Bunch, an NYC startup that created an app to let users play games with friends virtually, announced Thursday it closed on a $20 million Series A round, which it will use to integrate more popular multiplayer games and grow its already ballooning user base.
In fact, Bunch claims its number of monthly active users has grown 50 times over since March. Plus, the company has seen a shift in who is using its app, expanding its core user base from Gen Z males to more Millennials and women.
While this kind of growth almost certainly has a correlation with the COVID-19 pandemic, Bunch co-founder and CEO Selçuk Atlı says the company’s growth is bigger than that. He sees the rise in popularity of Bunch and other similar party apps as a shift in cultural and social behavior, one that will stick around long after this pandemic is over.
“It shows that this kind of behavior is going mainstream. Before, a lot of people didn’t realize that they could actually do this kind of thing on their phone,” Atlı told Built In. “People are realizing that to have fun on a Friday night, you don’t have to drive all the way to your friend’s house to have a game night in person, you can do it on your phone or PC or whatever device you want. I think [the pandemic] is creating changes in user behavior that will basically be permanent changes in how people choose to spend time with their friends.”
What’s more, this funding round included investments from several prominent multiplayer game makers, including Ubisoft, Riot Games and PUBG creator Krafton. Atlı says not only is this level of industry support a testament to Bunch’s success and bright future, but it will also allow the company to expand the number of games it offers and keep the party going.
“What we’re really trying to do at Bunch is we’re trying to create a social space for friends to play games together across any platform and across any game,” Atlı said. “To make that work, there’s a chicken and an egg problem, you need a collaboration of a large part of the industry. I think this is a great step forward in that direction.”
Meanwhile, Bunch has also been growing internally, growing its headcount from 14 to 20 since March. Going forward, Atlı says the company is planning to expand the team more, but they will be doing it carefully to preserve the “lean and mean” organization it has become.
Right now Bunch has open positions for artists, engineers, developers and product designers in its NYC headquarters and office in Toronto.
