Mobile game publisher AppQuantum has launched a $10 million fund dubbed AppQuantum VC, to invest in new mobile game studios. The fund is focused primarily on early-stage casual and midcore projects.
AppQuantum wants to be more than just a publisher, or even just a venture capital fund, by combining their expertise in mobile game development with the capital new studios need to get off the ground. AppQuantum said the average investment per project will range from $250,000 to $1.5 million. The vision is to create an ecosystem of like-minded founders with long-term strategies in mind.
“Today the market mostly supports teams that already have projects with solid metrics, or you get the classic VC model — money without the strategic support where it matters,” AppQuantum VC founder, Evgeny Maurus, said in an email interview. “We want to focus on teams looking for long-term partnerships, with the option for follow-on investment once a project starts to take off and scale aggressively.”
The idea is to offer services that will help studios succeed across the board, including user acquisition, creative insights and feedback, detailed analytics, live operations support, and more.
“Game development has long shifted from sprints to marathons,” Maurus said. “In that setup you want a partner who can help close critical gaps. That’s where we can step in — not only with capital but also with expertise that talented teams often lack: UA, creative iteration, analytics, and live-ops expertise. We’re closing that gap with capital plus timely market analysis, benchmarks across genres based on AppQuantum’s publishing track record, and fast, hands-on support across all areas of operations — from advanced analytics tooling to monetisation design and, most importantly, live-ops execution. For us this is not just about writing a check. We position ourselves as a long-term partner ready to build relationships with founders for years, not quarters.”
For this fund, AppQuantum is primarily targeting “idle games, idle-arcade, hybrid-casual, and midcore projects,” according to Maurus. These are not only the types of games that AppQuantum has the most experience with, but they’re also the types of games that could most benefit from this type of hybrid VC-meets-publisher relationship.
“Game loops that keep players engaged long-term, supported by regular updates, smart audience management, and a strong marketing and analytics backbone — that’s where we see the biggest upside,” Maurus said. “What matters is a clear gameplay core, attention to detail, and a foundation that can grow into a long-term product with real business potential.”
Right now, they’re aiming to back five to 10 teams and scale projects from there.
“Success means becoming recognised as the early partner that helps founders make better games, not just raise another round,” Maurus said. “I’m confident that within five years, we’ll have at least one unicorn studio in our portfolio. And I’m personally committed to investing in that success — because our partners’ success is our success.”