Clap Clap Games, a developer of hypercasual games, was created out of necessity after the founder lost his previous job unexpectedly. However, within just a few years, the studio has managed to generate millions of dollars in revenue.
At Kwalee’s Gamemasters Summit, Clap Clap Games CEO Gabriel Stürmer spoke about the early days of the developer behind popular hypercasual titles like Submarine Jump and Build Your Vehicle.
Before starting Clap Clap Games, Stürmer had worked at Dell in ecommerce and at Cupcake Entertainment as the chief marketing officer. However, after he was suddenly fired from his job, he was left without employment. Despite this setback, he still had a strong desire to work in the gaming industry and decided to start his own studio.
The early days were challenging, with a potential investor falling through and a planned collaboration with another developer failing to materialize. Stürmer, although experienced in marketing, lacked the knowledge and resources to develop a game.
Undeterred, he started learning Unity online and managed to create two games in just two to three weeks. He then pitched his game Submarine Jump to the UK publisher Kwalee, which not only got published but also laid the foundation for Clap Clap to grow further.
Despite initial hardships, Clap Clap Games has now developed numerous titles such as Submarine Jump, Build Your Vehicle, and Landlord Simulator. It has also partnered with leading publishers like Kwalee and Voodoo, resulting in over 30 million downloads and millions of dollars in revenue.
Stürmer explained that the success of their games published with Kwalee came from different origins. Submarine Jump, the first game developed by the studio, was picked up by Kwalee after Stürmer reached out to the publisher. On the other hand, Build Your Vehicle came from extensive prototyping, ultimately leading to a successful global release.
Landlord Simulator was a product of the team’s efforts to engage players for a longer time, marking a shift from their previous hypercasual hits.
“The fact we’ve been able to do it together multiple times, I think it’s a big plus,” Stürmer concluded.