LVL Zero Onboards Mentors to Power India’s Next Wave of Game Developers

LVL Zero, India’s first-of-its-kind gaming incubator backed by MIXI Global Investments, Nazara Technologies, and Chimera VC, today announced its mentor network for the inaugural cohort. LVL Zero brings together Indian & global experts across game development, publishing, product, and growth to support India’s emerging game studios.

This mentor ecosystem will work closely with the 10 selected startups, embedding hands-on guidance into LVL Zero’s 100-day execution-driven program to help founders move from early-stage builds to market-ready products.

LVL Zero Built A Cross-Functional Mentor Network for Execution

The mentor cohort spans a wide range of disciplines critical to building and scaling successful game studios globally.

Key areas of expertise include:

Game design & player experience
PC, console, and mobile publishing
Live-ops, retention, and analytics
User acquisition, marketing, and growth
Go-to-market strategy and positioning
Game production, art, and audio
Startup operations, pitching, and investment readiness

Mentors include Ankit Garg (Zombie Art School), Dr. Yaraslau Kot (University of Warsaw), Terry Lee (Fusebox), Claire Roazain (RZAIN), Dong Dong (NCSoft), Sophie Vo (Rise & Play), and Taha Tinwala (Gameramp), among others.

The network also brings in specialists such as Vivek Ramachandaran (Gameramp), Shashank Vandarangi (Gameramp), Mariusz Gasiewski (Google), Balaji Vijayan (formerly FRVR), Jia Ling Hoo (ID@Xbox), and Dilpesh Parmar (Investor & Advisor, multiple startups).

Further strengthening the ecosystem are experts including Charu Desodt (INT./Night), Nilesh Mange (Mother Grace Productions), Pratik Jaiswal (Sri Durga Arts), Per-Arne (Amplifier Game Invest), Federico Chichi (ROLI), Matthew Quek (Iterco), and Esteban Grellier (NAGA Publishing).

The mentor network is further supported by Gorkem (LUDUS Ventures), Kirill Akimkin (Polden Publishing), Sushant Kulkarni (24 Track Legends), Ravi Mantena and Deepak Gurijala (1312 Interactive), Anurag Choudhary (Felicity), Sadiq Ahamed (Lysto), Robert Huynh (Reforged Labs), and Imtiaz Hussain (formerly Yesgnome).

From Advice to Execution: Embedded Mentorship Model

Unlike traditional incubators, LVL Zero integrates mentors directly into the product development lifecycle. Each startup is paired with dedicated mentors aligned to their platform and stage, with access to a broader network for specialized inputs. Mentors actively participate in:

Bi-weekly sprint reviews
Product and design feedback loops
QA & Playtesting data analysis & feedback
Go-to-market and publishing strategy

This ensures that mentorship is not theoretical, but directly contributes to shipping better products within tight timelines.

LVL Zero’s Mentor Network provides Global Expertise with Local Execution

The mentor network includes operators and experts with experience across global gaming ecosystems, including platforms such as Xbox and leading international publishers. By bringing this expertise to Indian founders, LVL Zero aims to bridge long-standing gaps in:

Access to global publishing pathways
Understanding of live-service and retention systems
Go-to-market and distribution strategy
Investor and capital readiness

Aligned to a 100-Day Build–Test–Ship Framework

Mentors play a critical role across all phases of the program:

Ignition (Days 1–15): Defining milestones, product vision, and execution roadmap
Core Build (Days 16–70): Supporting rapid iteration, playtesting, and validation
Market Readiness (Days 71–100): Preparing for launch, publishing, and investor engagement

By the end of the program, startups are expected to deliver playable builds, validated product loops, and investor/publisher-ready pitches, shaped through continuous mentor intervention.

Sagar Nair, Head of Incubation, LVL Zero said, “Access to capital is important, but what early-stage game studios in India have lacked most is access to real, hands-on expertise. With this mentor network, we are bringing in operators who have built, shipped, and scaled games globally, and embedding them directly into the founders’ journey. This isn’t advisory in isolation, it’s execution support at every step. Over the next 100 days, our focus is simply to help these teams build better products, faster, and prepare them to compete on a global stage.”

Building India’s Execution Layer for Gaming

With its mentor-led model, LVL Zero is positioning itself as more than just an incubator, acting as an execution layer for India’s gaming ecosystem.

As Indian studios increasingly aim to build globally competitive IP across PC, console, and mobile platforms, access to experienced operators across design, publishing, and growth is expected to be a key differentiator. The mentor network reinforces LVL Zero’s core belief that the next generation of Indian game studios will not just be defined by ideas, but by their ability to execute, iterate, and scale for global audiences.

Gaming