Nekonome raises ¥110M Series A to launch shogi game KIOU
What's the deal? Tokyo-based indie game studio NekonomeDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has raised ¥110M (~$750K) in a Series A round, bringing its total funding to ¥200M. The round was backed by three investors: EX Innovation Fund (backed by TV Asahi HD and run by Simplex Capital InvestmentDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →), Mitsubishi UFJ CapitalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, and SMBC Venture CapitalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →.
The funds will go towards developing and launching KIOU, a new shogi (Japanese chess) game set for release in June 2026, as well as global expansion of existing titles and hiring.
Why now? Nekonome has built momentum with its flagship title, the Mythologia series — a fast-paced psychological card game featuring a proprietary "simultaneous turn" system. The game hit 200,000 downloads with zero marketing spend, reached No. 1 on the App Store's free card game rankings, and appeared at Tokyo Game Show in both 2024 and 2025.
KIOU blends character-driven storytelling with competitive shogi gameplay, targeting everyone from beginners to ranked players. It features voice acting, a character affinity system, and a Japanese fantasy aesthetic — an attempt to make shogi more accessible and appealing to a global audience.
What could go wrong? The mobile gaming market is brutally competitive. Building a hit title requires not just strong game design but also significant marketing spend — something Nekonome has avoided so far. Scaling globally with a game rooted in a niche Japanese board game is a tall order, especially against well-funded competitors.
The modest funding total also raises questions about runway. At ¥200M in cumulative capital, Nekonome has far less firepower than most studios attempting international launches.
The signal: Nekonome's investor mix — a media-backed corporate fund (EX Innovation Fund, with TV Asahi HD as LP) alongside two of Japan's largest banking-group venture arms in Mitsubishi UFJ Capital and SMBC Venture Capital — suggests a deliberate bet on IP that can extend beyond gaming into broader media and content. For an early-growth indie studio, securing institutional backers of that calibre on a modest round points to strong conviction in the team's user-research-driven model and the cross-media potential of culturally rooted game IP.
Read more: prtimes.jp
