LootLocker, the game backend technology already powering over 10,000 live games worldwide, has raised $2.5 million and has appointed ex-Bethesda exec Jonathan Lander to its board.
Lander, former Bethesda SVP of global product and publisher operations, will sharpen the company’s focus on helping publishers turn their game catalogs into connected player experiences.
By providing a unified view of the player across multiple titles and platforms, Stockholm-based LootLocker enables publishers to offer cross-catalog rewards, targeted messaging, and new ways to grow engagement and revenue.
Publishers including Digital Bandidos, Fast Travel Games, Radical Forge, Astra Logical, and
more are already working with LootLocker to connect their games and guide players
seamlessly across their portfolios.
To bolster this effort, Lander brings decades of publishing expertise in overseeing development and publishing at companies such as CCP Games, ZeniMax Online Studios
and Bethesda Softworks, as well as working on some of the most iconic video game
franchises.
“At Bethesda, I saw firsthand how important it is for publishers to have the tools and data to truly understand their players and guide them across a portfolio,” said Lander, in a statement. “LootLocker is building the kind of functionality I wish we’d had available years ago, one that connects games together, strengthens the relationship between publisher and player and creates opportunities for cross-promotion.”
In addition to its publishing initiatives, LootLocker continues to provide developers with the core backend technology needed to build and run games, from player accounts and
progression systems to in-game economies and live operations.
LootLocker also announced it has raised an additional $2.5 million from current and new
investors, including backing from a prominent veteran of the games industry. The funding will be used to accelerate its publisher-focused roadmap, grow partnerships, and continue
building tools that make it easier for publishers to engage players directly.
“Publishers spend huge amounts of time and money trying to grow audiences for each new game from scratch,” said Alexander Bergendahl, CEO of LootLocker, in a statement. “We believe the real opportunity lies in guiding players through the publisher’s own catalog of games, boosting discoverability and retention across all titles.”
Founded in 2020 by games industry serial entrepreneurs Bergendahl and Andreas Stokholm, LootLocker provides game developers of all sizes with the vital cross-platform services that have become table stakes for today’s successful games.
The team has seven people and it has raised $5 million to date.
As for the inspiration, the company said, “After having run/worked at game studios and publishers before, it was always frustrating to us that publishers (or self-publishing developers) did not have a direct relationship with their players, especially given the mostly digital nature of game publishing.”
“We believed that innovative technology could solve this and started working with game developers in 2020 to build out the tools to allow them to bridge this gap across PC, console, mobile and VR,” the company added. “As this matured, we began working with publishers as well to take these tools further, allowing marketing, sales, community management, and customer support teams within publishers to work to take more control of the player journey across their game catalog.”
One of LootLocker’s earlier hit games was Hokko Life by Gizmo Garden and Team17. LootLocker powered this game across PC and console, allowing for cross-platform UGC and weekly community competitions.