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Below is our recent interview with Benjamin Pommeraud, CGO at Storms:
Q: Could you provide our readers with a brief introduction to your company?
A: Storms is a Singapore-based gaming startup invested in by Singtel, AIS, SK Telecom and EDB New Ventures, with a focus on instant gaming and hyper-casual games. Storms is also the solution provider for Smartie Pants, an advertising revenue management Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) offering for mobile game app developers.
Storms is led by tech and gaming veterans who are passionate about building an inclusive gaming ecosystem. We want players around the world to be entertained and connected through quality gaming content, no matter where they are or what device they own.
Q: Any highlights on your Storm The World: 2nd Edition?
A: Storms recently launched the second edition of our Storm The World hyper-casual mobile game competition, with a total prize pool of US$560,000 and exclusive publishing contracts.
Storm The World was first held in January 2021 with an aim to surface high-potential indie mobile game developers around the world and publish their games. Seeing its successful first run, we decided to bring the Storm The World competition back and accept game submissions until Sunday, 15 August 2021; 23.59 (GMT+8).
Storms, together with Facebook Gaming and Adjust, will judge the game submissions based on their originality, production quality and market fit.
Q: Can you give us more insights into your offering?
A: Storms has three business lines.
Firstly, Storms Publishing is Storms’ mobile game publishing arm that is focused on hyper-casual/casual mobile games. It is enabling indie and mid-size gaming studios to generate revenues globally by providing them with game design advice, as well as support for user acquisition and game monetisation.
Over the last year, Storms Publishing has published four mobile games, which include:
AZ Run, a puzzle ball runner game developed by Storms Publishing that has been downloaded over 2 million times in its first month, and has already ranked #1 in more than 30 countries.
Tricky Kick: Crazy Soccer Goal Game, a soccer dribbling mobile game that saw over 500,000 downloads in less than a month upon its launch in April 2021.
Umbra: Amulet of Light, a 3D puzzle game developed by Indonesian indie game studio, Niji Games, which was nominated for the 2nd International Mobile Gaming Awards Southeast Asia.
Zombeast: Survival Zombie Shooter, an offline first-person shooter mobile game that has achieved over 5 million downloads and a 4.7 rating on the Google Play store.
Secondly, Storms Social Instant Games is our business line that is committed to making quality games accessible to two billion users in the emerging markets through our social instant gaming platforms and distribution partners. Finally, Storms is also the distributor of Smartie Pants, an ad revenue management Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solution that allows mobile game developers to increase their eCPM by up to 80% by enabling automated waterfall and bidding optimisation using machine learning algorithms.
Q: What can we expect from your company in the next 6 months? What are your plans?
A: Storms is in a fast growth period now. We have millions of monthly active users. As we are getting closer to our vision, we will continue to strengthen our team, significantly scale and grow our user base, expand into new markets, and invest in research and development to advance our technology supporting mini eSports tournaments.
We are always exploring opportunities to scale and expand our footprint, and you can expect more exciting news from Storms in the coming months.
Q: What is the best thing about your company that people might not know about?
A: Storms is an exclusive partner of Halfbrick Studios to convert mobile hit games – Fruit Ninja and Jetpack Joyride – into social instant games. It means that for the first time, the less connected demographics will get to access these top games. Most people think that everybody in the world can already play video games, but it is not the case. We believe that gaming has the power to unite people. This is our purpose, and this partnership gets us closer to it.
Lastly, we truly have amazing people and a great company culture. We do a lot of remote work. My team is composed of people in Singapore, Vietnam, Lastly, we truly have amazing people and a great company culture. We do a lot of remote work. My team is composed of people in Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia, India and more. Gaming is borderless, so are we! Right now, I am working from France, and I am able to see my family that I haven’t been able to see for 2 years because of the pandemic. This flexibility is pretty awesome!
