Stockholm's Video Game Industry

Digital games were first invented in the 1970s and became a staple for teenagers in the 1990s. As televisions and personal computers became commonplace in every household in the 2000s, the consumer base for video games grew significantly. As the consumer base for games grew, so did the industry that created them, and over the years the industry has transformed from a hobby project to a multi-billion-dollar industry with world-renowned companies leading the way.

As video games grew in large parts of the industrialized world, international giants soon came to dominate the hardware aspect of gaming. However, the software, and the games themselves, were developed by different studios around the world, and in terms of game studios, Sweden soon became a pioneer and was dubbed the 'Swedish gaming wonder'.

Since 2010, the games industry in Stockholm has grown at an astonishing rate, and the city remains by far the largest region in terms of number of companies and employees.

The gaming industry in numbers

The Swedish games industry, including subsidiaries abroad, had a turnover of EUR 8.1 billion in 2022, which is more than the turnover of the Swedish wood industry during the same period and the industry accounts for just over 4% of Sweden's total service exports.

The number of employees in game companies is steadily increasing year by year and in 2022 the number of employees was 8445 people, of which 5245 were in Stockholm. EA DICE has the most employees in Stockholm, followed by King, Paradox, and Avalanche Studios Group.

In 2022, 104 new game companies were established, resulting in 939 active companies at the end of the year (of which 409 were in Stockholm). This represents a significant increase of 20%. Remarkably, only 14% of these active companies employ more than 10 people, demonstrating the thriving indie gaming scene in Sweden.

In Europe, Sweden is ranked as the third largest country in terms of game studios, after France and the UK. In terms of turnover, Sweden ranks fourth, consolidating its position in the global games market.

Gaming industry trends

The greater Stockholm region is considered one of the foremost European regions for game development, with everything from leading AAA development to mobile games and indie developers present in the city. With its innovation-driven culture, high talent density, and proximity to major players, combined with a positive funding landscape, the city provides an exceptional breeding ground for game companies to grow.

Södermalm, in the southern parts of Stockholm, is one of the places in the world where most game developers gather. Today, the area is a unique cluster for game development companies, including Paradox, Avalanche, DICE, Fatshark, Epic Games, Star Stable, and The Outsiders.

The newly launched co-working concept Game Town, is specifically aimed at game developers and smaller game studios looking for a creative and centrally located workplace in close proximity to other companies in the industry. Game Town is located in the Fatburen building.

Key gaming companies

Stockholm has a wide range of developers, from small independent studios to some of the industry's biggest players.

These are some of the Stockholm-based companies that play a central role in shaping industry trends and innovations both nationally and internationally:

• King, founded in 2003, is headquartered in Stockholm and employs 621 people nationally. The company primarily develops games for the mobile world and is a leading player in the field. Candy Crush and Bubble Witch, which are some of the most successful mobile games ever, are examples of games the company has developed.

Fun fact: In the last five years, Candy Crush Saga players have swiped the equivalent of seven times around the globe and the series as a whole has been downloaded over five billion times.

• Mojang Studios, the company behind the global hit Minecraft, is also headquartered in Stockholm. Few games in history are as successful as Minecraft, which has sold over 300 million copies worldwide. In 2022, the company had a turnover of €516 million.

• Paradox Interactive is another major player operating in the city. The company employs 474 people in the country and has a total turnover of €187 million. Titles include Europa Universalis, Crusader Kings, and Victoria Games.

• EA Digital Illusions (DICE) is one of Sweden's best-known game developers and is behind mega-successes such as the Battlefield series, Star Wars: Battlefront, and Mirrors Edge. Founded in Växjö, in 1992, but is headquartered in Stockholm since 2004. In Stockholm, the EA SEED research department has recently attracted attention for its development progress in AI and machine learning. The company employs 696 people and has a turnover of €155 million (2022/2023).