Bazooka Tango is a game studio led by former creators of Vainglory, Bo Daly, and Stephan Sherman. The team has just announced that they have successfully raised $5 million dollars in a funding round led by BITKRAFT Ventures. Participation came from other well-known VCs, including RW3 Ventures, Sfermion, and 1Up Ventures. The fresh funds will apparently be used to help grow the Bazooka Tango team, bring to market new (in-development) titles as well as double down on the development of Shardbound, an immersive, multiplayer collectible tactics game.
The trading card game (TCG) market is projected to hit $11.57 billion by 2030, making games like Shardbound — which combine classic TCG elements with the ethos of digital ownership — set to take center stage.
Bazooka Tango was founded in March 2019 by Bo Daly and Stephan Sherman, veterans with extensive experience in AAA gaming heralding from Rockstar Games, Riot, Blizzard, and Activision. Notably, they previously co-founded Super Evil Megacorp and created the award-winning game Vainglory. Their newest venture, in collaboration with leading web3 publisher, Immutable Games, aims to deliver a next-generation, collectible tactics game filled with rich lore, deep strategy, and intense competition that integrates web3 technology to deliver true digital ownership to players.
We are honored and humbled by the recognition Shardbound is receiving from gamers and investors alike. We have already received overwhelming support with our latest Alpha playtest maxing out at our 1,000 player cap. We believe that web3 has the potential to unleash some really cool ideas and we’re excited to see so much enthusiasm from our community as we continue on this journey together.
Already, Bazooka Tango has used funds to support a strategic round of new hires including the appointment of Vice President of Operations, Kellen Smalley, an experienced leader who taps into more than 18 years of experience working with gaming and entertainment companies, including Apple, Disney, Twitch, Kabam, Electronic Arts, as well as web3 companies Forte and Rally. In addition, experienced game developers from 2K, Sledgehammer Games, Rainbow Studios, and Pocket Gems have also joined the Bazooka Tango team.
Amid an incredibly challenging year for VC funding, it speaks volumes to the quality of our games - like Shardbound and the team we have built here at Bazooka Tango. With the help of this additional funding, we are focused on expanding our team in critical disciplines essential for launching and growing the Shardbound universe.
Shardbound's initial Alpha playtest has already seen significant interest from gamers, attracting 1,000 participants and generating positive reviews from notable content creators including, Kripparian, BruceGreene, YellowPanther, and most notably our very own Hubert Van Vliet. Today, the game already boasts over 50,000 pre-registrations and more than 10,000 total hours watched as part of the Shardbound Creator Campaign. You can read Hubert's First Impressions piece on our website here.
