Vikings: War of Clans developer Plarium snapped up for $500M

Australian casino company Aristocrat has snapped up Israeli dev Plarium for $500 million as it looks to break into the mobile market. 

Aristocrat says it was attracted to Plarium thanks to its "proven track record" of monetizing social game experiences on mobile and developing projects across multiple studios around the world. 

Indeed, although Plarium is based in Israel, it also has offices in the Ukraine, Russia, and the United States. 

The company currently employs over 1000 people, and its mobile and social games line-up is played by more than 250 million users across 150 countries. 

That roster is mainly focused on free-to-play mobile games such as War of Empires and Vikings: War of Clans, but also features browser titles like Nords: Heroes of the North. 

Plarium CEO and co-founder Avraham Shalel will continue to lead the studio in the wake of the acquisition.

"Aristocrat is an ideal partner for us given our common aspiration to be a global leader in social gaming, which will be accelerated through leveraging Aristocrat's financial, strategic and operational resources," he commented.