THIS STUDY aims to provide an overview of the Finnish Game Industry in 2024. The company list used as the basis of this study is Neogames' constantly updated database, which contains only the studios known to be active in game development as of 2024.
However, the definition of an active game studio is somewhat vague, and maintaining a completely comprehensive database of all active studios is virtually impossible for multiple reasons. Finland's National Statistical Institute, Statistics Finland, has no definitive classification for game developer studios. Setting up a new game studio is relatively easy and fast, and game developer studios may sometimes operate in stealth mode for years before going public. For these reasons, there might be some inaccuracy, especially when it comes to new startups.
According to estimates by Neogames, between 1995 and 2022, approximately 700 Finnish game studios existed, with 270 of them actively engaged in game development as of the end of 2024. That is approximately 40 more than at the end of 2022 and marks the highest number of active studios in a single year in the history of the Finnish Game Industry.
As a reference, Neogames' first study on the Finnish Game Industry covers the year 2004 and includes 40 active game studios. Out of those 40 studios, 10 (25%) are still active in game development today. The listing in this study indicates the number of active studios each year, clearly showing that the growth spurt of the Finnish Game Industry began after 2010, following the mobile "Gold Rush". In 2014, there were 260 active studios, the vast majority of them developing mobile games. After that, the number of active studios declined. However, in 2022, the number of studios began to grow again and reached its new peak of 270 studios by the end of 2024.* A positive indication of the game ecosystem's vitality is that both first-round and second-round studios are being established.
The Capital Region (Helsinki, Espoo, Vantaa) is the largest game industry hub in Finland, with almost half of the active studios located in the region (127 studios). The other major game industry hubs, based on the number of active studios, are Tampere (39 studios), Oulu (22 studios), and Turku (17 studios). Additionally, there are vibrant industry hubs in Jyväskylä (12 studios), Kajaani (8 studios), and Kotka (7 studios).
In terms of economic significance and financial value, the Capital Region is still well ahead of other regions in Finland. As much as 97% of the industry's turnover is generated by companies located in the cities of Helsinki, Espoo, and Vantaa (92% in 2022). However, all major industry hubs have companies with an annual turnover of more than €1 million, and every region has one or more examples of successful game studios.
In some regions, the number of employees has increased, but in a few, it has decreased slightly. Almost 80% of all employees work in the Capital Region (76% in 2022), and all large companies employing more than 250 people are located in Helsinki or Espoo. The largest studio in terms of headcount outside the Capital Region is Fingersoft, based in Oulu, which now also has an office in Helsinki.
Profiles of of 50 game companies, all members of Suomen Pelinkehittäjät ry (Finnish Game Developer Studios Association), are introduced on the company profile pages.
A comprehensive, up to date list of active Finnish game studios can be found on the Neogames website.
*Note: Following the 2022 study, Neogames has continued updating its database, which means that some studios added during the 2023–2024 period may have been operating prior to 2023 but were only identified and included in the database after the previous study.
