Nix Hydra, a Los Angeles entertainment studio that makes games and other apps for young women, has raised $5 million in funding from the Foundry Group. That’s not bad for a company that focuses on a demographic that most publishers and developers in the male-dominated game industry have rarely acknowledged.
Lina Chen
Nix Hydra’s founders — two young women who went to Yale University together — are perfectly happy to keep that market to themselves. And they believe that focus helps them stand out in an app store that is full of predictable games for young male gamers. So far, Nix Hydra has scored big with Egg Baby, a Tamogotchi-like, egg-nurturing game that has been downloaded more than 9 million times to date. Nix Hydra’s content is both edgy and funny, which gives the company its own personality.
Unlock premium content and VIP community perks with GB M A X! Join now to enjoy our free and premium perks.
Dean Takahashi is editorial director for GamesBeat. He has been a tech journalist since 1988, and he has covered games as a beat since 1996. He was lead writer for GamesBeat at VentureBeat from 2008 to April 2025. Prior to that, he wrote for the San Jose Mercury News, the Red Herring, the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, and the Dallas Times-Herald. He is the author of two books, "Opening the Xbox" and "The Xbox 360 Uncloaked." He organizes the annual GamesBeat Next, GamesBeat Summit and GamesBeat Insider Series: Hollywood and Games conferences and is a frequent speaker at gaming and tech events. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.
GamesBeat