History of Scopely in Timeline
Scopely is an American mobile-first video game developer and publisher headquartered in Culver City, California, with a global presence. As of 2024, it ranks as the second-largest mobile game developer worldwide based on revenue, highlighting its significant impact on the mobile gaming industry.
2003: Elbaz co-founds Applied Semantics, acquired by Google
In 2003, Eytan Elbaz, one of the founders of Scopely, co-founded Applied Semantics, which was acquired by Google.
2011: Scopely Founded
In 2011, Scopely was founded in Los Angeles, California, by Walter Driver, Ankur Bulsara, Eric Futoran and Eytan Elbaz.
January 2012: Scopely Launches Dice With Buddies
In January 2012, Scopely launched its first free-to-play mobile game Dice With Buddies.
April 2013: Scopely Launches Mini Golf MatchUp
In April 2013, Scopely launched Mini Golf MatchUp, a head-to-head game developed with New Zealand-based studio Rocket Jump. The game was #1 for free apps in the App Store in 49 countries and the #1 app on both the iPhone and the iPad in the U.S.
September 2013: Scopely Launches Wordly
In September 2013, Scopely launched Wordly, a spelling game that reached #1 on the top free apps chart in the App Store, and was the first game with single-player mode developed by Scopely.
November 2013: Scopely Launches Skee-ball Arcade
In November 2013, Scopely launched the Skee-ball game Skee-ball Arcade, which reached #1 overall in the App Store.
2013: Scopely Raises Seed Round of $8.5 Million
In 2013, Scopely raised a seed round of $8.5 million, led by Anthem Venture Partners, with participation from The Chernin Group, Greycroft Venture Partners, and New Enterprise Associates.
June 2014: Scopely Launches Slots Vacation
In June 2014, Scopely launched Slots Vacation.
July 2014: Scopely Acquires Disco Bees
In July 2014, Scopely acquired Space Inch's Disco Bees.
2014: Scopely Raises $35 Million in Series A Funding
In 2014, Scopely raised a $35 million Series A funding round, led by Evolution Media.
2014: Javier Ferreira and Tim O'Brien join Scopely
In 2014, former Disney Interactive and Electronic Arts executive Javier Ferreira joined Scopely, and former Disney Interactive executive Tim O'Brien joined as chief revenue officer.
April 2015: Scopely Partners with Hasbro to Launch Yahtzee With Buddies
In April 2015, Scopely partnered with Hasbro to launch the only officially licensed Yahtzee game, Yahtzee With Buddies, on iOS, Android and the Apple Watch. The game saw more than 1 million downloads in its first four days.
May 2015: Scopely Signs Partnership Deal with DIGIT games studios
In May 2015, Scopely signed a multi-year partnership deal with Ireland's DIGIT games studios. The collaboration led to the acquisition of Kings of the Realm, a fantasy strategy MMO game.
August 2015: Scopely Partners with Robert Kirkman and Skybound Entertainment for The Walking Dead: Road to Survival
In August 2015, Scopely partnered with The Walking Dead series creator Robert Kirkman and Skybound Entertainment to create The Walking Dead: Road to Survival, the first free-to-play mobile game based on the graphic novels. The game saw 4 million downloads in its first week, was a Top 25 Grossing Game in 17 countries, and became the 6th consecutive #1 game released by Scopely.
August 2015: Scopely Ranked #9 on Inc.'s List
In August 2015, Scopely was ranked #9 on Inc.'s List of the 5000 Fastest-Growing Companies in America, and #1 in the US.
2016: Scopely Raises $55 Million in Series B Funding
In 2016, Scopely raised $55 million in Series B funding.
2016: Scopely Releases Dice With Ellen
In 2016, Scopely released Dice With Ellen, a Yahtzee-style dice game with Ellen DeGeneres.
2016: Scopely Partners with Sony Pictures TV to Launch Wheel of Fortune: Free Play
In 2016, the company partnered with Sony Pictures TV to launch Wheel of Fortune: Free Play, based on the television game show.
October 2017: Scopely opens office in Barcelona
In October 2017, Scopely announced it was opening an office in Barcelona.
2017: Scopely Launches WWE Champions and Wins Webby Award
In 2017, Scopely announced a partnership with World Wrestling Entertainment and launched the match-3 game WWE Champions. It won a Webby Award for People's Voice in the sports games category.
2017: Scopely Announces $60 Million in Series C Funding
In 2017, the company announced $60 million in Series C funding, led by Revolution Growth.
December 2018: Scopely Launches Looney Tunes World of Mayhem
In December 2018, Scopely launched Looney Tunes World of Mayhem, a multi-player role-playing game featuring Looney Tunes characters licensed from Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, developed in partnership with Aquiris Game Studio. The game was downloaded more than one million times on its launch day.
2018: 40 Million Installs for Walking Dead: Road to Survival
As of 2018, 40 million people have installed Walking Dead: Road to Survival since its release.
2018: Scopely Had Four Top-Grossing Games
In 2018, Scopely had four top-grossing games: WWE Champions, The Walking Dead: Road to Survival, Wheel of Fortune: Free Play, and Yahtzee With Buddies.
2018: Scopely Raises Additional $100 Million
In 2018, Scopely raised an additional $100 million from Greenspring Associates.
May 2019: Scopely Acquires DIGIT Game Studios
In May 2019, Scopely acquired Dublin-based DIGIT game studios, its collaborator on the mobile 4x strategy game Star Trek Fleet Command.
June 2019: Scopely Surpasses $1 Billion in Lifetime Revenue
In June 2019, Scopely shared it had surpassed $1 billion in lifetime revenues.
2019: Scopely Announces $200 Million in Series D Financing
In 2019, the company announced $200 million in Series D financing, valuing the company at $1.7 billion.
2019: Star Trek Fleet Command Surpasses $50 Million in Revenue
In 2019, the company shared Star Trek Fleet Command surpassed $50 million in revenue in four months.
January 2020: Scopely Purchases FoxNext Games Los Angeles
In January 2020, Scopely purchased FoxNext Games Los Angeles and its RPG game MARVEL Strike Force, along with Cold Iron Studios, from The Walt Disney Company for an undisclosed amount. Scopely later sold Cold Iron Studios to Daybreak Game Company.
March 2020: Scopely Announces Additional $200 Million in Series D Financing
In March 2020, the company announced another $200 million in Series D financing, valuing the company at $1.9 billion.
April 2020: Scopely Acquires PierPlay Game Studio
In April 2020, Scopely acquired PierPlay game studio, its collaborator on the mobile word game Scrabble GO.
June 2020: Scrabble GO best launch ever for a mobile word game
In June 2020, it was announced that the game was the "best launch ever for a mobile word game."
October 2020: Scopely Announces $340 Million in Series E Financing
In October 2020, Scopely announced $340 million in Series E financing, valuing the company at $3.3 billion.
July 2021: Scopely Invests in Three European Game Studios
In July 2021, Scopely invested in three games studios in Europe to co-create games and invest in developers.
October 2021: Scopely Valued at $5.4 Billion
As of October 2021, Scopely was valued at $5.4 billion.
October 2021: Scopely Acquires GSN Games from Sony
In October 2021, Scopely acquired Game Show Network's online gaming division (GSN Games) from Sony in a $1 billion cash and stock deal. Sony Pictures took a minority stake in the company as a result.
2022: Scopely Acquires Stumble Guys
In 2022, the company acquired the mobile party battle royale game Stumble Guys from Kitka Games.
April 5, 2023: Savvy Games Group announces intent to acquire Scopely
On April 5, 2023, Savvy Games Group announced its intent to acquire Scopely, Inc for $4.9 billion.
April 2023: Scopely Launches Monopoly Go!
In April 2023, Scopely launched Monopoly Go!. MONOPOLY GO! became the biggest mobile game of 2023, generating $1 billion in revenue. The game is now the biggest mobile game launch of all time.
June 2023: Scopely Acquires Tag Games Studio
In June 2023, Scopely acquired Scotland-based Tag Games studio.
July 13, 2023: Savvy Games Group Completes Acquisition of Scopely
On July 13, 2023, Savvy Games Group completed the acquisition of Scopely for $4.9 billion. Scopely remains an independently-operated company, headquartered in Culver City, California, part of the Savvy portfolio.
February 2024: Scopely Ends Publishing Partnership with Global Worldwide
In February 2024, Scopely ended its publishing partnership with Global Worldwide game studio on the title Kingdom Maker and redeployed the Scopely team supporting the project to other games.
May 2024: Scopely Recognized as One of TIME100 Most Influential Companies
In May 2024, Scopely was recognized by Time Magazine on their annual TIME100 list recognizing the "100 Most Influential Companies in the World."
2024: Scopely ranks as second-biggest mobile game developer
As of 2024, Scopely was the second-biggest mobile game developer in the world in terms of revenue.
January 2025: Scopely Contributes to FireAid Benefit Concert
In January 2025, Scopely contributed to the FireAid Benefit Concert, produced by Irving Azoff, as a presenting sponsor to help wildfire relief efforts in the company's founding city of Los Angeles. Fundraising efforts from the Benefit raised more than $100 million.
