A global games studio that has worked on some of the most iconic video games enjoyed by millions around the world, such as Fortnite, Mortal Kombat, League of Legends and Halo, has chosen Melbourne for its Australian base.
Minister for Economic Development Tim Pallas today announced that Keywords Studios PLC will establish its headquarters and development studio in Melbourne as part of an investment which will create 130 new high skilled jobs within three years.
The company will draw on Victoria's deep creative talent pool, including games developers, graphic artists, and designers, and offer new career pathways for tertiary graduates.
Founded in 1998, the Dublin-based company provides services including software engineering, testing and game development, primarily to the AUD$239.5 billion global gaming industry.
Keywords Studios has a presence in Asia, the Americas and Europe and operates over 65 studios in 22 countries, employing more than 9,000 people globally. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange.
It is best known for its highly successful collaborations with global market leaders such as Activision, Tencent, Riot Games, Ubisoft, Iron Source, Microsoft, Sony, Epic Games, Bethesda, Warner Bros, Electronic Arts and Nintendo.
Keywords Studios recently acquired an 85 per cent stake in Melbourne-based multi award winning game developer Tantalus Media Pty Ltd. The two companies have formed a joint venture company, Keywords Australia Pty Ltd, and will continue co-production and collaboration in Australia, overseen by Tantalus' founder, Tom Crago.
The attraction of Keywords Studios follows the launch of VICSCREEN, a $120.7 million strategy to reshape Victoria into a global powerhouse for screen across games, film, television and online content.
In addition to attracting global screen businesses to Victoria, the strategy includes Film Victoria's Victorian Screen Incentive to attract major international games projects to the state alongside investment in local games projects and in fostering our next generation of games talent.
Melbourne boasts more than half of Australia's game industry, including home-grown studios Hipster Whale, House House, Playside Studios and Zero Latency, and has attracted global leaders such as Firemonkey EA and Sledgehammer Games.
Victoria produces more than 1,000 graduates a year in disciplines ranging from programming to animation, multimedia design, digital art, and design. Each October, Melbourne also hosts the largest digital games celebration in the Asia Pacific, Melbourne International Games Week.
As stated by Minister for Economic Development Tim Pallas
"Melbourne is the digital games capital of Australia and this investment from global company Keywords Studios is a strong vote of confidence in our highly skilled workforce and our culture of innovation.
"This is a big win for Victoria, creating 130 new jobs and new career pathways in a growing and exciting industry."
As stated by Tom Crago, CEO of Tantalus Media Pty Ltd and CEO of Keywords Australia Pty Ltd
"We have ambitious plans to grow our business in Victoria, and it's exciting to partner with a Government that is as inspired by the games industry as we are. Victoria rightly has a place on the global game development stage. We'd like to see that star rise further still, and this initiative sets us up for success both at home and around the globe."
