Survios’ Raw Data has been one of the major virtual reality (VR) hits on Steam for HTC Vive since its launch during the summer. This week the Los-Angeles-based developer has announced that through two rounds of funding this year its secured $50 million USD, with the latest round including entertainment company Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM).
Back in 2014 Survios raised $4 million in an early round from a range of investment companies led by Shasta Ventures, helping support its first efforts in VR such as Zombies on the Holodeck! This helped Survios build towards Raw Data which it debuted during the Virtual Reality Los Angeles (VRLA) Winter Expo in January. The first financing round that was held this year featured Shasta Ventures again, alongside Danhua Capital, Shanda Holdings, Felicis Ventures, Dentsu Ventures and Lux Capital who led the round. The most recent investment round with MGM has meant that it’s chairman and CEO Gary Barber now joins Survios’ board.
James Iliff, co-founder and chief creative officer at Survios spoke with GamesBeat about the investment, saying: “We want to build amazing VR content for the widest possible audience. We want to make the VR market succeed. It’s still early, and we want to make it happen.”
“MGM has incredible creative properties and access to a lot of intellectual property that could help us,” he added.
While the investment means Survios is looking to the future and diversifying its content lineup, how about Raw Data? Iliff addresses any concerns fans may have in a blog posting: “We are going to complete Raw Data as we originally set out to do, delivering more missions, heroes, items, and abilities; further polishing the gameplay; and adding in lots of story-driven elements so that the finished product is not only super fun to play, but also has the depth and fullness you crave. We also have a few unannounced surprises in store for you along the way.”
VRFocus will continue its coverage of Survios and Raw Data, reporting back with any further updates.