SHANGHAI, December 15, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Virtuos, one of the world's largest game developers specializing in 3D art and game development for consoles and mobile devices, today announced that it has secured a new series B round of funding from Shanghai-based Xuhui Venture Capital. At the same time, Virtuos welcomes two new board members as strategic advisors: Steven Chiang, former President of Games at Zynga, and Francois Candelon, Senior Partner for Technology, Media and Telecommunications and Managing Director at Boston Consulting Group.
With more than 1,000 staff spread across eight studios and offices worldwide, Virtuos offers a full range of services from 2D/3D artwork to full game development across multiple platforms. While the Virtuos management team retains a controlling interest in the company, this new round of investment will support the company's strategy to continuously grow its expertise in the latest game development and art techniques. It will also allow the company to further develop its creative abilities, adding skilled talent and increasing its co-production capabilities, where the company invests resources alongside publishers to create new titles, such as the recently announced Fairy Fantasy for iOS and Android, which was co-produced with Chinese publisher Netease. Virtuos also plans to build tools that facilitate integration with client teams in order to offer higher value-added services to game publishers and developers worldwide.
The addition of Steven Chiang and Francois Candelon to the board of directors will greatly strengthen the company's corporate governance at a time when it has stepped out of start-up mode and is focused on managing growth sustainably. Steven comes with 20 years' experience in the games industry, having previously held top positions at Zynga and Electronic Arts, where he was responsible for managing game studios and development strategies. Francois is a practice leader at the Boston Consulting Group, where he specializes in Information Technology. He has been advising IT multinationals on strategies for growth and operational challenges for more than two decades.
"The investment by Xuhui Venture Capital is a great testament to our ongoing success and will strengthen our ability to continue investing in talent and tools as we develop into the preferred partner for publishers and developers worldwide," said Virtuos Co-Founder and CEO, Gilles Langourieux. "In addition, bringing Steven and Francois onto the board will ensure we have the right expertise to manage growth sustainably, while Virtuos focuses on adding value to its clients in order to help them achieve more."
Xuhui Venture Capital is an investment fund located in the Xuhui district of Shanghai, China, the same district chosen by other leading companies such as Tencent and Oriental Dreamworks as their base in Shanghai. The firm is a long-time partner of the government-supported start-up incubator where Virtuos was founded 10 years ago and has investment experience in IT and gaming companies, bringing valuable insight to Virtuos. Xuhui Government recognized Virtuos in 2014 with the title of 'Top 30 Company Start-up from Xuhui District.'
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About Virtuos
Virtuos is one of the largest game developers specializing in 3D art and game development for consoles and mobile devices. The company has studios and offices in Shanghai, Chengdu, Xian, Saigon, Vancouver, San Francisco, Paris and Tokyo, and employs more than 1,000 staff representing 15 nationalities. Virtuos' clients include 15 of the top 20 digital entertainment companies worldwide as well as renowned independent studios. For more information, please refer to: www.virtuosgames.com.
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