CHIBI: THE REBIRTH OF THE PHOENIX

Chibi Phoenix is where talented people meet to create, set standards, and be the change they want to see in the world. Especially when it comes to gaming and art. The company defines its strength by bringing Positive Engaging Entertainment.

Lighting the fire

Chibi Phoenix became a goal back in 2006 when Adrien Bacchi and two of his friends were working for one of the biggest affiliate programs in France. They weren't passionate about their work, so they took the matters and their passports into their own hands and launched their own marketing email business… from Bulgaria. Even if it wasn't the way they would leave their mark on the world, it allowed the team to grow and experiment with new ideas. They branched out into other businesses such as creating a platform for artists and their comics, publishing manga series, producing what they call serious games, and even having a social platform for poker players.

The people behind Chibi Phoenix

The company was started by Bacchi and his best friends Laurent Gomez and Alexandre Panciera. The CEO of Chibi Phoenix, Bacchi, has more than 14 years of experience in entrepreneurship with a focus on leadership and vision. If he had free time, he would play games and read manga, but instead, he is the president of the French Tech in Sofia, the unique ecosystem that brings together French startups.

Adrien Bacchi

Laurent Gomez, CTO, started creating web comics in his free time and later on became a web developer so that he could show his work to the whole world. Twenty years later, he is still doing that and loving it.

And of course, none of this would be possible without the CFO, Alexandre Panciera, who after more than a decade in entrepreneurship and startups, developed strong skills in legal and financial frameworks, fundraising, product management, and team management.

The founders were brought together by their passion for manga and video games which eventually gave them the idea to create their own unique game that would combine all-time fan favourite animes and video games.

The three of them chose Bulgaria for one simple reason – because of the great opportunities it offers to an independent gaming studio.

Spreading the wings of the Phoenix

The main focus of Chibi Phoenix is creating art and entertainment, even for corporate purposes. They do gamification, video games, and art. The company works with clients from different areas: B2B educational games, igaming, art production for board games, to name only a few.

"We worked with a few international companies to create serious games, used by businesses to train and educate employees, but we want to make fun games. We are here to provide positive entertainment and support creative endeavours," says Bacchi. "We want to make the games we want to play and which make people laugh, make them fall in love with our characters and 'feed' their eyes with amazing art."

Alexandre Panciera

Besides video games, Chibi Phoenix also makes entertainment products such as the platform Amilova and Dragonball Multiverse: online communities devoted to comics, manga, indie artists and video games. Chibi Phoenix's complete network of products entertains over 50 million visitors monthly, with above 200,000 daily active players and a total of over 15 million registered players. They are planning to significantly increase these numbers once the beta of their own romantic manga game is released this summer.

The Phoenix and the Pandemic

Today Chibi Phoenix is an ever-growing company of 90 professionals with different backgrounds and specialties, brought together by the passion to make better video games and serve the creative industries. Their office has been located in Bulgaria since 2006 and welcomed 50 people before the pandemic.

The team of professionals came from different backgrounds, specialties, and are even based in different countries. What's even more fascinating is that they speak several languages: Bulgarian, French, English, German, Spanish, Italian, and Japanese. And they all have something in common: love of engaging games and quality art.

Even though they work with over 40 freelancers from Bulgaria and abroad, Chibi Phoenix keeps its core team under the same roof.

"We are a 360 degrees studio: we do everything in house. From the brainstorming for the art to the sales campaigns; from the code-writing to the content-writing, from the onboarding of new people to the celebration of our success," shared Bacchi.

The company believes that to be their biggest strength, one which makes their products even better. Every team works together in close collaboration always with the end user's satisfaction in mind. So when the COVID-19 situation hit, it hit the crews hard. The company was not prepared to go fully remote just yet.

As always, Chibi Phoenix's team remained positive. The safety of the people was a priority, but the work on the different projects never stopped.

"Working remotely, not being able to 'see and touch' our people, is forcing us to focus on facts and results. It's leading us to being radically pragmatic, analytic, and considering our work through new perspectives," commented Bacchi. "We're counting on everyone's collaboration to make our organisation evolve to the next level." Today the company's policy is: "Remote first."

Chibi Phoenix Team

Chibi Phoenix is still expanding internationally. They are reaching out to talented people in the video game industry globally so that they can support the needs of their clients and other video game studios. Even during the pandemic, the company keeps hiring, and onboarding new talents.

Chibi Phoenix's performance has been on a rising trend since the beginning of the year. Despite the worldwide health and economic crisis, they continue doing well and their performances are reaching new heights.

Rising from the ashes one click at a time

In addition to creating online video games aimed at training employees all around the world in large corporations, the company is on the way to release their first game: the incremental clicker Manga Clicker.

The game is set in a fantasy world called the Haremverse. Inspired by the manga and anime culture, the game will feature gorgeous ladies who the player will save from an awful curse – The Mist. Players will be able to collect the stunning ladies in their own Harem and get to know them better as the main story unfolds. The game will have new content in the form of special events every month to keep the players interested.

Laurent Gomez

"The game will be like a summer fling – sensual and romantic, fun and light. But the ladies will stay with you even when the summer is over," says Bacchi.

The clicker will be released in the summer of 2020 as a mobile app together with a browser version. "It's time to conquer the mobile gaming market because our games are perfect to be played on phones," shared Bacchi. The mobile version will provide the mobility, while the web browser version will enhance the experience for manga fans who want to enjoy the art of the game, the CEO explained further.

The company believes in quality content and that's what they offer. Their approach has already paid off – they have signed contracts with two international telecom companies for the distribution of the game.

And as for the future, Chibi Phoenix is certain: even more games! "We have the knowledge, experience, and the perfect team, so now we want to expand our portfolio," explains Bacchi.

"We keep offering positive and engaging entertainment and the people need it now. We offer our audience a virus-free universe, where romance and fun are the driving forces. We believe that even after the COVID-19 situation is put under control and people get back to the new normal, our games will still be relevant. This pattern of people looking for an escape in gaming will continue. Even if the buying possibilities are lower, people will be more engaged in online entertainment and we offer some of our products for free with premium paid features."

"We're living a transformative experience. Our Chibi Phoenix will be reborn. Stronger and wiser," concludes Bacchi. One thing is certain: the world will always need positive and captivating entertainment and Chibi Phoenix will be here to deliver it.

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