Innova (game localization company)

Innova is an international localization company, which works with multiplayer games (MMOG), mobile, and browser online games. Lineage 2 by Korean NCSoft is the most renown project with more than 3 mln registered users in Russia.

For other uses, see Innova.
Innova
TypePrivate
IndustryComputer games, finance
Founded2006 (2006)
FounderGeorgy Chumburidze, Armen Gasparyan, Vasily Medvedev, Oleg Sambikin, Gevork Sarkisyan
Headquarters
Moscow
,
Russia
Area served
Russia
Key people
Georgy Chumburidze, Armen Gulinyan Investment funds
ProductsLocalization and release, investments: Lineage 2, Point Blank, Blade & Soul, Aion: Tower of Eternity, RF Online, R2 Online, Ragnarok Online, Crowfall
Websitehttps://inn.ru/

Also the company implemented and launched in Russia and CIS countries such online games as Blade & Soul, Aion, Ragnarok Online, Crowfall, Ironsight, Point Blank, RF Online, R2 Online, PlanetSide 2, Dragon’s Prophet, Kingdom Under Fire 2, Halo Online (Alpha test).

The company partners with such labels as NCSoft, Zepetto, CCR Inc., Webzen, NEXON, Bigpoint, Microsoft, Daybreak Game Company LLC, Blueside and many others.

About the company

The company was founded in 2006 by George Chumburidze (a representative of the Italian yacht shipyard Azimut-Benetti), Armen Gasparyan, Vasily Medvedev, Oleg Sambikin and Gevork Sarkisyan were among its founders. In 2009, Sambikin and Medvedev exited the business and founded the company-developer Syncopate.[1][2][3]

At the time of the company's creation, the online games market in Russia was in the "gray zone", foreign games were mainly adapted by "pirates". The first licensed game released by the company was RF Online (Rising Force Online) of the Korean company CCR.[4][5]

In 2007-2018 Innova localized and published 40 massively multiplayer online games and multiplayer browser games in Russia, including Lineage II, R2 Online, Aion, Blade & Soul and others, becoming one of the largest Russian players in the video game market.[6]

In summer of 2010 Innova developed and released a single launcher for localized games. In January 2012, the team released a new platform 4game.[7] In December 2010, the company launched an online movie theater Ayyo, which provided video-on-demand and download-to-own paid access to films. In the following years, Ayyo showed both profit and loss, and in March 2017 it was frozen in the midst of the general unprofitability of the Russian online cinema market.[8][9][10]

In the beginning of 2010 Innova became one of the largest Russian Internet companies: in the rating published by the Russian Forbes in 2011, it was ranked 22nd with annual revenues of $36 million, and a year later — 23rd with a turnover of $50 million.[7][11] In January 2016, the users community of the online portal about video games Goha.ru, based on the results of voting, awarded Innova the title of the best MMORPG publisher in the CIS within the framework of the Goha Awards 2015.[12]

Investments

In late 2013, Innova bought exclusive rights to develop the Mexican network of game training parks KidZania in Russia, United States, Canada and France from a subsidiary of the Kuwaiti company M.H. Alshaya Co.. Investments in the project, made by Innova shareholders and partner companies, amounted to $25–30 million. In January 2016, the first Russian KidZania opened in the shopping center Aviapark on the Khodynka field in Moscow.[1][13] At the end of 2016, the investment advisory firm Winter Capital Partners, associated with Russian businessman Vladimir Potanin, acquired 21.5% of Luxembourg's Innova Partners, the operator of KidZania edutainment parks.[3] Investments were aimed at supporting international expansion: the company plans to open parks in 2018-2019 in Los Angeles, Dallas, Chicago, and Paris in 2018-2019.[3][14][15]

Also in late 2013, Innova became a co-owner of the Russian digital distribution system for legal video content Pladform, founded by Armen Gulyan. Georgy Chumburidze invited Ivan Tavrin as a co-investor in the project. Innova played a role of the project’s financial investor with a smaller control package, with Armen Gulinyan, the founder of Pladform, remaining responsible for the management. In 2016, Pladform merged with the Russian video hosting Rutube, as a result of which 33.3% of the merged company Ruform transferred to Gazprom-Media holding, and the remaining shares were divided between Pladform co-owners.[5][16][17]

Financial indicators

Localized and published games are free for users, and main source of revenue is transactions in video games, when players pay for items in gaming stores. The company did not disclose its financial indicators. In 2013, Russian Forbes estimated Innova's revenue at $50 million, and in 2016 the annual turnover of the company minus KidZania amounted to several billion rubles.[1][7][4]

Games

The table shows the years of games launching by Innova. Active games are those whose official servers are supported.

Active
Year Game Genre Developer
2007 RF Online MMORPG CCR Inc.
2008 R2 Online MMORPG Webzen
2008 Lineage II (Russia) MMORPG NCsoft
2009 Aion MMORPG NCsoft
2009 Point Blank MMOFPS Zepetto
2011 Lineage II (EU) MMORPG NCsoft
2016 Blade & Soul MMOG, ARPG NCsoft
2018 Crowfall MMORPG, RTS ArtCraft
2018 Ragnarok Online MMORPG Gravity Inc.
2018 Black Desert Online MMORPG Pearl Abyss Corp.
2019 Ironsight MMOFPS Wiple games

Closed
Year Game Genre Developer
2008 Ace Online MMORPG, shooter game MasangSoft
2009 FreeStyle Online MMOG, sports game JC Entertainment
2010 KartRider MMOG, racetrack Nexon
2010 Crazy Arcade BnB MMO, Arcade game, strategy Nexon
2010 Atlantica Online MMORPG, strategy Ndoors Interactive
2010 Bomzhi Online browser MMOG, adventure Adventura
2012 АРВ: Reloaded MMO, action K2 Network
2012 Shadow Company MMOFPS Doobic Game Studios
2013 PlanetSide 2 MMOFPS Daybreak Game Company
2014 Dragon's Prophet MMORPG Runewaker Entertainment
2014 Chaos Fighters mobile MMOG, action, fighting Chengdu Chukong Technology Co
2014 Pocket Fort mobile MMORTS Noumena Innovations
2015 Astronest mobile MMORTS ANGames
2015 Ballistic browser MMOFPS Rumble Entertainment
2015 Earth Keeper mobile Arcade game Raw Hand
2015 Gladiators online: Death Before Dishonor browser MMOG, action Dorado Games
2015 Chibi Kings mobile MMORPG Ekkorr Games
2015 Tiny Fort mobile MMORTS Noumena Innovations
2015 Tank Hero browser MMOG Clapfoot Inc
2015 Drakensang MMORPG Bigpoint
2017 Kingdom Under Fire II MMORTS, MMORPG Blueside

History

2006

  • The company established

2007

  • RF Online, Innova's first fantasy MMORPG project, is released. The game servers are launched on January 16 at 23:15.

2008

  • Lineage 2, the first MMO in the world with mass battles, was launched
  • R2 Online, a classic MMO with a diverse battle system, was launched
  • 4game, a gaming platform with easy access to all Innova's projects, was launched in Russia and CIS

2009

  • Point Blank, a team-based online shooter, was released to become a world-class cyber sport in the future
  • Aion, an MMORPG with epic battles on earth and in the sky, was released
  • The first Miss Lineage 2 contest was held. Later it became an annual event till 2017.

2010

2011

  • Innova held a large Point Blank Cyber Series tournament with the support of Russian e-Sport Federation. Qualification games took place in 14 cities all over the country. The tournament prize pool was 1 million rubles.
  • Ayyo, a movie streaming site, was launched
  • Lineage 2 Europe was launched by Innova
  • Bloodline Chamions project by Stunlock Studios was launched

2012

2013

  • PlanetSide 2 developed by Daybreak Game Company (ex Sony Online Entertainment) was released. It was a widescale MMOFPS with thousands of players and hundreds of vehicles fighting on the same battlefield.
  • Innova held the Point Blank Russian Championship that takes place in 12 different cities with the grand final in Moscow.
  • Innova took the 23rd place in Forbes list of Top 30 largest Russian IT companies.
  • Fanuts Fantasy Football, an online strategy, and browser-based MOFPS Offensive Combat were launched

2014

2015

  • Innova moved to a new, larger, office. The office is nominated for the Best Office Awards and featured on Office Snapshots.
  • The browser-based games Vkontakte social network, Ballistic, Tank Hero and Gladiators Online: Death Before Dishonor, were launched
  • Innova's team put in an immense amount of work into Halo Online — a first-person shooter developed by Microsoft. The project is supposed to be launched exclusively for the Russian market, but the release is canceled due to the decision of Microsoft to remake the game.
  • Chibi Kings, Tiny Fort, Astronest and Earth Keeper mobile games were launched
  • 4gamer — our news portal — was launched, with Alexey Makarenkov appointed as editor-in-chief.
  • Battle of the Generals, the biggest Point Blank competition ever held in Russia, was held. During the four-week event, the participants choose one of 3 sides and fight for prizes. Every team is led by one of our community managers.
  • Innova's own e-sports platform, Arena 4game, was launched.
  • Innova was recognized by GoHa Awards as the Best MMORPG publisher in CIS countries.
  • Browser-based MMOFPS Ballistic was launched
  • Innova partnered with Dorado Games to bring Gladiators Online: Death Before Dishonor to Russian-speaking countries.[18]

2016

  • Blade & Soul, a next-generation action/MMO game with spectacular fights and seductive characters, was launched.
  • Innova opened the first edutainment park in Russia — KidZania Moscow.
  • Innova's team created an official website for the Russian KidZania Moscow, which later was used by other countries.
  • Innova received two audience awards at the GoHa Awards 2015: Most Anticipated MMORPG, for releasing Blade & Soul, and The Best MMORPG publisher in the CIS.
  • Innova held the first Russian Blade & Soul championship.

2017

  • Innova decided to focus on the online gaming business, thus ending the support of KidZania Moscow.
  • An R2 Online international tournament took place in Russia for the first time. The event was held at the e-sports club GamerStadium. The Russian team FreePlay won the tournament.
  • Together with StarLadder, Innova held the Point Blank world championship, PBWC`2017.
  • Kingdom Under Fire 2, a hybrid of strategy and MMORPG, was launched
  • Tele2 Gamecenter, which localized 8 mobile games, was opened with support from Innova

2018

  • The release of Crowfall, an MMORPG by ArtCraft, the creators of Ultima Online, was announced
  • Large update of the 4game platform, including redesign and 4game Center launcher, was released
  • Innova held its first festival, L2fest, a tribute to the 10th anniversary of Lineage 2 in Russia
  • Ragnarok Online, one of the oldest MMORPG, was re-launched
  • Access to 4game and RF Online was opened for Brazil
  • Innova collaborated with Pearl Abyss and became an official operator Black Desert Online in cooperation with the developer.

4game

4game is an international platform offering games by Innova Company.

● In 2011 4game was opened in Europe with Lineage 2.

● In 2018 RF Online was launched in Brazil.

● In 2014 the platform also opened a store for digital keys of single-player games by other companies, such as Bethesda, Steam and Uplay.

● In 2015 4game became a platform for the information portal packed with content about the gaming industry. The project was led by Alexey Makarenkov.

● Starting from summer 2018, all online games are launched in the in-house desktop application.

E-Sports

Innova is an active supporter of Russian eSports. The company held a range of Point Black events together with the eSports Federation, such as Cup of Russia, Russian Championship, WCG. With the support from Innova Russian Point Blank teams have become World Championship winners multiple times. In 2016 the first MMORPG championship was held in Russia for Blade & Soul, in 2017 - for R2 Online.

● In 2010 Point Blank 5x5 Elite Cup, an ESL e-sports tournament, began. It welcomed 128 teams

● In 2010 Point Blank was at the World Cyber Games 2010

● In 2011 Innova held a large Point Blank Cyber Series tournament with the support of Russian e-Sport Federation. Qualification games take place in 14 cities all over the country. The tournament prize pool was 1 million rubles.

● In 2013 Innova held the Point Blank Russian Championship that takes place in 12 different cities with the grand final in Moscow.

● Innova and StarLadder hold the 10th anniversary Point Blank SLTV season.

● In 2015 Innova's own e-sports platform, Arena 4game, was launched.

● In 2016 Innova held the first Russian Blade & Soul championship.[19]

● In 2017 R2 Online international tournament took place in Russia for the first time. The event was held at the e-sports club GamerStadium. The Russian team FreePlay won the tournament.

● Together with StarLadder, Innova held the Point Blank world championship, PBWC`2017.

● In 2018, the Russian server teams became the World Champions in Blade & Soul

References
  1. Olga Proskurina (2017-09-19). "Игры по-взрослому: как устроен бизнес российской "Кидзании"" [Games in an adult way: how the business of the Russian "KidZania" is arranged]. Forbes. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  2. Roman Kutuzov (2011-09-09). "Пять интернет-проектов, в которые вложились люди, далекие от интернета" [Five Internet projects, which were funded by people who are unfamiliar with the Internet]. Forbes. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  3. Наталья Ищенко (2017-03-26). "Фонд, связанный с Потаниным, купил долю в российской Kidzania". Vedomosti. Retrieved 2018-03-12.
  4. "Миллион до 33 лет: 9 молодых предпринимателей, создавших серьезный бизнес" [Million before 33 years: 9 young entrepreneurs who created a serious business]. Forbes. 2013-06-27. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  5. "Основатель "Вертикали" и игровой компании Innova Георгий Чумбуридзе — о том, как стартап превратить в компанию с миллиардным оборотом" [The founder of "Vertical" and the game company Innova George Chumburidze - about how to turn a start-up into a company with a billion-dollar turnover]. Inc. 2017-08-05. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  6. Evgeny Fedunenko (2017-04-30). "Китай обыгрывает Америку" [China beats America]. Kommersant. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  7. "30 крупнейших компаний Рунета — 2013" [30 largest companies of Runet - 2013]. Forbes. 2013-02-28. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  8. Marina Maksimova (2011-02-28). "В рунете разворачивается битва за зрителя" [A battle for the viewer in the Runet]. Gazeta.ru. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  9. Ekaterina Bryzgalova (2016-08-04). "Большинство российских онлайн-кинотеатров остаются убыточными" [Most Russian online cinemas remain unprofitable]. Vedomosti. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  10. "Открытка: Онлайн-кинотеатр Ayyo перестал работать из-за недостатка денег" [Postcard: Ayyo online cinema stopped working due to lack of money]. Roem.ru. 2017-03-28. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  11. "30 российских интернет-компаний: рейтинг Forbes" [30 Russian Internet companies: Forbes rating]. Forbes. 2012-02-27. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  12. "Goha Awards 2015". Goha.ru. 2016-01-28. Archived from the original on 2018-01-02. Retrieved 2018-03-12.
  13. Alexandra Mertsalova (2014-04-15). "Вот такой случился цирк" [That's the circus that happened]. Kommersant. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  14. "Les parcs qui font travailler les enfants préparent leur arrivée en France" (in French). Le Journal du Dimanche. 2017-06-21. Retrieved 2018-03-12.
  15. Katherine Clarke (2017-05-17). "Inside the retail apocalypse". The Real Deal. Retrieved 2018-03-12.
  16. Elena Krauzova (2015-02-17). "Назло пиратам" [To spite the pirates]. RBC. Retrieved 2018-03-12.
  17. Anna Afanasyeva (2016-02-04). "Платформа для роста" [Platform for growth]. Kommersant. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  18. https://www.stillfront.com/en/dorado-games-and-innova-will-enter-the-russian-market/
  19. "mmorpg.su". Archived from the original on 2017-08-08. Retrieved 2019-03-04.
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