A startup video game company is considering moving to Fort Worth — and the city wants to offer $1.5 million in incentives to lure it to the area and create a new office.
ProbablyMonsters Inc. is a startup video game company founded by Harold Ryan, former president and CEO of Bungie, Inc.
Fort Worth City Council is expected to vote on the incentive package, which includes $1.5 million over five years, to the company, on March 21. The agreement would require ProbablyMonsters to bring 300 jobs with an average salary of $75,000 in five years, according to the agreement proposal.
The agreement would also require 30% of hires to be from Fort Worth. If the company accepts the agreement and moves to Fort Worth, it would work in a temporary office located at 210 8th St. in downtown by June 1. ProbablyMonsters Inc. would later have to lease a minimum of 30,000 square feet of space by the end of 2024.
ProbablyMonsters, headquartered in Bellevue, Washington, is home to Firewalk Studios, which is creating an online multiplayer game. Two other studios in the company are developing an adventure game and a cooperative roleplaying game.
Many of the company’s investors are in Fort Worth.
Last April, the company raised $250 million in its series A fundraising round, led by Fort Worth-based Luther King Capital Management Headwater Investments, which sits on the company’s board.
John Goff, founder and chairman of Goff Capital and Crescent Real Estate and Jerry Jones, owner and president of the Dallas Cowboys, led ProbablyMonsters’ $18.8 million seed round funding.
One reason the company might be considering the new office is because of the proximity to Texas A&M’s new campus. At the Real Estate Council of Greater Fort Worth’s Forecast event, Goff said the new campus would be a game-changer and mentioned two corporate relocations in the works – one of which he alluded to was in the Northwest.
“The reason is because the university creates software engineers that they need, and they have a very tough time accessing that talent,” Goff said at the real estate event.
City Council is also considering a seven-year tax break of up to $2 million for work clothes manufacturer Carhartt Inc. to build a distribution center in Fort Worth. Fort Worth City Council also approved $7 million in tax credits for an aerospace company to move a technology center to the city.
Editor’s note: This article has been updated to correctly show details of the deal, including salary requirements and the company’s fundraising. It has also been updated to clarify the company might be opening another office in Fort Worth, outside its headquarters in Bellevue, Washington.
Seth Bodine is a business and economic development reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at seth.bodine@fortworthreport.org and follow him on Twitter at @sbodine120.
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