A new games studio, Ginger Games, has officially opened its doors with a focus on tackling two of the mobile gaming industry’s biggest challenges: monetization and retention. The company, which is part of the KRAFTON India Gaming Incubator, is led by an experienced team with over 50 combined years of experience in gaming and media entertainment. This includes co-founders Sumit Batheja and Shrey Mishra, as well as talent from companies like Yahoo, Zynga, and SuperGaming.
The team has a strong track record, having previously scaled gaming communities to over 11.5 million gamers and led more than $100 million in aggregated media monetization mandates. Strategic advisors to the studio include Fernanda Romano, former CMO at King and Supercell, and Anurag Khurana, CEO of Penta Esports and former CEO of Riot Games India and Jio Games.
Also read: Indian gaming app lays off 60 percent workforce after new Online Gaming Bill
The KRAFTON India Gaming Incubator (KIGI) is a program established by KRAFTON, the makers of BGMI, to help Indian game developers turn their ideas into reality. Launched in 2023, the incubator is designed to create a mature gaming ecosystem where new creations can be developed and enjoyed by a wide audience. The program provides mentorship, technical resources, and global insights to help studios like Ginger Games validate their design philosophy and create sustainable intellectual property (IP). The incubator also offers financial grants of up to $150,000 and a mentorship program that can last from six months to a year.
Ginger Games’ co-founder, Sumit Batheja, stated that after years of building successful B2B gaming and media-tech products, the founders identified a “clear whitespace” in the market. He noted that while mobile gaming is booming, most new titles struggle with long-term player engagement and monetization, often relying on “shallow mechanics and copycat formulas”. Ginger Games aims to change this by creating lasting IP.
The studio’s first title, “Monkey Mayhem,” is currently in the Beta stage with early playable builds in testing. Ginger Games is focused on setting a new standard for hybrid-casual games that are “sticky, scalable, and built to last”. They are strategically focusing on the roguelite genre, which is still relatively underexplored in the Indian market. The company is also developing a genre-specific design and operations engine to drive long-term engagement and monetization models that benefit both players and the studio.
Anuj Sahani, Head of the KRAFTON India Incubator Program, praised Ginger Games’ vision and their approach to solving some of the industry’s toughest challenges, calling their inclusion in the program “a strong validation of our commitment to onboarding studios of exceptional quality”.
Also read: Xbox now syncs your play history across console, PC and handhelds
