nCore Games, India’s leading mobile-first game developer and publisher, today announced a strategic investment from Nazara Technologies Limited, marking a major milestone in nCore’s evolution into a scaled, IP-led gaming and esports company.
The investment forms part of nCore’s $5 million growth round and follows the strong performance of the FAU-G: Bharat League (FBL), nCore’s proprietary esports league built around its modern military shooter FAU-G: Domination, developed by nCore subsidiary, Dot9 Games. Check out the detailed information about FAU-G: Bharat League.
Nazara Technologies Limited invests on nCore Games to scale FAU-G: Bharat League
In addition to Nazara, nCore Games is backed by investors including Animoca Brands, Galaxy Interactive, Polygon (Sandeep Nailwal), and prominent angel investors including Amitabh Singhal (ex-Google), Sohil Chand, Ashish Chand, Ram Madhvani, Rakesh Kaul, Mannan Adenwala, Sanjay Narang, Taj Haslani, Kristian Segerstrale (Game Industry veteran), Sanjay Gondal, Aditya Patil, Vedant Baali, Kartik Prabhakara, Peter Leung, Yashraj Akashi and Akshay Chaturvedi.
The capital will be used to scale FBL into a long-term, franchise-driven esports property, deepen nCore’s competitive and midcore gaming portfolio, and accelerate expansion across priority markets.
nCore’s journey with FAU-G has benefited from guidance and encouragement from early mentors who believed in the importance of building Indian gaming IP at scale. Among them is Akshay Kumar, an early mentor to the FAU-G vision and a long-standing advocate for India-origin digital storytelling and interactive entertainment.
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Strategic Alignment with India’s Policy, AI, and Make-in-India IP Push
With strong policy tailwinds, rising consumer adoption of esports, and rapid advances in AI-led game development, nCore aims to position FAU-G and future franchises as flagship examples of Make in India gaming IP built for India and global audiences.
The announcement comes amid strong government focus on Make in India digital IP, increasing policy clarity around online gaming, and accelerated adoption of AI-driven development and live operations. nCore’s strategy is closely aligned with these national priorities, with all core development rooted in India and AI increasingly embedded across gameplay systems, matchmaking, live operations, competitive integrity, and player engagement.
FAU-G: Bharat League Demonstrates Scale, Speed, and Commercial Viability
Launched in July 2025, the FAU-G: Bharat League rapidly established itself as one of India’s most engaging mobile-first esports formats. The league attracted hundreds of thousands of participants and delivered average engagement approaching three hours per player per day, reflecting strong retention and competitive intensity.
Building on the success of its inaugural season, FAU-G: Bharat League Season 2 (FBL 2.0) featured a ₹1 crore prize pool, placing it among the largest mobile esports prize pools in India.
The league is supported by Leverage as an official sponsor, with NODWIN Gaming serving as the esports partner. The presence of a leading consumer brand sponsor and India’s largest esports operator underscored the league’s commercial viability, production quality, and scalability. Within just six months of launch, FAU-G: Domination has emerged as the third-biggest shooter esports title in India, demonstrating exceptional velocity in a market historically dominated by international titles such as BGMI and Free Fire Max.
Nitish Mittersain, Founder and CEO, Nazara Technologies: “Nazara focuses on backing companies with strong IP ownership, execution depth, and a clear path to scale. nCore’s performance with FAU-G and the Bharat League reinforces our conviction in the team’s roadmap and its ability to play a defining role in India’s gaming and esports ecosystem.”
Vishal Gondal, Founder and Chairman, nCore Games: “The FAU-G: Bharat League validated our belief that India can build globally competitive esports IP grounded in strong gameplay, disciplined live operations, and deep cultural resonance. Nazara’s strategic investment is a strong endorsement of our execution and long-term vision. Their operating expertise across gaming, esports, and monetisation will be invaluable as we scale FAU-G and build enduring franchises from India for the world.”
Kaval Bombra, President, nCore Games: “From inception, our strategy has been to build competitive experiences that truly resonate with India’s highly engaged gaming community. The transition of a long-term publishing partner into a strategic investor reflects shared confidence in our execution, data-driven approach, and long-term ambition.”
Deepak Ail, Co-Founder and CEO, Dot9 Games, Developer of FAU-G: Domination: “From the beginning our strategy has been centered on building a competitive experience for India’s vocal gaming community. The greatest validation of this is when our publisher is now also our investor. We’re grateful to Nazara for its support and confidence in us to build the best from India for India and eventually, the world.”
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