Iceland and US-based mobile games studio PlainVanilla Games, maker of trivia game QuizUp released in 2013, has raised $22m in series B funding led by Naspers-backed, messaging and internet company Tencent Holdings and venture capital firm Sequoia Capital, with the participation of all other existing investors, including IDG Ventures, a network of venture capital funds backed by IT media company International Data Group.
The latest funding brings total investments in Plain Vanilla Games to more than $27 million. In April 2013, Plain Vanilla raised $2.4m in an A round of funding, and a $1.2m seed funding round in 2012.
Thor Fridriksson, founder and chief executive officer, Plain Vanilla Games, said: “We built social elements like messages and discussions into the social trivia network from the beginning because we wanted to help people connect over shared interests. But we’ve been blown away by the number of people who are already creating communities in QuizUp to discuss and debate their passions.”
Roelof Botha, partner, Sequoia Capital, said: “The level of engagement in QuizUp is stunning. Thor and his team struck the perfect balance of human interaction and gameplay to create an experience that is resonating with millions of gamers around the world.”