Though a small country, Denmark has had a major impact on the global gaming market. The country is well known for providing a number of hugely popular games and software that are in use within the gaming, and gambling industry today.
Top Danish game developers
One of the most well-known, and popular game developers out of Denmark is, undeniably, IO Interactive. This developer is known for creating and launching the hugely popular Hitman series. Originally launched in 2000, the game has now seen a number of additional games added to the collection, with Hitman 3 released just in
2021. Players in the game are able to take on missions, go through problem-solving steps, and even implement strategies in an effort to succeed.
IO Interactive is not the only major developer to have come out of Denmark. Playdead Studies is an indie style game developer. Founded in 2006 by a team of gaming enthusiasts, the company started out by releasing Limbo and Inside. Limbo, takes things a little differently when it comes to gaming, having an eerie atmosphere and challenging puzzles in place. Inside builds upon this game, but provides more refined game mechanics and an emotional story to complement the gameplay throughout.
The last Danish studio on our list is Ghost Ship Games. The company is a relative newcomer, launching in 2016 under the guidance of six experienced game developers. Impressively, the studio created the first co-op first-person shooter game. In Deep Rock Galactic, players must work together to battle aliens and get resources from a spaceship. Subsequently, the engaging, teamwork-based gameplay proved hugely popular among gamers and critics alike.
Other cool software Danes have created
It's not just across the gaming industry where the Danish have flourished with their software and technology prowess. The country has made inroads in offering the online world a number of innovative software options that have been hugely influential across various sectors.
For instance, Unity Technologies, founded in 2004, has been an influential developer for various softwares. While it originally started out as Over the Edge Entertainment and released a game, it changed its name in 2007. Their initial game was critically panned. So, the company changed its focus. Instead, it released the
Unity Engine, which is a game development engine used throughout the world. The aim was to democratize game development making 2D and 3D game development more accessible. Many top games (think Pokemon Go), have been built using Unity showing that it really has succeeded.
Zendesk is another very successful Danish company which offers a cloud-based service. The company was founded in 2007 and aimed to help businesses improve support operations. This includes providing communication, data tracking and ticket management tools. It's already become a very popular options in the customer service industry and is fully scalable, meeting the needs of businesses of all sizes. Finally, when it comes to finding software protecting players for a period of time, the Danes are at the forefront here as well. There are various tools for helping or preventing problem gambling, but the Danish company, Mindway AI, has taken this to the next level. Using artificial intelligence, this program specifically detects problem behaviors in players. It monitors player activity, erratic spending, or long sessions spent gambling. When the software recognizes these patterns, it suggests appropriate steps including cooling-off periods, limiting game access and even offers resources for problem gamblers.
Final thoughts
Overall, the Danes are rather prolific when it comes to the gaming and software industries. There are many excellent software options all created, launched and powered by Danes covering various niche markets.
