In the gaming industry, Indonesia is no less accomplished than other countries. In fact, many games from Indonesia have successfully entered the international market and made Indonesia proud in the eyes of the world. This success, of course, did not come just like that, there are names behind the scenes who have worked hard to make it happen. Here are ten figures who have contributed greatly to the success of Indonesian game publishers:

10 People Behind the Success of Indonesian Game Publishers

1. Arief Widhiyasa - CEO Agate International

Arief Widhiyasa, a creative figure in the game industry, has made brilliant achievements in his career. Leading Agate, a leading game company in Bandung, Arief has created inspiring stories that inspire many people.

In 2009, Agate was born from Arief's strong determination. At that time, Arief was still a student with big dreams. Although only relying on limited income, his determination is unshakable. By adopting the ATM method (observe, imitate, modify), Agate's journey is not always smooth.

However, over the next eight years, Arief explored the extraordinary potential that Indonesia has. The rich culture is a limitless source of inspiration for Agate. Arief sees opportunity in the diversity of Indonesia's people and cultural heritage. With perseverance and passion, Agate has succeeded in creating high-quality games that have captivated the global market.

Apart from entertainment, Arief sees the potential for using games in education and simulation. Arief Widhiyasa's profile describes the dedication and innovation that has brought him and Agate to the pinnacle of achievement on the international game stage.

2. Anton Soeharyo - CEO Touchten Games

Anton Soeharyo, CEO of Touchten, achieved success by designing games from a gift fund from his father, Rudy Haryo. Thanks to a donation of US$ 1,000 from his father, Anton bought an Apple laptop and software which was the start of his career.

With a Diploma from Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan, Anton created his first game, Sushi Chain. This game has been downloaded more than 3 million times by gamers around the world, as recorded on the official Touchten website.

Not only Sushi Chain, together with his younger brother, Rokimas Soeharyo, and his cousin, Dede Indrapurna, Anton designed Infinite Sky which was ranked "Top 10 Rank" on the iOS App Store in 43 countries.

They also produced a number of other successful games such as Ramen Chain, Cute Kill, Amazing Cupid, and Teka Teki Saku. Collaboration with the Dagelan humor account gave birth to the Smart Dagelan and Meticulous Dagelan games. In 2015, Touchten collaborated with 9GAG on the game Redhead Redemption.

3. Rachmad Imron - CEO Digital Happiness

Digital Happiness, a game developer in Bandung, Indonesia, was founded in 2013 after a journey since 2012. Founded by Rachmad Imron with his friends, namely Vadi Vanadi, Sukmadi, and Dwi Arif Irawan. It is the first game development company from Indonesia that has succeeded in obtaining international capital support.

Its flagship IP, DreadOut, was released as the first project and gained global popularity with over 1 million downloads. Rachmad Imron, the inspiration behind Digital Happiness, feels the need to present Indonesian culture in video games, especially the horror genre. With a focus on local ghosts, they create unique and authentic experiences.

Their achievements do not stop there. With capital support that exceeded the initial target of USD 29,000, Digital Happiness decided to develop the DreadOut IP. With a strong determination to make Indonesia a quality game producer, Digital Happiness proves that local innovation can attract the global market.

4. Kris Antoni - CEO Toge Productions

Kris Antoni is the main character behind the leading independent game development studio Toge Production from Indonesia. Toge Productions was founded by Kris in 2009 with Sudarmin Then, soon after Kris graduated in late 2008. At first, Kris started by making Flash games with a friend to earn some pocket money. Their initial work, Infectonator, was a huge hit. What started as a hobby soon grew into something more serious for those who had just graduated and were working from the bedroom.

Since 2009, they have created many games across various genres, from web games to mobile and desktop games. They are always experimenting with new game ideas and looking for new ways to have fun.

As an independent game studio, they have struggled developing, selling, and distributing their own games for years. They seek to help other indie game developers in the region by holding meetups and encouraging collaboration. In 2017, their indie publishing service was born, providing support in marketing, business, exhibition, distribution, and consulting so original developers can focus on game design and code.

5. Fahrurrozy Yasin - CEO Ozysoft Studio

Fahrurrozy Yasin, founder of Ozysoft Digital International, is a young leader in the game development industry. Based in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, Ozysoft Digital International accommodates young people from Tanah Grogot, Paser Regency, East Kalimantan. Ozysoft's journey began with an injection of funds from investors, which was used to develop their first game, "Pulang: Insanity".

Ozysoft is currently focusing on developing a new game, "Buramato", which tells the story of Kalimantan mythology, especially the Paser area in East Kalimantan. This inspiration arose from Fahrurrozy's interest in adventure games such as the Final Fantasy series from an early age. With passion and dedication, Fahrurrozy has turned his passion into an exciting game development company, creating unique experiences that embrace the rich local mythology and culture.

Also Read:

• The Best Indie Developers, These are the 5 Best Devolver Digital Games
• 5 Most Popular Games from Indonesian Studios on Steam
• 8 Awesome Indie Games from Malaysia

6. Riris Marpaung - Founder Gambreng Games

Riris Marpaung, founder of Gambreng Games, has created an influential footprint within the Indonesian game development community. Originally a campus librarian, Riris continued her role in the library after graduating from UI. However, fate brings her with Dodick Sudirman, an IT lecturer with the dream of setting up a game studio.

Working together on organizing various campus events, including game developer meetings, Riris and Dodick decided in 2013 to found Gambreng Games. By placing several students as team members, they took on their first project in the form of a mobile game, along with the development of smart phones in Indonesia.

One of Gambreng Games' early achievements was the "Prototype" game, which won the award for best game in the amateur category at the Indonesia Game Show 2013. Riris Marpaung has proven that the transformation from a librarian to a leader in the gaming industry is possible and can inspire many people in Indonesia.

7. Andi Suryanto - LYTO Game

Andi Suryanto started his journey from his hobby of playing games since his school days. After finishing college, with his sister and friends, he started a game company. At that time, online games were still foreign to Indonesia, but they saw great potential in an untouched market.

In 2003, they founded LYTO and released their first game, Ragnarok Online. Spreading the concept of online games that allow interaction while playing and talking with friends is the main challenge. However, their efforts succeeded in introducing this concept as a general term.

Since 2015, LYTO has stepped into the mobile game market with a global scope. In this journey, LYTO has released more than twenty game products for PC and mobile. LYTO membership has reached more than 25 million people in Indonesia and around the world, indicating Andi Suryanto's dedication in leading the LYTO Games to success and global recognition.

8. Adam Ardisasmita - CEO Arsanesia

Adam Ardisasmita is the CEO and co-founder of Arsanesia, a mobile game company founded in 2011 with the mission of bringing Indonesia's rich culture to the world. At Arsanesia, Adam has been involved in various game development projects as a product manager, producer, game designer, UX designer, and programmer. Since 2015, Arsanesia has had the Arsa Kids business unit which focuses on children's educational games. In 2021, they created Reality Chain, a blockchain-based metaverse.

Adam is committed to building an ecosystem for the game industry in Indonesia through the community. Currently, he is the Vice President of the Indonesian Game Association (AGI) and is active in the GameDevID community. He also plays a role in other communities such as GameDev Bandung, DepokMobi, and IF ITB Startup Community.

Graduated cum laude from ITB, Adam also teaches programming at Dicoding Academy. As Intel Innovator and Google Launchpad Week Jakarta 2015 mentor, he writes about technology and games on DailySocial, Dicoding, and his personal blog, ardisaz.com. Through his YouTube channel and Podcast, Adam is also dedicated to creating content about the Indonesian Game Industry.

9. Reza Febri Nanda - CEO Gamecom 

Reza Febri Nanda is a leader in Indonesian indie game developer, namely Gamecom. As the Game Director of "Troublemaker", a new action comedy game on PC, Reza has a central role in the Gamecom Team. The Gamecom team started when Reza was still in a vocational high school, majoring in software engineering. At that time, he invited a friend who is proficient in 3D design to form the "Gamecom" team. The team grows to seven people along with the interests of his friends. After graduation, they had to go their separate ways, but Reza promised to call them back in the future.

In an effort to build a career, Reza started working as a freelancer helping students, freelancers, and anyone in the internet area. These experiences build relationships and connectivity. A year later, he worked at MAENTRUS Digital Lab as a programmer until he became Chief Executive Officer. After leaving, he returned to his old team and founded Gamecom Team Studio.

10. Soma Putera - Founder Stairway Games

Finally, Soma Putera is one of the founders of Stairway Games, an independent game development company based in Yogyakarta. Together with Jeremy as co-founder, Stairway Games managed to create a glorious achievement through the game Coral Island.

Coral Island, the extraordinary work of the Staiway Games company, initially targeted funding of US$ 70,000 via Kickstarter or around IDR 1 billion. However, with broad support from various parties, this target was achieved in just 36 hours. The enthusiasm of prospective players to see this game finished made Coral Island exceed the funding target in the first phase, with a total funding of 23 billion within 2 months.

Soma Putera and the Stairway Games team made an impressive feat with their work, illustrating the capabilities and potential of the growing Indonesian game industry.

Those are some of the figures behind the success of the Indonesian game industry and the companies they lead. Of course there are many other figures who have contributed to the development of this creative industry.

Affordable top-ups and abundant benefits only‌ ‌on‌ ‌Dunia‌ ‌Games‌!

Also Read >> Local Pride! 7 Best Indonesian-Made Games in 2022!