W4 Games nets $15 million to help Godot scale exponentially

Irish startup W4 Games has raised $15 million to "drive video game development inflection" with Godot Engine.

The company was established in 2021 by former Godot veterans Juan Linietsky, Rémi Verschelde and Fabio Alessandrelli and intends to go "all-in on the creation of an ecosystem with the Godot Engine at its center."

"The free, open-source technology of the Godot Engine empowers developers to create stunning 2D and 3D games, and we believe it will become the most used game engine in the world within the decade, driving video game development to new heights," said the studio in a press release announcing the funding.

"It is already the preferred game engine for new generations of game developers and will scale exponentially further thanks to its fast learning curve, intuitive design, and a fast-growing and welcoming community."

W4 Games says there's "fast-growing demand" for its Godot services 

The investment round was led by OSS Capital and Naval Ravikant, with additional backing from the likes of GitHub CEO Thomas Dohmke and OpenSea co-founder Alex Atallah.

W4 Games will use the cash to strengthen its role within the Godot ecosystem by supporting its open-source development efforts while continuing to build products that support the engine's expansion plans—such as middleware console porting solution, W4 Consoles.

The company also intends to develop a new Godot education program and expand internationally across North America, Europe, and Asia—doubling its headcount in the coming 18 months to capture the "fast-growing demand" for its services and products.

Back in September Godot launched a funding initiative in the form of a subscription service to drive long-term growth and make the engine "more sustainable and independent." The company said the program, dubbed the Godot Development Fund, will enable it to hire more developers, pay for hosting services, and invest in infrastructure. 

That's good news for anybody who might be considering their options after Unity's botched introduction of the Runtime Fee left some developers searching for greener pastures.