Barcelona-based Cheer Games raises $4.5M pre-seed to build franchise-oriented mobile puzzles

Cheer Games has raised $4.5 million in its pre-seed round, the Barcelona-based mobile puzzle studio announced on March 5. The financing is led by Makers Fund with participation from Play Ventures and unnamed angel backers, and the company says the cash will accelerate development of its upcoming slate of games and expand its Barcelona headquarters with new global talent.

The studio was founded by former senior leaders at AppLovin’s Lion Studios and the creators behind Hexa Sort, giving Cheer a pedigree tied directly to a known mobile puzzle product. Cheer employs an 11-person team and, according to the company statement, is actively hiring as it moves from formation to product development and hiring scale-up.

A company representative identified only as Gercel framed the studio’s mission in franchise terms, saying: “We started Cheer because we believed we could build something more durable than the industry's short‑term thinking allows for. To build games that become franchises and studios that become institutions. Barcelona gives us the global stage, our Turkish roots give us the hunger, and this team gives me complete confidence that we'll deliver.” That emphasis on long-term IP suggests Cheer intends to design repeatable mechanics and brand hooks rather than single-release hits.

Cheer’s stated use of proceeds focuses on two concrete items: speeding work on a slate of mobile puzzle titles and expanding the Barcelona HQ to recruit global talent. The founders’ background at Lion Studios and the creators’ link to Hexa Sort are the only product metrics supplied so far; the company has not disclosed a tranche-by-tranche spending breakdown, target headcount after hiring, or release dates for individual titles.

Investors backing the round include Makers Fund as lead and Play Ventures as a participant, with additional unnamed angel backers. The funding comes amid visible activity in the mobile funding space — GamesIndustry.biz noted a related report that Turkish developer Vento Games raised $4 million in a seed round the day prior — reinforcing momentum for small studios with established mobile pedigrees.

With $4.5 million in the bank and an 11-person core, Cheer’s immediate runway will be judged on hires and early prototypes. The company’s plan to expand its Barcelona headquarters and recruit global talent ties directly to its stated goal of building franchise-oriented puzzles, and March 5 will be the marker investors and competitors use to measure how quickly Cheer converts that ambition into released titles.