New developments
Roblox at Princes Dock! Global gaming group sets up new design and development studio at Liverpool Waters
The hugely successful Abracadabra Studio, a renowned games development group known for the highly popular SharkBite series on the Roblox platform, has moved into the Princes Dock neighbourhood within Peel Waters’ growing Liverpool Waters district.
The company, whose games have been played by billions worldwide and boast over one million members, is another exciting new addition to the vibrant community at Princes Dock.
Founders Simon Burgess and Max Entwistle met aged just 12 and together they learnt how to make games on the Roblox platform. Now their business, Abracadabra Studio, is poised for its next phase of growth. Roblox engages around 70 million daily active users globally and their Sharkbite brand has now transcended from online to offline popularity, with branded toys, including a Sharkbite Nerf gun, available in supermarkets across the world including Walmart, Target, ASDA and Tesco.
Within Abracadabra’s new Princes Dock studio, they will be joined by other game developers all working under the Dev House UK studio brand, with collaborations including ‘Laundry Simulator’ which has had over 400m hits on the Roblox platform. ‘Absolute Zero!’ Is another developer in the same space, who’s success includes ‘Bid Battles’ with over 116m visitors and ‘Goofy Gods’ with over 50m hits.
In seeking a new home for their rapidly growing business, Burgess and Entwistle looked for a space conducive to collaboration, creativity, and the development of their pipeline of new games. The search led them to Princes Dock, a location that perfectly aligns with their vision.
The Princes Dock neighbourhood is a bustling community featuring a blend of residential and commercial developments, hotels, restaurants, bars and coffee shops. The dock itself is a hive of activity, frequented by scuba divers, open water swimmers, canoeists, and Dragon Boat fleets. Adding to its appeal, the UK’s first public floating sauna is set to open this year.
For over three years, all commercial spaces at Princes Dock have been verified net zero, showcasing a wider commitment to sustainability that has also helped attract a new generation of businesses to the neighbourhood.
Simon Burgess, Co-Founder of Abracadabra Studio commented: “Princes Dock is the ideal place with not just a great workspace, but the surrounding views, the riverside, the docks, it all adds up to being a really great place for the team to work their magic. The passing ships also provide inspiration when modelling ships for the games!
“With this move, Abracadabra Studio and our development partners are set to leverage the unique waterside environment at Princes Dock to continue creating engaging, world-renowned games, further solidifying their place in the global gaming industry.”
Liza Marco, Senior Asset Manager at Liverpool Waters commented: “Abracadabra Studio is a great addition to the growing community of digital, technology, and creative businesses we now have here. They join the likes of E-Sign, System C, IT Answers, and global TikTok marketing agency 15Talent who have all chosen Princes Dock as the location for their growing businesses.”
Liverpool Waters is part of Peel Waters, a UK wide portfolio of vibrant and innovative, waterfront developments, delivering large-scale, sustainable regeneration projects, creating jobs, economic growth, new homes and new public realm across the country.
Avison Young and CBRE are the appointed agents for commercial space at Princes Dock, Liverpool Waters.
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