Structures of Boris Rotenberg intend to replace video games NHL and FIFA

As Kommersant found out, the structures of Boris Rotenberg, following the development of a racing simulator for e-sports, intend to release football and hockey simulators, replacing the popular foreign video games NHL and FIFA. Experts believe that the project will be in demand among the organizers of major eSports tournaments in the Russian Federation, but not among ordinary users.

SMP ESports (SMP Digital Sport LLC), owned by Boris Rotenberg, intends to “start developing” football and hockey simulators within three years, Georgy Gnutov, CEO of the company, told Kommersant about this: “Our main goal is to create a development team that will not be limited to specific sports, but will be able to create any games based on the domestic engine.”

A Kommersant source familiar with the situation says that the investments of SMP ESports in development at the first stage may amount to about 300 million rubles.

The interlocutor of Kommersant, close to the project, added that in the future, the SMP ESports “intends to replace foreign sports simulators.” The most popular of these are FIFA and NHL developed by EA Sports.

According to SPARK-Interfax, SMP Digital Sport LLC was established on July 14 with an authorized capital of 10 thousand rubles, 100% of the company belongs to Boris Rotenberg. Its other structure, ANO SMP Racing, is developing a racing simulator (see “Kommersant” dated April 4). At the end of May, at an exhibition in the Zotov center, the company already presented the simulator to Vladimir Putin.

In the spring, SMP Racing showed interest in participating in the organization of the Games of the Future (a Russian e-sports tournament that will be held in Kazan for the first time in February 2024, the project is supervised by Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko) and even then, as it turned out, there were other disciplines in the plans . “The existing experience allows us to adapt the existing knowledge and infrastructure for organizing and holding online championships in a number of disciplines: cyberfootball, cyberbasketball, virtual hockey,” Boris Rotenberg wrote in an address to Dmitry Chernyshenko dated March 29 (Kommersant has a copy). The businessman suggested to the Deputy Prime Minister “to consider the possibility of appointing SMP Racing as a key partner in the phygital disciplines within the Games of the Future.”

Dmitry Chernyshenko’s office said that they “ardently support” the initiatives of Russian developers to develop their own games and simulators: “This is a long process, but we hope that domestic developments will soon enter the market and will be appreciated by Russian and foreign gamers.”

In the summer at SPIEF, SMP Racing and Games of the Future signed a strategic partnership contract (see “Kommersant” dated June 15). “In addition to organizing esports championships as part of the Games of the Future, the company is focusing on VK Play as a priority platform for distributing its games,” Mr. Gnutov added. VK Play told Kommersant that any developer can place their project on their site.

Vasily Ovchinnikov, CEO of the Organization for the Development of the Video Game Industry, says that if the simulators are really developed, they have the prospect of becoming sports equipment for the Games of the Future, with the organizers of which the developer will be able to conclude a licensing contract for the use of the product. “But in the future, the success of the project will be tied to this tournament: the Games of the Future will take off – there will be an audience, and if not, then the simulators may not find users.”

The development of sports simulators, where teams and players are represented, involves the conclusion of licensing agreements with sports clubs. Abroad, Russian structures will clearly not be able to do this now, therefore, most likely, only domestic teams will be represented in the games, a Kommersant source in a large game distributor emphasizes, allowing agreements with structures from “friendly countries”. The cost of development is 300 million rubles. he calls insufficient, noting that in the world “budgets for such projects start at $ 5 million.”

Kommersant’s interlocutor, however, in any case doubts the prospects of such projects in the B2C segment, that is, among a wide audience: “NHL and similar simulators are niche products in Russia.” However, other participants in the gaming market clarify that VK Play can support the promotion of the project, which “is in a situation where partnership with any developers will be beneficial: there are few high-quality products on the site now, and it needs to fill the store with content by any means.”

Nikita Korolev, Timofey Kornev