Games trio named as future leaders in Creative England 50

Creative England has revealed this year’s most promising and successful companies in the realms of games, film, TV and more – with three games studios among the report’s 10 ‘future leaders’.

The second iteration of the Creative England 50 has been chosen by a panel of industry experts and highlights the talent found around the country. You can find the full report at the organisation’s website.

Within the list of 50 best firms are Creative England’s ‘future leaders’, deemed to be trailblazers in their field – and three of the ten are games firms.

Mobile studio Lockwood Publishing was praised for its work on Avakin Life, a virtual world/social network hybrid that has racked up more than 12m downloads since its launch in 2014. 

Essex-based dev Shark Infested Custard was listed for its work with local authorities and universities to help students set up and sustain their own studios.

Finally, Thumbfood – a firm set up by video games professional Simon Smith – was highlighted for its work on white-label projects for major clients such as Manchester City FC.

Other games firms listed in the Creative England 50 included Midlands games event GameCity, No Man’s Sky creator Hello Games, Leamington start-up Mad Fellows, Bristol-based Opposable Games, Brighton-based Pixel Blimp, Yooka Laylee dev Playtonic and Newcastle studio Whispering Gibbon.