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Latest financial results mark the 7th year of sustained growth for Jagex
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New record revenue represents a 4% increase on 2020’s previous peak
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The RuneScape franchise reached its highest ever number of paid memberships
Thursday, 27th October: 09:00 BST – Cambridge, UK: Leading UK video game studio Jagex, developer and publisher of the award winning RuneScape franchise, has announced its seventh successive year of growth - with revenue reaching £124.86million for 2021. This growth was fuelled by its flagship franchise RuneScape reaching its highest ever number of paying members, cementing the significant gains made during the coronavirus pandemic.
Phil Mansell, Jagex CEO, said: “Thanks to the enduring popularity of the RuneScape franchise and the dedication of our player communities, we’ve been able to again grow revenues and reach the highest paying member count yet. This has only been possible through the hard work and ingenuity of our team, who were able to adapt to the on-going impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. The focus on our players allowed us to consolidate and build on the growth from 2020, with creative content and innovative features to encourage our loyal gaming communities to engage for the long term. This growth is testament to our community-driven approach, delivered by such dedicated teams, and meant RuneScape’s 20th anniversary year was its most successful ever.”
Alongside commercial success, some of the key milestones reached in 2021 were:
● Jagex was acquired by The Carlyle Group in January.
● RuneScape celebrated its 20th year of continuous operation since its launch in 2001.
● The RuneScape Franchise reached a new all-time membership high.
● RuneScape Mobile officially launched on iOS and Android.
● The company raised over £138,000 for its charity partners and received the MCV IRL award for the best Lockdown Mental Health Support Initiatives.
Mansell continued: “Since our acquisition by The Carlyle Group at the beginning of 2021, they have been hugely supportive of our long-term plans to grow the Jagex group and of our vision to be a leader in community-driven games. Their support combined with our continued revenue growth has allowed us to make big moves in the gaming space in 2022 - such as our recent acquisition of Pipeworks Studios - and celebrate significant milestones like reaching over 300 million accounts created for the RuneScape franchise.”
“We are excited for the future as we expand our offering in the games industry through our team at Pipeworks Studios, and through our third-party publishing arm - Jagex Partners. We expect to see significant continued growth through the expansion of our current portfolio of community-driven games, and the development of as-of-yet unannounced titles that we can’t wait to reveal in the near future.”
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About Jagex
A leader in creating deep and engaging live games on PC and mobile, Jagex’s flagship MMORPG RuneScape has welcomed over 300 million player accounts to its world and is a $1billion lifetime revenue franchise. Today the RuneScape franchise exists beyond running games in live operations; our titles are living games that connect and inspire millions of players, with content and experiences both inside and outside of inexhaustible game worlds. Both RuneScape and Old School RuneScape, on PC and mobile, offer ever-evolving, highly active worlds and our community-focussed development ethos empowers players to have a real say in how each game is shaped. Now we’re expanding and extending our portfolio with fresh franchise titles and new IP to bring life to the living games of the future. Jagex employs more than 450 people at its Cambridge headquarters. Career information can be found at www.jagex.com/careers