Kuro Games

Kuro Games
Native name
库洛游戏
Company typePrivate
Founded2014 in Zhuhai, China
Headquarters
Guangzhou
,
China
BrandsPunishing: Gray Raven
Wuthering Waves
Number of employees
1500 (2024)
SubsidiariesKuro Technology (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd.
Websitekurogames.com

Kuro Games (Chinese: 库洛游戏; pinyin: Kù Luò yóuxì) is a Chinese video game development and publishing company.

The company is best known as the creator of Punishing: Gray Raven, and Wuthering Waves.[1][2]

History

Kuro Games was formerly known as Zhuhai Kuro Technology Co. Ltd. and was founded in 2014, when it was located in Zhuhai.[3] In 2015, Kuro Games relocated the company to Guangzhou and changed its name to Guangzhou Kuro Technology Co. The relocation and name change marked a new stage in the development of Kuro Games.[4]

Kuro Games' first title, Twin Tail Battleground, was officially released in September 2016, but ceased service in 2018.[5] In 2017, Kuro Games began development of Punishing: Gray Raven, a sci-fi action RPG praised by players. At that time, the company consisted of a small team of about 30 employees.[6]

On October 23, 2019, Kuro Games received a capital increase of $30 million from Hero HootSuite (now Hero Hub), resulting in Hero acquiring a 32.5% stake in the company. This funding marked a turning point for Kuro Games, enabling expansion of its team and production capabilities.[7]

In 2021, Kuro Games launched a crossover event between Punishing: Gray Raven and Nier: Automata.[8] That same year, the company also established a subsidiary in Hong Kong to support its growing operations.

In 2022, Kuro Games announced its new open-world action game, Wuthering Waves, and began limited technical testing in China.[9] Producer Songlun Li (Solon Lee) was interviewed at the TapTap Developer Salon to discuss the game’s development process.[10]

On March 17, 2023, Tencent acquired a 14.33% stake in Kuro Games. Following the acquisition, ownership was updated to 37.07% held by Hero Hub, 14.33% by Tencent, and 48.59% by the founding team.[11]

Wuthering Waves launched globally on May 22, 2024. The game recorded over 30 million pre-registrations prior to release and earned approximately $10 million in mobile revenue within its first five days. It ranked first on the iOS sales chart in South Korea and performed strongly in Japan and North America. By the end of 2024, its lifetime mobile revenue had exceeded $126 million.[12] Meanwhile, Punishing: Gray Raven had also surpassed $159 million in mobile in-app purchases since its debut.[13]

In November 2024, Tencent acquired an additional 37% stake from Hero Hub, increasing its total ownership of Kuro Games to 51.4%. This made Tencent the sole external shareholder. Kuro Games stated in an internal memo that the studio would continue to operate independently, similar to Tencent's hands-off approach with subsidiaries like Riot Games and Supercell. The company said this investment would provide long-term stability while supporting Kuro’s creative autonomy.[14]

In 2024, Kuro was ranked #16 on Pocket Gamer's "The Top 50 Mobile Game Makers of 2024".[15]

In early 2025, Wuthering Waves expanded to new platforms. It launched on the PlayStation 5 on January 2, 2025,[16] followed by a version 2.3 update and release on Steam in April. On March 25, 2025, Apple CEO Tim Cook made an appearance at a Kuro Games event to preview the game’s macOS version, further demonstrating the title’s global prominence.[17]

Games

References

  1. ^ "Punishing: Gray Raven global launch dated". GamerBraves. 2021-05-02. Retrieved 2023-03-12.
  2. ^ "Kuro Game Announces Open-World RPG Wuthering Waves". RPGAMER. 29 May 2022.
  3. ^ "半年连秀数款在研新作，广州的二次元游戏有机会追上上海吗？-游戏之声". www.gameweibo.com (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2023-03-14. Retrieved 2023-03-14.
  4. ^ "Kuro Game - Company Profile". kurogame.com. Archived from the original on 2023-06-06. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  5. ^ "不看网易，广州游戏圈还能打吗？-游戏之声". www.gameweibo.com (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2023-03-13. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  6. ^ "《战双帕弥什》的幕后英雄：如何让30人草根团队用3年做到畅销第3_Daniel". www.sohu.com (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2023-03-18. Retrieved 2023-03-18.
  7. ^ "英雄互娱拟3000万增资库洛游戏，后者为《战双帕弥什》开发商 - GameRes游资网". www.gameres.com (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2023-03-13. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  8. ^ Bahamut. "《戰雙帕彌什》x《尼爾 自動人形》聯動版本正式開啟 2B、9S、A2 限時出擊". BahamutGameInfo (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2023-07-25. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  9. ^ Bahamut. "《戰雙帕彌什》開發商新作《鳴潮》宣布將於中國展開不計費刪檔小規模技術性測試". BahamutGameInfo (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2023-07-25. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  10. ^ "库洛游戏制作人李松伦：《鸣潮》是怎么做开放世界的 | 游戏大观 | GameLook.com.cn". www.gamelook.com.cn (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2023-03-13. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  11. ^ "腾讯入股库洛游戏占股14.33%，后者在研开放世界游戏《鸣潮》_游戏陀螺". www.youxituoluo.com (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2023-06-08. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
  12. ^ "Wuthering Waves generates $10 million in first five days". PocketGamer. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  13. ^ "Top Mobile RPGs of 2024". PocketGamer. Retrieved 2024-07-03.
  14. ^ Sal, Romano (November 30, 2024). "Tencent acquires majority stake in Kuro Games". Gematsu. Retrieved January 20, 2025.
  15. ^ "The Top 50 Mobile Game Makers of 2024". PocketGamer. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
  16. ^ "Wuthering Waves for PS5 launches January 2". Gematsu. Retrieved 2025-01-03.
  17. ^ "Apple CEO appears at Kuro event for Wuthering Waves macOS version". MacRumors. Retrieved 2025-03-26.
  18. ^ "Kuro New Game Relay Battle Double Another Record "Wuthering Waves" First Test Players Straight to the Top|Travelers Sky". wap.gamersky.com (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2023-03-13. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
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