Sumo was founded in 2003 and quickly established itself as a reliable and collaborative development partner for premier games publishers around the world.

As our experience grew, so did our versatility. We quickly became a multi-project, multi-genre solution provider, developing award-winning titles for every gaming platform.

Sumo Digital was originally set up as a ‘work for hire’ games developer, working alongside developers and publishers for certain sections of a game’s production. Successful delivery of co-development projects enhanced the company’s experience of franchise IP, enabling us to eventually take responsibility for full turnkey projects.

2003

  • Carl Cavers, James North-Hearn, Paul Porter, and Darren Mills founded Sumo Digital 

 


2004

  • Sumo Digital develops the classic arcade-inspired ‘Outrun 2’ for Xbox

2007

  • A second studio is opened in Pune, India – Sumo Videogames Pvt
  • Sumo Digital becomes part of Foundation9 Entertainment, an American media company

2012

  • Sumo Digital develops ‘Sonic & All-Stars Racing: Transformed’ for SEGA 

2014

  • Carl, Paul, Darren and Chris Stockwell led a management buyout, backed by NorthEdge Capital 
  • Platform-adventure ‘LittleBigPlanet 3’, developed for Sony, is released in November

2015

  • TIGA awards Sumo Digital the UK Heritage Award
  • Sumo Digital is announced as working with IO Interactive
  • 'LittleBigPlanet 3' is awarded DICE's Best Family Game

 


2016

  • Sumo’s second UK studio, Sumo Nottingham, is founded 
  • Sumo Digital is awarded TIGA’s Best Large Independent Studio 
  • A secondary buyout was completed to bring on Perwyn LLP 
  • Sumo Digital work with partners IO Interactive on ‘Hitman’ 

2017

  • Sumo Digital acquires Atomhawk, a premium digital art and design agency in Newcastle
  • Sumo Digital’s first own-IP puzzle platformer game, ‘Snake Pass’, developed from an internal Game Jam competition, is released 
  • Sumo Group plc is formed in December, and joins the AIM LSE on 21 December 2017 

2018

  • The CCP Newcastle Studio responsible for Valkyrie VR becomes part of Sumo Digital as Sumo Newcastle
  • Brighton-based studio and BAFTA award winning The Chinese Room is acquired and joins Sumo Digital in August 
  • Atomhawk opens the doors of a second studio in Vancouver, Canada
  • Working with Microsoft Studio’s Playground Games, Sumo Digital completes work on ‘Forza Horizon 4’, released in September
  • Sumo Digital works once again with partners IO Interactive on ‘Hitman 2’, released in November

2019

  • In January, Red Kite Games is acquired and joins Sumo 
  • Mobile game and games as a service development studio Sumo Leamington opens in April 
  • Atomhawk create concept art for NetherRealm Studios ‘Mortal Kombat 11’, released in April 
  • ‘Team Sonic Racing’, developed for SEGA, is released 
  • Tech-focused Sumo Warrington opens in October 
  • Sumo Digital is awarded TIGA's Best Independent Studio 
  • Red Kite Games wins GI.Biz Best Places to Work award for Best Small Studio 
  • Atomhawk works with Microsoft on announcement for AR experience ‘Minecraft Earth’ 

2020

  • Sumo Digital’s second own-IP game, ‘Spyder’, is released exclusively for Apple Arcade 
  • Sumo Academy, a talent development programme, is launched, designed to create new pathways into the industry 
  • Atomhawk work with publisher 2K to create concept art and motion graphics for ‘XCOM: Chimera Squad’, released in April 
  • Lab42 are acquired in May and welcomed to Sumo Group 
  • Sumo Digital wins MCV/DEVELOP’s External Development Partner of the Year award 
  • Sumo Sheffield release 'Sackboy: A Big Adventure' as a launch title for the PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4.

2021

  • PixelAnt, based in Wroclaw, Poland, join Sumo Digital expanding the Group's international presence. Founded in 2020, and under the leadership of Pawel Rohleder and Adam Lasoń
    the studio is a leader in work-for-hire, co-development, and original IP projects across current and next-gen platforms.
  • Sumo Group announce the launch of Secret Mode; a publishing division for own-IP and independent developers. 
  • Sumo Sheffield's Sackboy: A Big Adventure gains two BAFTAs for Family Game and British Game.
  • Sumo Group are awarded position 59 in the Best Companies Top100 to go alongside their 3-star award from the B'Heard Survey.
  • The Group expands with Timbre Games in Vancouver, British Columbia. The new studio is led by Joe Nickolls with co-founders Zoë Curnoe and Geoff Coates.
  • Sumo Group announces the acquisition of Auroch Digital, a Bristol-based videogame developer and publisher with a focus on original IP creation. Founded by Tomas and Debbie Rawlings in 2010, Auroch Digital has a track record for developing innovative, high-quality titles, including Mars Horizon, the strategy management game launched on Steam, Switch, Xbox, and PS4 in November 2020.
  • Sumo Digital opens a new studio Sumo Bangalore. The new studio will play a key part in the co-development of multiple AAA console titles. The Bangalore studio are looking for experts across all disciplines to join them, with a core focus on Engineering and Art resource.

2022

 

  • In January 2022,  Sumo Group is successfully acquired by Tencent, one of the world’s largest video games businesses. Working with Tencent, will enable Sumo Group to accelerate its business strategy, presenting opportunities to fast-track our Own-IP ambitions, help us to continue to attract and retain even more talented people, boost our positioning as the go-to partner for turnkey and co-dev projects and support further growth by acquisition.

2023

 

  • In June 2023 Sumo Group celebrated 20 years of creating great games.
  • In September 2023 Sumo Group announced the acquisition of Midoki. The studio, based in Leamington Spa, is focused on creating ground-breaking, social games with rich experiences on mobile. Midoki will join the Sumo Digital family of studios, Sumo Group’s largest operating business, strengthening its capability in original, free-to-play and games-as-service development in the mobile space.