Redemption Games
Carlsbad, US · Founded 2015 · 17 employees on LinkedIn · 6 known investors
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Redemption Games is a mobile game studio that creates free-to-play (FTP) games, combining artistry and design with research and data. It targets mobile game players.
Also known as Redemption Games, Inc.
Founders & leadership
Redemption Games was founded in 2015 by Michael Witz and Dan Lin.
Investors · 6
Also in the syndicate · 2
Funding
SEC filings, press & company announcements$7M disclosed across 1 round · 2023
- $7Mseed roundMar 2023 · 2 sources
Play Ventures (lead), Bitkraft, Merit Circle DAO, Orange DAO, Supercell
Source ↗
Source: company announcements and press reports — follow each round's link for the claim.
Company profile
researched Aug 2026Redemption Games, Inc. is an independent mobile game studio based in Carlsbad, California, operating in the computer games industry. The studio creates free-to-play (FTP) mobile titles, focused on colorful match-three and puzzle games, and describes its approach as blending artistry and design with research and data in order to produce games with broad market potential.
Its principal published title is Sweet Escapes, a match-three puzzle game released in July 2019 in which players build a city and bakery, bake sweets and progress alongside animal characters. The game is free to download, with optional in-game purchases. The company's site also indicates additional games in development.
The studio operates as a small team of artists, designers, writers and engineers, describing a culture centered on autonomy, collaboration, personal accountability and work/life balance, and recruits on an opportunistic basis for roles it has not formally defined.
Founding story
Redemption Games was founded in the summer of 2015 in Carlsbad, California by industry veterans and friends Michael Witz and Dan Lin, whose prior credits include Cookie Jam, on the principle of combining artistry and design with research and data.
Business model
Redemption Games develops and operates free-to-play mobile games that are downloadable at no cost, with revenue generated from optional in-game item purchases that players can use to boost gameplay and which can be disabled through device restrictions settings.
Revenue comes from in-app purchases within otherwise free-to-play mobile games. A third-party data provider estimated annual revenue in the $25M-$50M range as of July 2026.
Traction
Sweet Escapes launched in July 2019 and was described by the company as the fastest-growing puzzle game in the app store. A third-party data provider estimated approximately 18 employees and $25M-$50M annual revenue as of July 2026.
Latest developments
In May 2020, AppLovin announced a strategic investment in Redemption Games, following a $5 million investment from Supercell reported in 2018. The company's site lists additional titles as coming soon.
▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, geography, history, risks & controversies
Market position
Redemption Games is a small independent studio in the highly competitive mobile games market, with investment from established industry players Supercell and AppLovin, and a commercially successful puzzle title in Sweet Escapes. Companies listed as similar include Zynga, Big Fish Games, Gameloft, King, Kabam, Scopely, Playtika and Glu Mobile.
The studio positions itself as a lean, nimble team of industry veterans that combines art and design craft with research and data analysis, and operates with a small-studio culture emphasizing autonomy and efficiency while drawing on the resources of established backers.
Technology
The company's web presence uses tools including WP Rocket, Open Graph, JSON-LD, Priority Hints, HSTS, Google Tag Manager, X-Content-Type-Options and Google Analytics. Its game development approach emphasizes data and research alongside design.
Go-to-market
Games are distributed as free-to-play downloads through mobile app stores, monetized through in-app purchases, and supported by marketing, user acquisition and live-operations capabilities.
Mobile players of casual match-three and puzzle games.
Geography
The company is headquartered in Carlsbad, California, United States.
History
The studio was founded in the summer of 2015 in Carlsbad, California by Michael Witz and Dan Lin. It received a $5 million investment from Supercell reported in June 2018, released Sweet Escapes in July 2019, and received a strategic investment from AppLovin announced in May 2020.
Risks & controversies
The company acknowledges that the mobile games market is highly competitive, requiring strength across design, marketing and live operations.
Compiled by commissioned research from 8 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
Founder mafia
The Redemption Games mafia →6 people who came through Redemption Games went on to found or lead other companies.
Timeline · 3
launches, deals, and filingsAppLovin announced a strategic investment in Redemption Games.
Redemption Games launched Sweet Escapes, a free-to-play mobile match-three/puzzle game, in July 2019; the company said it became the fastest-growing puzzle game in the app store.
Finland-based Supercell invested $5 million in the Carlsbad-based studio.
$5M source ↗
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
In the news
▸Research sources · 8
primary sources listed
- Redemption Gamesredemptiongames.com · web
8 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Redemption Games do?
- Carlsbad, California studio making free-to-play mobile match-three puzzle games, best known for Sweet Escapes.
- Who founded Redemption Games?
- Redemption Games was founded by Michael Witz, Dan Lin in 2015.
- Who are Redemption Games's investors?
- Redemption Games's investors include Bitkraft Esports Ventures, Play Ventures, Orange DAO, Supercell.
- How much funding has Redemption Games raised?
- Redemption Games has disclosed $7M raised across 1 round.
- Where is Redemption Games headquartered?
- Redemption Games is headquartered in Carlsbad, US.