“It has been an incredible, exciting journey. In 1997 we were clearly too early for the market, but we were so driven by the challenge and excitement of the games industry and becoming India’s first game developer. Our name, Dhruva, is the name of the north star, the star that shows the way we have strived to lead by example all these years, staying committed to Quality and Innovation in our work. After 10 years, the fire burns as strongly as ever. Today we renew our commitment to our vision of being India’s leading developer / publisher of games, at a time when the Indian market is just beginning to take off. It feels like we have only just begun!” exulted Dhruva Interactive, CEO, Rajesh Rao when he spoke to AnimationXpress on completing 10 years, back in 2007.
This week (15 March), Dhruva Interactive turned 20. Initiating with a team of only five people, the company was the first in the country to delve into the console section. Some of the initial titles for them were Project Gotham Racing 3 (X360), Battlefield: Modern Combat (X360), Forza Motorsport (Xbox), Asterix & Obelix XXL2: Mission Las Vegum (PS2). Forza has been one of the major franchises that the studio has worked on.
Rao is an integral part of the NASSCOM event, which is India’s biggest gaming conference. Last December, the company was acquired by Swedish game publisher, Starbreeze for $11 million. Dhruva has intensively worked on the art of Starbreeze’s IP, Payday 2.
The studio currently has three operating offices in the country, two in Bangalore and one in Dehradun and provides offerings in various areas and platforms of the gaming vertical.
With the studio still pushing forward towards more success, we wish them the very best on their future endeavours.