Irish gaming start-up Entity has raised €5 million in a seed round that will help support the development of its next-generation gaming platform.
Due to launch in 2027, the platform will bring console quality games to modern browsers, eliminating the need for a separate gaming device. The company plans to launch with a broad range of games that span PC and console best-sellers, and original new games.
The round was led by venture capital firms ACT, Delta Partners and Elkstone, with support from Enterprise Ireland and games industry angel investors.
The Dublin-headquartered company comes with significant experience in the games industry. Founders Rich Barnwell, Kev Bergin, Dave McGovern, Fergus Duggan and Artur Stawiarski were behind Irish gaming company Digit, which was acquired by games company Scopely in 2019.
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Entity’s head of games, Paul Farley, founder of Firestoke, along with Tag Games and Chili Connect, which were acquired by Scopely and Unity respectively.
The company, which was set up in 2024, said it is using the breakthrough web technology to create the home of console-quality games for the “new web” era, with a “click and play” gaming experience that brings instant and social game play to a vast audience.
How many new homes does Ireland really need?
“The way games are made, discovered and played in the ‘new web’ era is fundamentally changing and these games will need a new home. For too long the industry has been shackled by friction-heavy downloads and arbitrary constraints,” Barnwell said.
“With Entity we are bringing the platform that the modern gamer needs: console-quality gaming experiences instantly accessible on whatever device they are using. With the backing of our new investors and an expert, supportive angel group, Entity delivers a new way to play and a new way to think about the games console experience”.
The new system will support developers using technology such as WebGPU, WebGL and WebAssembly, enabling direct access through the browser and removing the need for downloads or installs. Unlike cloud gaming, there is no remote servers to stream from, eliminating any lag.
