Three Rings Receives New Financing

Casual PC game developer Three Rings Design (Puzzle Pirates, Bang! Howdy) has announced that it has completed a successful round of Series B financing, getting an unspecified investment amount led by Mercury Capital Partners and Amicus Capital, including participation from the Arba Group and investors such as Stewart Alsop. The new financing follows the beta launch of Bang! Howdy, a multiplayer online tactical strategy game, as well as the company’s success with its online PC puzzle MMO game Puzzle Pirates. Both titles are distributed online and are free to play, with optional purchase of micro-currency to obtain upgrades and additional content. Three Rings announced that it is profitable and growing at over 30 percent per quarter. The Series B financing was over-subscribed and the use of proceeds will be for expansion and new product development. “We’re very excited about our investment in Three Rings. We believe that broadband adoption coupled with digital distribution creates tremendous opportunities in this sector,” stated Teo Balbach, a Principal of Mercury Capital Partners. “The Three Rings team has built a very compelling online games platform in a space that is experiencing rapid growth.” “The ‘free to play, pay for items’ business model has proven very successful in the Korean market and is the economic driver of our business,” said Daniel James, Three Rings’ CEO. “With over 1.9 million registered players and a near even male/female split, this model is popular with a broad demographic and is attracting a substantial international audience. The financing allows us to accelerate our core business and to continue to develop new breakthrough products.”