List of the UK’s richest game devs and influencers puts Garry’s Mod creator neck-and-neck with Rockstar founders, but the richest of all is a different pair of gaming brothers worth £12.5 billion-

I might tut tut at the endless, rapacious pursuit of wealth for its own sake that defines our society, but at the end of the day, I still want to know who’s making the big bucks and imagine what I’d do with them, baby. Thankfully, The Sunday Times has just come out with its Rich List of the 30 wealthiest figures in the UK games industry.

At the top of the list are Igor and Dmitry Bukhman, whose names, games, and studio I had never heard of before beholding this very list. The brothers founded and own Playrix, a 4,000 person-strong developer of free-to-play mobile games, with their most notable releases being Township, Fishdom, Homescapes, and Gardenscapes. I guess I’m happy for them and their eye-watering £12.5 billion fortune.

Past a metaverse guy and the founder of Candy Crush developer King, now the oft-forgotten third pillar of Activision Blizzard King, you’ll run into some rich guys more PC gamers will recognize: Dan and Sam Houser, who lay claim to an estimated £350 million fortune. Co-founders of the niche indie developer, Rockstar Games, their fortune was built on revenue from Rockstar’s breakout hits: The Warriors in 2005 and Bully in 2006. Those games’ runaway success have allowed Rockstar to indulge in less lucrative passion projects like Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption.

The biggest surprise, at least for me, is #6 on the list: Garry’s Mod’s titular creator, Garry Newman. I guess it shouldn’t be a shocker. Garry’s Mod is a ubiquitous presence in PC gaming, and despite the name, it’s a $10 standalone game. Newman’s Facepunch Studios is also behind the highly successful Rust, and his deep pockets have me much less worried about Newman’s imminent Skibidi Toilet-related legal battles.

There’s a lot to dig into with the 30-person list: PewDiePie is still rich as hell, believe it or not, and I definitely felt my heart warm at the sight of Luca Galante, founder of poncle and creator of Vampire Survivors, at #26. It’s a bit of a bummer and not exactly surprising that there are only three women on the list, but I don’t know if “more women in the UK games industry 1%” should become our next rallying cry for gender equality in the hobby. One thing we can all agree on though: The people I really like and admire on the list like Galante and Newman are just cool guys with talent who also got lucky, and the rest of them should be paying more taxes.

Related Posts

Spearhead Games is laying off the majority of its dev team

Canadian indie studio Spearhead Games is laying off the majority of its development team after struggling to secure funding. The company is also "indefinitely" halting development on…

Nintendo Switch 2 Preorders – Sign Up For Notifications At Best Buy

After months of leaks and rumors (and years of speculation), Nintendo finally revealed the Switch 2 on January 16 with a teaser video on YouTube. Naturally, fans…

After 25 Years, Netflix Is Sending Its Last By-Mail DVD This September

Netflix has announced the closure of its original DVD by mail business, DVD.com, marking the end of an era after a 25-year run. The decision comes as…

Andy Serkis Reveals When The Batman Part II Will Begin Filming

Aside from Joker: Folie à Deux, there will be no Batman-related films on the big screen for just over two years. The Batman – Part II was…

Best Buy Flash Sale – Check Out The Best Laptop, TV, And Gaming Deals

Sure, Amazon Prime Day Round 2 is grabbing all the sales headlines this week, but don’t count out other giants in the online retail therapy scene! Over…

For WoW's Next Expansion, Blizzard Must Learn From Shadowlands' Mistakes

Since its launch in 2004, World of Warcraft has been the undisputed king of the MMORPG genre. Its influence on gaming can be seen everywhere, from newly…