Jagex facts for kids
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| Subsidiary | |
| Industry | Video games |
| Founded | 1999 |
| Founders |
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| Headquarters |
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England
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Key people
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Phil Mansell (CEO, COO) |
| Products | See § Games |
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Number of employees
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 337 (2018) |
| Parent |
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| Subsidiaries | Gamepires Pipeworks Studios |
Jagex Limited is a British company that makes and publishes video games. Their main office is in Cambridge, England. Jagex is most famous for RuneScape and Old School RuneScape. These are both free-to-play online role-playing games where many players can play together. The name Jagex comes from their first slogan, "Java Gaming Experts".
Besides RuneScape, Jagex has made other games. They also had a website called FunOrb with many fun, quick games. Jagex has been owned by different companies over the years. Currently, CVC Capital Partners owns Jagex.
Contents
History of Jagex
Brothers Andrew Gower and Paul Gower were computer programmers. They first used the Jagex name and logo for their projects in 1999. They called Jagex Software a "small software company" that made "top-quality Java-games for webpages."
In the same year, they started working on RuneScape. This big online role-playing game came out in January 2001. In December 2001, Andrew and Paul Gower, along with Constant Tedder, officially started Jagex as a company. Tedder became the CEO, which means the main boss.
RuneScape quickly became very popular. A year after it launched, over a million people had signed up for free accounts. At first, the game was supported by ads. But then, there were fewer advertisers. So, Jagex created a paid version of the game. This version had extra features. It helped pay for the game's servers and new updates.
The paid version of RuneScape came out on 27 February 2002. It got 2,000 paid players in the first hour. It had 5,000 players in the first week. This made it one of the biggest paid Java games at the time. By 2007, RuneScape had one million paid players. Eleven years after it started, Jagex said the game had 200 million accounts.
Until 2010, Jagex used the slogan "Java Gaming Experts." This was because all their games were made using Java. After they launched War of Legends, which used a different technology, the company said Jagex stood for "Just About the Game Experience."
How Jagex Grew
As RuneScape got more players, Jagex grew bigger. By December 2003, RuneScape had 65,000 paying members. Jagex had 29 employees. By May 2007, RuneScape had over 6 million free accounts. It also had over 1 million paid players. By July 2012, Jagex had more than 500 employees.
At first, the company paid for everything itself. But in 2005, a company called Insight Venture Partners invested money in Jagex. Over the years, different companies have owned Jagex. In 2016, a Chinese company bought Jagex. Then in 2020, a US company called Macarthur Fortune Holding bought it.
In 2021, The Carlyle Group bought most of Jagex. In February 2024, CVC Capital Partners and Haveli Investments bought Jagex from The Carlyle Group.
Phil Mansell became the CEO of Jagex in January 2017.
Helping Charities
Since 2004, Jagex has given money to many charities. They also hold auctions to raise money. For example, they have sold signed game items.
Jagex has given artwork and prizes to the MMO Calendar. This calendar raises money for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
In 2013, Jagex added the "Well of Goodwill" to RuneScape. This let players give their in-game items or money to charity. Jagex donated $2 for every 10 million gold pieces given by players.
In 2014, Jagex helped raise awareness about illegal rhino hunting. They added rhinoceros pets and trivia questions to RuneScape. This was part of a campaign with United for Wildlife.
In 2020, Jagex raised over £445,000 for charities. They focused on mental health and making sure everyone feels included.
Games by Jagex
Games Jagex Made
Planetarion
Jagex owns the online space game Planetarion. They have owned it for over 10 years. They let another company manage and update the game with its players. Planetarion has been around since 1999 and has many loyal players.
RuneScape
RuneScape is a fantasy online role-playing game. It was released in January 2001 by Andrew and Paul Gower. It started as a game you could play in your web browser. It used Java and had 3D graphics. The game has over 200 million registered accounts. It is known by Guinness World Records as the most popular free-to-play online role-playing game.
RuneScape takes place in a world called Gielinor. This is a medieval fantasy land with different kingdoms and cities. Each area has different monsters, resources, and quests. The game's world has also been explored in other games and books.
Players create their own characters in the game. RuneScape does not have one main story you must follow. Players choose their own goals. You can fight monsters, complete quests, or improve your skills. Players can also trade items, chat, or play mini-games together. Some mini-games are competitive, while others need teamwork.
Old School RuneScape
Old School RuneScape is a different version of RuneScape. It came out on 22 February 2013. It is based on how the game looked in August 2007. It was first for paying players. Then a free version came out in February 2015. Players vote on new content before it is added to Old School RuneScape. Jagex also made a mobile version of Old School RuneScape.
DarkScape
On 16 September 2015, Jagex released DarkScape. This was another version of RuneScape. It had open-world player-versus-player combat. DarkScape was free to play. It closed on 28 March 2016 because not enough people were playing it.
Block N Load
Block N Load is a game where you can build things and shoot. It started its testing phase in December 2014. Jagex released it for PC on 30 April 2015.
FunOrb
FunOrb was a website with many quick, fun games. Jagex launched it on 27 February 2008. All the games were made using Java. FunOrb closed down permanently on 7 August 2018.
8Realms
8Realms was an online strategy game where you build an empire. Jagex developed it. The game's testing started in May 2011. Jagex closed the game on 28 May 2012. They said it did not meet their hopes for success.
Carnage Racing
In October 2012, Jagex announced a racing game for Facebook. It was called Carnage Racing. The game used the Unity game engine. It came out in November 2012.
Chronicle: RuneScape Legends
Jagex announced Chronicle: RuneScape Legends in 2014. It was a card game where players build their own adventures. It used characters from RuneScape. The game came out on Steam in May 2016. It was removed in May 2018 because of problems and fewer players.
Games Jagex Published
War of Legends
War of Legends was an online strategy game. It was set in ancient Chinese stories. It came out on 19 January 2010. This was the first game Jagex published that they did not make themselves. It was also their first game not made in Java. The game closed on 22 December 2014.
Herotopia
In May 2011, Jagex worked with Herotainment to publish Herotopia. This was a new browser game for kids. It was a "virtual world" where kids could have fun. The game is now closed.
Ace of Spades
In November 2012, Jagex announced they would publish Ace of Spades. This was a sandbox game. It came out on Steam in December 2012. The game's servers closed on 6 March 2019.
Space Punks
In July 2021, Jagex announced they were publishing Space Punks. This is a shooting game where you collect loot. It was developed by Flying Wild Hog. It launched for early access in July.
Melvor Idle
In October 2021, Jagex announced they were publishing Melvor Idle. This is an idle game inspired by RuneScape. Jagex is working with the game's original creator, Brendan Malcolm.
Mobile Games
Jagex released its first mobile game, Bouncedown, in December 2009. It was for the iPhone and iPod Touch. They then released StarCannon, Miner Disturbance, and Undercroft for mobile.
8Realms, which was a web-based game, was also designed to work on the iPad.
Games That Were Cancelled
Transformers Universe
In March 2011, Jagex partnered with Hasbro. They planned to create a Transformers Universe online game. The game started testing in July 2014. But on 16 December 2014, Jagex announced the game would be cancelled. The testing closed on 31 January 2015.
Stellar Dawn
Stellar Dawn was a science fiction online role-playing game. Jagex was developing it. It was first called MechScape. But the project was changed because it did not meet the original plans. It was announced as Stellar Dawn in July 2010. The game was planned for 2011. But in March 2012, Jagex said they paused its development. They focused on Transformers Universe and RuneScape instead.
RuneScape: Idle Adventures
RuneScape: Idle Adventures was an idle game. It was set in the RuneScape world. A test version was opened in April 2016. But it was shut down in May 2017 because not enough people were playing it.
See also
In Spanish: Jagex para niños
