Gurgaon-based gaming startup Newgen Gaming has received $1 million from mobile games and interactive entertainment company nCore Games. For Newgen Gaming, this is their first funding round.

The business intends to use the funding to grow its team, product offerings, and operations across South Asia and the MENA area. Currently, it operates in the esports sector through its brand ‘Penta Esports’.

The company was founded back in 2021 by Anurag Khurana, Kiran Noojibail, Akshay Paul and Krishanu Ghosal. It aims to focus on several aspects of esports, including leagues, tournaments and content creation.

In addition to event IPs like the Penta Invitational, Penta Cup, and Penta Challenge, Penta Esports has introduced its grassroots-focused league named the Penta Amateur League and the Penta Collegiate League for colleges and universities.

“We started Newgen Gaming with an objective to democratize gaming and esports in India. We will be scaling up rapidly and providing more opportunities to the players and experiences to the viewers across the region,” said Anurag Khurana, founder and CEO of Newgen Gaming, as quoted by Inc42.

The investors, nCore Games, have developed some well-known games like FAU:G, ICC Cricket Mobile, and Apna Games. It raised $10 million in a Series A round last year, which was co-led by Galaxy Interactive and Animoca Brands.

“As we set out to build a full-stack gaming ecosystem, we believe Newgen Gaming will be an integral part. Esports event management and fan engagement are set to become key growth drivers for the industry, and we look forward to tapping into Newgen Gaming’s expertise in this area as we build out India’s #1 gaming platform,” said Vishal Gondal, co-founder of nCore Games.

Other esports organizations are also getting traction from investors as earlier this month Bengaluru-based The Esports Club (TEC) raised $3 million in Pre-Series A funding to expand its operations in Southeast Asia and the Middle East.

TEC intends to collaborate closely with the local communities to encourage the growth of esports in these regions and give participants the chance to show off their skills and pursue careers in gaming.