation and efficiency. However, these advancements bring complex challenges that necessitate a delicate balancing act.
BEYOND ACADEMIA: THE SOCIETAL IMPACT OF MULTILATERAL EDUCATIONAL COLLABORATIONS
The great poet William Butler Yeats once said, \"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.\"
The Business Of Dance: Embracing One's Individuality And Style
In the dynamic world of street dance, passion and perseverance pave the way for success. Living out this ethos is South African born B-girl turned businesswoman, Courtnaé Paul.
COMPASSION FATIGUE: THE DANGEROUS DESCENT FROM HELPING TO HURTING
It is a workplace reality that caring too much for your colleagues can hurt you.
IT HAS NEVER BEEN MORE CRITICAL TO FIND OUR NICHE
Have you found your niche? I received a lot of advice when I set up my company, but perhaps the most important consisted of just three words: Find Your Niche.
HOW TO MAKE AFRICA WIN OFF THE FIELD TOO
When all else fails, try sports. It's good for the soul.
BEAN THERE, DONE THAT
British author Roald Dahl tapped into every chocoholic's imagination when creating Willy Wonka's bizarre chocolate factory in his 1964 children's novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
IT DOESN'T GET ANY BETTER THAN WORKING WITH AL PACINO ON BROADWAY'
Arnold Vosloo Actor
BLENDED FINANCE: BRIDGING THE GAP IN EMERGING MARKETS IN SUPPORT OF THE SDGS
Amid the widespread global support for the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), there was an underlying concern among economists and financial advisors in the emerging and frontier markets: public sector and donor funds were stalled, if not regressing, and the funding gap to realize the SDGs was increasing.
