Stealth startup Ares Interactive has hired a string of ex-Glu, Scopely, Kabam and Gree executives, and appears to have acquired its first title already.
The new Austin, Texas-based outfit is being built by former Glu execs Niccolo De Masi and Mike DeLaet, who worked together at the maker of Kim Kardashian: Hollywood in the early 2010s.
Well-known exec DeLaet announced his appointment as president of Ares Interactive on LinkedIn recently. He joins Ares with many years of mobile game publishing experience drawn from multiple senior roles at Glu, Kabam, Rogue, Scopely and Mattel.
And a peek at Ares’ website confirms that former Glu boss Niccolo De Masi is the company’s executive chairman. De Masi is also currently president and CEO of quantum computing firm Ioniq, but is best known in mobile games for his spell running Glu through its Kim Kardashian: Hollywood-powered heyday in the mid-2010s.
Ares has also hired COO Craig Beers (ex-Wimo Games, KingsIsle), CTO Chris Hosking (Fortis, Jam City, Glu) and a chief legal officer, Scott Leichtner (AviaGames, Glu).
The firm also appears to have acquired its first title. Heroes vs Hordes is listed on app stores as being published by German studio Swift Games, whose cofounder and CEO is also listed as Ares’ German MD.
Appmagic estimates suggest that Heroes vs Hordes, a Vampire Survivors-alike, has racked up around 12m downloads and earned Swift Games over $30m since it launched in April 2022.
The blurb on the Ares Interactive site reads: “We are driven by a spirit of quick experimentation across multiple genres to discover the next big hit. Ares Interactive believes nothing is more important than great people. We work hard and support one another with respect so they can do their best work.”
In April 2024, we spoke to De Masi for two reports about Glu’s string of celebrity games, in which he also teased a possible return with a ‘Glu 2.0’.
“In the history of my career it never ceases to amaze me how often what’s old is new again,” he told us. “Maybe I’ll do it again someday, you never know. I still have another 10 or 20 years, so maybe I’ll take another crack at it.”
“Glu 2.0 has been on my mind in the last year,” he added. “You never know there might be another Niccolo and Kim-style collaboration someday – it’s not impossible.”
We contacted Ares Interactive for this report but it declined to comment.
