Side acquires Roboto Entertainment and opens a studio in Chengdu

Your daily brief on leadership and business

Side, a provider of development and services for the video game industry, announced on October 21, 2026, that it has acquired Roboto Entertainment, a boutique games art studio based in Chengdu, China. The company said the deal strengthens its global art capabilities and its presence in mainland China. As part of the transaction, Side is establishing a new studio in Chengdu.

New role for the founder

Andrea Cordella, who founded Roboto Entertainment in 2014, has been appointed Side's Global Head of Art and will also serve as studio head for the Chengdu site. Roboto Entertainment specializes in environment and world-building art, and its team has worked on AAA and AA releases for console and mobile platforms. The Chengdu team will work closely with Side Shanghai and with the company's wider network of art and co-development teams across the Americas, EMEA and Asia. Cordella said he saw from his first meeting with Side's team that the company shared the values held by him and his staff.

Side chief executive Deborah Kirkham linked the deal to the company's focus on China, noting that half of the titles shown at gamescom's Opening Night Live this year were made in the country. "This acquisition is a double-down on a winning regional strategy," Kirkham said. According to the announcement, the Chinese games market is expected to grow by 4% in 2026 and reach $59.8 billion by 2030, while the industry globally has reported a slowdown in recent years.

Wider service offering

Side was founded in 2009 in Japan and operates more than 15 studios in over a dozen countries. Its services include player support, quality assurance, localization, localization QA, datasets, co-development, art and audio, and it already offers the full range to developers based in China. Earlier this year, at gamescom, the company announced a partnership with AI quality assurance platform Modl.ai to expand its QA offering. Side said the new Chengdu studio and the added environment art expertise will allow it to offer more services to developers in China and in other markets. Teppei Tachibana, chairman of Side and president and CEO of Pole To Win Holdings, took part in the announcement of the Chengdu studio.

Source: Side Acquires Boutique Art Studio Roboto Entertainment in Creative Services Push