Press Releases
UK Game Developer Kwalee Pledging Profits From Hit Title ‘Teacher Simulator’ to Help Tackle Child Food Poverty

With UK schools shut once again, profits from classroom-based mobile game will support the country’s most vulnerable children
This move was inspired by the campaigning of Marcus Rashford MBE, who is an Ambassador for FareShare, on the issue of free school meals. With Teacher Simulator riding high in the mobile game charts, offering lighthearted gameplay in a classroom setting, this felt like the perfect opportunity for Kwalee to contribute to the cause.
Launched towards the end of 2020 on iOS and Android devices, Teacher Simulator is completely free to download and has already reached more than 6.5 million players worldwide, becoming a top-3 game on the Apple App Store in the UK and US. On the UK Google Play Store, Teacher Simulator has gone one further by ranking at #2 in the Games category. This highlights how much the game resonated with the mobile gaming public, at a time when real-life classrooms have been closed in many parts of the world.
“Teacher Simulator was partly inspired by our own experiences at school, from the mundane to the bizarre,” commented Simon Platt, Head of Development at Kwalee. “These were largely fond memories for us, fortunately, but no child should have to worry about where their next meal is coming from when they should be learning and playing, whether in or out of the classroom.”
David Darling CBE, CEO of Kwalee, added: “We’re huge admirers of Marcus Rashford’s campaigning and strongly believe in the work done by FareShare. Now more than ever, as the country enters another testing lockdown, no child should have to go hungry. With Teacher Simulator having been such a success for its cheerful depiction of school life, we want to do our bit to support those for whom that is not necessarily the reality – especially with the added strain of remote schooling on kids and families.”
Darling – co-founder and former CEO of Codemasters, a company recently the subject of a $1.2 billion acquisition by gaming giant EA – has been making games professionally since he was a teenager. He was awarded a CBE in 2008 for services to the computer games industry and was more recently given the ‘Outstanding Leadership Award’ at the 2020 TIGA Awards.
He now runs Kwalee, which has recently surpassed 100 employees and recorded well over half a billion game downloads across its catalogue. Officially Britain’s biggest developer and publisher of hyper-casual mobile games – yet another success story to emerge from Leamington Spa, the town known widely as ‘Silicon Spa’ for its thriving games industry – Kwalee has been a prominent supporter of charities in the past, most notably of the gaming accessibility charity SpecialEffect.
FareShare has welcomed the support as it continues its appeal for donations. “After a year where understanding the importance of school-aged children receiving nutritious food has come under the spotlight, we are extremely grateful to Kwalee for donating 100% of UK profits from their Teacher Simulator game as children return to remote schooling,” said FareShare Commercial Director Alyson Walsh. “FareShare’s work with Breakfast, After School and Holiday Clubs each year help vulnerable children access the food they need to learn, grow and thrive.”
To learn more about the great work done by FareShare and to find details on how to donate directly, you’re encouraged to check out their website.
Kwalee is always looking for new developers to collaborate with and new games to publish, and developers can find out more information here: There are also more than 50 vacancies available at Kwalee across the UK, India, China and even remote opportunities, which you can learn more about here.
Gaming
ALTAIR BREAKER Launches Globally on Steam and Meta Quest Store

Test your sword-wielding skills in this fantasy adventure VR action game
Thirdverse, Inc. today launched the VR sword-fighting actual game ALTAIR BREAKER for the Meta Quest 2, Oculus Rift and Valve Index. Players can test their sword-wielding skills, team up with three friends and battle against AI creatures in an expansive fantasy world. ALTAIR BREAKER will be available for purchase starting today at 10:00AM PDT, at a set price of $24.99 on Steam and Meta Quest Store.
Teruyuki Toriyama, Producer at Thirdverse, said: “ALTAIR BREAKER was developed by combining the VR game development know-how gained by the young game creators of “Swords of Gargantua” with more advanced consumer action game techniques. The idea was to create a new VR sword-fighting action game that can be easily enjoyed by users who are new to VR games, rather than the realistic sword-fighting simulators often seen in VR. The setting of this work is a virtual world called “ALTAIR,” an abandoned island in the void ruled by an experimental combat AI. The worldview incorporates elements typical of Japanese fantasy anime, such as mecha and fantasy, as its main theme. Players can easily experience sword-fighting action that transcends reality, just like a hero in such a world in VR. We hope you will enjoy the high-speed VR multiplayer sword-fighting action that is unique to this title. We will also continue to collect everyone’s feedback in order to deliver more and more content that our users can enjoy.”
To commemorate the release of ALTAIR BREAKER, ongoing campaigns will be open for everyone to participate in and have a chance to win a Meta Quest 2 headset and an Amazon Gift Card of the value of $300, as well as livestream on Twitch on selected channels with our partner creators.
Key Features in ALTAIR BREAKER:
- Transcendent VR Sword-Fighting: Designed with casual players in mind, ALTAIR BREAKER brings a “new generation of VR sword-fighting action” to the VR world featuring high-speed sword-fighting action, blow-ups, aerial combos, and wide-range attacks with special moves.
- Unique Battle System:Move from map to map while enjoying the feeling of transcendent sword fighting. Take advantage of your surroundings by climbing and gliding to easily take on enemies.
- Experience a wide range of attacks only possible in the VR world, like Shockwaves and Surge Mode.
- Expansive World of ALTAIR: The game takes place in an aerial city ALTAIR, where AI was created to develop singularity-like creatures. Once a group of islands in a sea of clouds, most of the islands have collapsed and only floating ruins remain, which are inhabited by LAWS, the experimental battle AIs left behind and free to wander around.
- Freedom of Movement: Glide through the air using your glider or climb the walls of a fortress as movement is possible in all directions in VR space. The entire map is your battlefield!
- Cross-Platform Four-Player Co-Op: Multiplayer gameplay between Meta Quest 2 and PCVR, leaving players free to be matched with players from all over the world and communicate via voice chat.
Baltics
PopOK Gaming Has Received a Certificate for Latvia

The innovative iGaming developer PopOK Gaming is now certified for Latvia.
Further expanding the scope of its activities, PopOK Gaming also reaches Latvia. 18 of the most beloved games from our portfolio, namely Yummy, Lost Treasure, Diamond Flash, 20 Hot Bar, Sultan’s Tale, Los Apaches, Lucky Jungle and the like, as well as the 4-level Progressive Jackpot are now available for locals to try and delight in the fun environment our games will definitely create. This approval is yet another proof of continual momentum PopOK Gaming has been enjoying, opening new doors for our partners to grow their business and powerfully contributing to their revenue streams.
PopOK Gaming Product Manager, Tsovinar Elchyan, said: “This achievement is another important step forward for PopOK Gaming and an impetus for continuous improvements. After receiving the green light to provide our games in Latvia, we are keen on ensuring a remarkable gaming experience for local players and establishing long-term partnerships with our partners.”
PopOK Gaming belongs to Soft Construct (Malta) Limited that holds II Class licence (2239) granted by GLI (Gaming Laboratories International).
Latest News
Fiona Davies Joins Global Digital Identity Verification Provider OCR Labs Global As Head of Gaming

OCR Labs Global, a world leader in digital ID verification, has appointed Fiona Davies as Head of Gaming to lead their strategy of focusing on improving the verification experience and fraud prevention in this vertical. Davies joins with over 15 years of experience across startups through leading commercial teams in large corporations and over seven years of extensive knowledge of the Know Your Customer (KYC), Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Identity Verification (IDV) landscape.
OCR Labs Global solves major challenges, including identity fraud and regulatory compliance, using its proprietary technology. With unrivaled identity document coverage and industry leading biometric technology there is a huge opportunity to improve onboarding in the gambling industry.
During her time at Acuris Risk Intelligence, Davies was responsible for the Gambling and Sales divisions, where she gained extensive knowledge of the landscape surrounding regulated markets and insights into making these processes more efficient. Before this role, she spent 10 years as Commercial Director for global B2B events, driving launch events at the EMAP in South America and supporting high-growth tech companies such as Google and Intel to win commercial traction in emerging markets.
Fiona Davies, newly appointed Head of Gaming for OCR Labs Global, comments: “My first introduction to Gambling was at ICE, where I was instantly fascinated by this high-growth vertical and its complexity from a regulatory standpoint. I am passionate about working with clients and offering them real solutions that will add value across the board.
Davies continued, “I am excited to build out the Gambling division at OCR Labs Global offering operators products that underpin this strict regulatory environment whilst not impinging on user experience. With such a stand-out product offering, joining them was an easy decision to make. I plan to be a real evangelist and work with operators, platforms and partners to introduce improvements that make a real difference to the verification experience, the bottom line and fraud prevention.”
“With a 100 percent automated product that helps onboard players faster and at the same time stops fraud, I know it is the right time to get passionate about making real improvements in the Gambling industry.”
Russ Cohn, General Manager International for OCR Labs Global, added, “OCR Labs Global is committed to bringing our technology to Gambling operators and their users worldwide. We are a real force multiplier for the industry, with our fully automated and user friendly and reliable ID verification process dramatically speeding up user onboarding. We welcome Fiona’s industry experience and ability to leverage our solution and elevate our efforts in Gambling. We are confident that her expertise will support global operators to take advantage of this excellent growth opportunity.”
OCR Labs Global is already supporting clients across many industries, including governments, crypto and a variety of platform-based businesses, such as SaaS providers. Customers include Cognito, HSBC, Reed, Coinmetro and many other customers and partners.
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