Founding of the Icelandic Gaming Industry
The first Iceland Gaming Industry (IGI) meetup was on May 6th, 2009 at the second floor of a sports bar called Balthazar (now Fjallkonan).
The event was organized by Finnur Pálmar Magnússon at Sauma Technologies and Erla Bjarney Árnadóttir at Gogogic. The purpose of the first meetup was to assemble the game development studios in Iceland to see who were there.
The official founding of IGI was on September 25th, 2009 at Hugmyndahús Háskólana (now Saga Museum). The event saw the election of the first IGI board and the introduction of the future goals and vision.
Founding Companies of IGI
Betware, Cadia, CCP, Clara, Dexoris, Gogogic, Mind Games, Sauma Technologies & Ýmir Mobile.
First IGI Board (Elected September 25th, 2009):
Chair:
Erla Bjarney Árnadóttir, Gogogic
Board Members:
Eyjólfur Guðmundsson, CCP
Finnur Magnússon, Sauma
Ólafur Andri Ragnarsson, Betware
Örn Haraldsson, Mindgames
Alternate Members:
Arnar Hrafn Gylfason, CCP
Jónas Björgvin Antonsson, Gogogic
IGI Board Meeting in 2023.
Gaming History of Iceland
CCP Games was the inital spark to a now diverse industry of studios and games.
From the very dawn of the internet age, Iceland was remarkably quick to embrace emerging digital technology, long before broadband was ubiquitous elsewhere. By the mid‑1990s, Icelandic households and institutions were already logging in, with early infrastructure provided. This forward‑thinking adoption was made possible by an ambitious government vision for a digital society, and it laid the groundwork for an entire generation of innovators. Against that backdrop, CCP Games emerged in 1997 - a bold startup founded by technologists who saw the potential of the internet not just to connect people, but to let them build vast, player-driven virtual worlds.
Over the years, as Iceland’s connectivity accelerated with nearly 90% of households online by the mid‑2000s. What began as curiosity and experimentation matured into a thriving game development industry. Today, Iceland hosts some of the most innovative studios in the world, creating titles that reflect both deep technical expertise and the creative spirit born in those early, dial‑up days.
Icelanders are avid gamers, with two‑thirds of the population identifying as gamers and an average of nearly one hour a day spent on computer or online gaming. Meanwhile, the local development scene has grown impressively to over 24 active studios employing around 500 people, creating diverse titles across PC, mobile, console, and more.
Note that this timeline is not exhaustive and only intended to provide a broad overview of the industry’s history.
Hættuspilið / Danger Game
Foundations
1997 — CCP Games is founded in Reykjavík by Reynir Harðarson, Þórólfur Beck Kristjónsson, and Ívar Kristjánsson, aiming to build a massively multiplayer online game.
1998 — To finance early operations, CCP Games publishes a board game, Hættuspil (“Danger Game”), which sells very well in Iceland.
2000 — CCP Games raises $2.6 million from Icelandic investors (including Síminn) to fund its MMO ambitions.
EVE Online and Expansion
2003 — CCP Games launches its flagship game, Eve Online, after three years of production - putting Iceland on the global gaming map.
2004 — CCP Games' first-ever fanfest is held for Eve Online players, markedly increases tourist traffic to Iceland.
2004 — David Helgason co-founds Unity Technologies (then Over the Edge Entertainment) in Denmark. Initially developing games, the founders later shifted their focus onto making the world famous Unity game engine.
2005 — CCP Games opens an office in Shanghai, China to bring EVE Online to the Chinese gaming market (2006).
2006 — CCP Games merges with White Wolf Publishing (famous for role-playing franchises), significantly broadening its IP and development capacity.
2006 — Gogoic is founded, to develop games for Facebook and iPhone, by Guðmundur Bjargmundsson, Jónas Björgvin Antonsson, Sigurður Eggert Gunnarsson (Co-founder).
2006 — Eve Online reaches 100,000 subscriptions.
2007 — CCP establishes a North American subsidiary, CCP North America, located in Georgia, USA.
2009 — Eve Online reaches 300,000 subscriptions.
2009 — Icelandic Gaming Industry association (IGI) is founded.
Dust 514 Cover Art
Quiz Up from Plain Vanilla
Industry Diversifies
2010 — Plain Vanilla Games is founded in Reykjavík by Thor Fridriksson.
2013 — Klang Games (based in Germany) is founded by three Icelanders; Ívar Emilsson, Oddur Snær Magnússon, and Mundi Vondi - to develop large-scale MMO / life-simulation virtual worlds.
2013 — Plain Vanilla releases its hit QuizUp, a mobile trivia game that quickly becomes massively popular.
2013 — CCP Games releases Dust 514, a free-to-play shooter set in the Eve Online universe, on PlayStation 3.
2014 — Solfar Studios is founded by CCP veterans. They release a series of VR games including Godling, EverestVR and In Death.
2014 — Directive Games is founded by Atli Mar Sveinsson, Andreas Axelsson, Yohei Ishii, and Hao Wang.
Continued Expansion of the Local Industry
Ívar and Guðmundur, founders of 1939 Games
Developer Porcelain Fortress
Game Makers Iceland Community Meetup
Waltz of the Wizard by Aldin Dynamics
Jökull Jóhannsson (right), CEO of RÍSÍ.
Record Breaking Acquisition and Growth
2017 — Parity Games is founded in the summer of 2017 by a game industry veteran and a former CCP employee, María Guðmundsdóttir.
2017 — Teatime Games is founded in 2017 by industry veterans and creators of Quiz Up, including Thor Fridriksson, Ymir Finnbogason, Johann Bergthorsson and Gunnar Holmsteinn.
2018 — Game Makers Iceland (GMI), a grass root community for game developers, is established as an independent organization.
(co-founded by Alexandra Diljá Bjargardóttir, Haukur Steinn Logason, Jói Sigurðsson, and Torfi Ásgeirsson)
2018 — CCP Games is acquired by Pearl Abyss for approximately US$425 million, but continues to operate as an independant subsidiary in Reykjavík.
2018 — The Icelandic Electronic Sports Association (RÍSÍ) is founded, contributing significantly to a swift rise in popularity and activity of Esports in Iceland.
2019 — Waltz of the Wizard is released on Steam by new developer Aldin Dynamics.
2019 — No Time to Relax is released by Porcelain Fortress.
2019 — Mainframe Industries is founded by former game developers from studios like Remedy, CCP, and Next Games to develop Pax Dei, a Sandbox MMO.
Access to Funding and Esports amid Pandemic
2020-2022 — New Venture Capital funds are established (or achieve funding), including Crowberry Capital and Brunnur. This leads to to a dramatic increase in funding access for gaming studios and startups in Iceland.
2020 — Bunkhouse Games (then Arctic Theory) is founded by industry veterans Gísli Konráðsson, Matthías Guðmundsson, Snorri Sturluson, and Jón Bjarni Bjarnason.
2020 — Kards (WWII CCG) is released on Steam by 1939 Games (mobile version followed in 2023).
2021 — League of Legends World Championship and Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) is held in Iceland during pandemic. Viewership peaked with more than 73 million viewers worldwide, making it the most watched live eSports match ever.
2022 — Klang Games raises a US$41 million Series C to further develop SEED.
2022 — Rocky Road secures seed round to develop trivia games, founded by Þorsteinn Friðriksson, Valgerður Halldórsdóttir and Sveinn Þorri Davíðsson.
Crowberry Capital with Aldin Dynamics founders
Ólafur Hrafn Steinarsson (RÍSÍ founder) with the producer of the 2021
Mid-Season Invitational League of Legends Tournament in Iceland.
Aldís Amah Hamilton and Karl Ágúst Úlfsson
during motion capture for Echoes of the End
Reykjavík Game Summit organised by Game Makers Iceland (GMI)
Icelandic Games featured on Steam during Icelandic Game Fest
Industry Maturity and Multiple New Studios
Moving Forward Together
Collaboration, creativity, and diversity shaping the next chapter of Icelandic games.
The future of Icelandic game development looks bright, driven by a collaborative spirit that unites studios of all sizes. Creativity remains at the heart of the industry, with developers exploring new ideas, genres, and technologies. From indie experiments to large-scale multiplayer worlds, Icelandic games continue to reflect a diverse and vibrant landscape, ensuring that the industry will keep growing, innovating, and reaching players around the globe.
