SEOUL, South Korea /PRNewswire/ -- WEMADE, the South Korean game developer, announced a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Nine66, a Savvy Games Group ("Savvy") company, to drive the development of the gaming industry in Saudi Arabia.

Savvy's long-term objective is to drive the long-term growth and development of the games and esports sectors in Saudi Arabia. The group consists of five independent entities covering areas such as game development, esports, investments and more.

Nine66 is committed to building and investing in the thriving gaming ecosystem in Saudi Arabia. Nine66 is driving growth and success in the region's gaming industry through a range of initiatives and partnerships, such as publishing, incubator and accelerator programs, training and events, as well as supporting virtual and real-life game development communities.

Nine66 provides entrepreneurs and innovators in the games industry with everything they need to accelerate their work; everything they need to drive their business forward; and everything they need to deliver a real impact, that benefits everyone in the games community.

Saudi Arabia is already a leader in the Middle East's gaming market, with over 80% of its 36 million population identifying as gamers. Recent government-led strategic initiatives are expected to have a positive impact on the Saudi gaming industry in the years to come.

WEMADE is one of the most well established South Korean gaming companies of over 22 years of history. The publicly traded company behind MMORPG "The Legend of Mir" series accumulated millions of users globally and has a growing userbase in the Middle East.

Through this partnership, WEMADE has committed to supporting the local gaming ecosystem by providing training and educational content, as well as collaborating with Saudi game developers.

Additionally, the partnership will explore various programs aimed at knowledge transfer, sponsorship of regional events, and expanding networks in the region to help grow the Saudi gaming industry and create new opportunities for developers and gamers alike.

The announcement comes as a follow up from official meetings during the LEAP Tech Conference that took place between February 6 to 9 in Riyadh. Over 170,000 participants and hundreds of speakers came together from multiple countries to the capital of Saudi Arabia, which saw leading tech companies partner with Saudi authorities to drive regional development on multiple fronts.

Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 strategy has set in motion a set of initiatives as a national effort to diversify Saudi Arabia's economy. As part of its mandate, Savvy is also set to invest USD 37.8 billion in the games industry.

WEMADE recently launched its new flagship game MIR M Global on January 31, which currently tops the ranks of video games in RPG category in multiple Middle Eastern countries including Saudi Arabia. The partnership with Nine66 is one of the company's latest moves in the region. In January, WEMADE announced the establishment of a subsidiary in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates and plans to open another branch in MENA region and work with local projects and companies.

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About Nine66

Nine66, part of the Savvy Games Group, is an integrated support system for game developers. It provides infrastructure, skills development, the network, the capital, publishing, and the advisory services to promising games studios and developers, both in Saudi Arabia and internationally.

Through its work, Nine66 provides entrepreneurs and innovators in the games industry with everything they need to accelerate their work, drive their business forward and deliver real impact that benefits the entire games community.

About WEMADE

Wemade is a pioneer in game development from Korea. Their focus is ever-shifting towards metaverse and blockchain (NFT, DeFi) technology with an emphasis on personalizing the gaming experience. Wemade strives to transform everyday games with blockchain technology and establish its WEMIX token as a key currency in the gaming industry.