Blade Games World Inc., a new company formed from venture-backed Digini and Vyk Games, has raised $4 million led by California Technology Ventures.

The two start-ups merged last month in a deal whose financial terms were not disclosed.

Digini, founded in 2004, provides tools for game developers to build their games quicker and cheaper, while Vyk Games, which was backed by China Seed Ventures, provides outsourced creative development work for game developers. Digini raised unspecified Series A financing in September 2008 from California Technology Ventures.

Tony Garcia, former chief executive of Digini and the new CEO of Blade Games, said the merger made sense because the two companies are complementary. He also said he had natural chemistry with Vyk because Garcia had previously worked with Tom Sperry, formerly CEO of Vyk Games and the new president of Blade Games, when the two were at Microsoft Corp.

"The connection was really obvious from the get-go that we could start talking about doing work together," Garcia said.

The two companies have similar customers but different areas of focus that can grow with the merger. For example, Vyk can sell Blade's tools to its customers in China , while Blade can now sell Vyk's outsourcing services in the U.S.

Garcia declined to discuss terms of the merger but said it was a straight merger.

The company now has three lines of business: the Blade3D platform, a tool for individuals as well as companies to create video games; a Blade marketplace for people or companies to sell game "assets" to other game developers; and the services business, formerly of Vyk, for outsourcing game development.


Blade is now offering an end-to-end service to both small and large developers, Garcia said.

"We're looking to cast a broader net than the traditional game engine companies," Garcia said. "For $ 14.95 a hobbyist can get a hold of Blade3D. That's unheard of. Up to this point there's been a significant barrier to entry for new game developers without publisher backing."