Massive gaming opportunities between Sweden and Japan

Posted in: JT - Sweden 2018 Started by Franz Fricke

Massive gaming opportunities between Sweden and Japan

“The Swedish gaming industry is huge,” says David Polfeldt, managing director of Massive Entertainment. “We are part of a movement driven by world-class developers.”

Swedish game development has become an export-oriented business and is leading the way in an increasingly globalized industry.

According to the Swedish Games Industry organization, the industry’s revenue reached 1.32 billion Euros in 2016; double that of just three years prior.

Polfeldt joined Massive Entertainment in 2004 and became managing director in 2009 when the company was acquired by Ubisoft.

David Polfeldt, Managing Director of Massive Entertainment

The company started as a passion-driven business which has grown from thirty people to a multi-cultural workforce of 550 challenge-driven employees working on some of the largest projects in the industry.

“Every year our job demands more from us as the stakes get higher,” says Polfeldt. “We work with hundreds of people located in different countries and recently opened another studio in Stockholm. As our business has grown, we ensure Massive Entertainment continues to deliver.”

Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 will be launched on the 15th of March, 2019

Photos provided by: Massive Entertainment

In 2016, Massive Entertainment released Tom Clancy’s ‘The Division’. The game became the fastest-selling game in the history of Ubisoft and Sweden’s largest cultural-export for that year. The game’s success led Ubisoft to be ranked among the top ten publishers in Japan by console unit volume sales in 2017.

Polfeldt believes the game’s success in Japan is founded on the advanced interactive experience which players experience as the game unfolds.

“The Division is a thinking man’s action game which goes deeper, asks more complex questions and poses multiple interpretations,” shares Polfeldt.

“We always work under the assumption that our audience is incredibly intelligent and our approach has proved successful, especially in Japan where gamers expect a full immersive experience and intellectual stimulation.”

Massive Entertainment’s craftsmanship has also caught the attention of Japanese superstar game-developers Hideo Kojima and Fumito Ueda who have visited Massive Entertainment’s studio in Malmö, Sweden.

“We have good relations with Kojima and Ueda and our friendships are based on mutual respect. Japan has always been a leader in the video gaming industry and I would love to work with such great craftsmen,” says Polfeldt.

Massive Entertainment is currently working on ‘The Division 2’ which will be launched on the 15th of March, 2019 followed by the company’s next major title based on Hollywood director James Cameron’s ‘Avatar’.

According to Polfeldt, Cameron saw ‘The Division’ at a trade show and was impressed by Massive Entertainment’s visual fidelity and gaming technology.

“We are working on incredibly exciting projects at the moment and we believe we are in a strong position to work more closely with our friends and partners in Japan.”