In Canada’s media landscape, video games represent one of the market’s largest segments. The country is home to developers that reach players worldwide, not to mention millions of gamers. British Columbia has a large concentration of studios and these are some of the top game companies in Vancouver contributing to the industry’s growth.
Top Game Companies in Vancouver
- 2K
- Electronic Arts
- Relic Entertainment
- Blackbird Interactive
- Endnight Games
- Hothead Games
- Smoking Gun Interactive
Game Companies in Vancouver to Know
Founded in 2013, Archiact develops virtual reality, or VR, games for various systems. As one of the largest VY gaming companies, the studio has worked with other developers and publishers to create immersive versions of popular videos, including for Doom, a popular and storied franchise. Archiact is headquartered in Vancouver and has a satellite office in Toronto.
Relic Entertainment makes strategy games in which players use decision-making skills to define the experiences they have within the game’s universe. The studio is behind popular franchises like Age of Empires, a strategy game set in various historic civilizations that has been in publication for over two decades, and Company of Heroes, a historically accurate European WWII game that’s critically acclaimed for its tactical combat features.
IGG is a Chinese video game development company and publisher. Founded in 2006, the studio has reached players in over 200 countries and is known for its mobile-based RPG titles. Role-playing games, or RPGs, provide narrative experiences that lend to greater immersion than other genres, thanks to the in-game decision-making structures.
A Thinking Ape is a Vancouver-based studio that develops strategy games. Its games are available on mobile devices and are designed to foster user engagement by creating digital communities among players.
HotHead Games is a studio that makes PC, mobile and console games like Kill Shot Bravo and Hero Hunters. It provides development services that extend from the early conceptual stage to testing, monetization and more. Founded in 2006, the company prioritizes a remote-first work culture with flexible work schedules and a generous training budget for professional development.
2K owns an array of popular franchises that include NBA 2K, Borderlands, XCOM and Lego 2K Drive. It hires a variety of video game professionals like engineers and artists. The company has global studios and offices throughout the world, one of which is located in Westmount.
Smoking Gun Interactive is an independent gaming development studio that was founded by veterans of the Company of Heroes historical gaming franchise. Smoking Gun’s specialties are the casual, action and real-time strategy genres, which it produces for mobile, PC and console play.
Endnight Games was founded by a team of visual effects artists, whose influence is clearly visible in the aesthetics of the company’s games. Its signature game is called The Forest, which is described as an “open world survival horror game” that incorporates intricate visuals and simulated horror effects in a living forest atop a network of caves and underground lakes. The game can be played solo or with up to eight people.
Blackbird Interactive makes immersive interactive experience games, which are driven by world building and narrative. With over 300 staff members, including an in-house cinematics team, the company seeks to keep and grow talent. Blackbird Interactive runs an internal incubation program that provides a space for employees to pitch original ideas on an annual basis.
Electronic Arts, or EA, develops titles for most platforms and is known for its lineup of sports games and other hits like Battlefield and The Sims. Though headquartered in California, the company operates a studio in Burnaby, near Vancouver. There it contributes to many of its sports titles including EA Sports FC, a popular football video game with multiplayer features.
