Plug In Digital

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Plug In Digital is a French video game publisher and distributor. They were founded in 2012 and established two subsidiaries since then: Dear Villagers (formerly Playdius), who publish mid-market games for personal computers and consoles, and PID Games, who publish games of all varieties.

Contents

History

Francis Ingrand founded Plug In Digital in 2012 in Paris. Seven years later, they relocated to Montpellier. They initially focused on assisting studios and video game publishers with digital distribution. [1] They handle sales, marketing, and other distribution issues. [2] They expanded into China in 2019. [3] They acquired Black Shell Media's publishing operations in 2021 and took over their contracts. [4] They announced an NFT program in 2022 but canceled it due to a backlash. [5] In 2023, they acquired game development studio Celsius Online. [6]

Subsidiaries

In 2017, Plug In Digital established Playdius, a subsidiary specializing in publishing independent video games for personal computers, mobile devices, and game consoles. [7] Playdius was renamed to Dear Villagers in 2019, citing a desire to better communicate their focus on the core and hardcore demographics. [8] As part of this rebranding, Dear Villagers refocused on PC and consoles, though they said they may publish mobile ports of existing games. [9] New mobile games are published directly by Plug In Digital instead. Games published by Dear Villagers aim for an AA (mid-market) budget. [10] Hardcore Gamer described games published by Dear Villagers as having gameplay that is easy to learn but hard to master. [11]

PID Games was established in 2020. According to the brand manager, they have "no rules" and focus entirely on publishing any interesting video games, regardless of genre, nationality, or platform. Compared to Dear Villagers, they're open to such projects as publishing a new developer's first game or inexpensive mobile games. [12]

Games published

Plug In Digital

Dear Villagers

PID Games

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References

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