PlaySafe ID: The Identity Infrastructure for Games

We are excited to participate in PlaySafe ID's $1.12M pre-seed round alongside Early Game Ventures, Overwolf, Velocity VC, and Heartfelt VC. The UK-based gaming company is building the "identity layer for gaming" - a cross-platform digital identity verification solution addressing the epidemic of cheating, toxicity, and child safety concerns plaguing the gaming industry.

Criminal Enterprise Threatening Gaming's $184 Billion Foundation

The global gaming market reached $184.3 billion in revenue in 2024 with over 1.3 billion PC and console players worldwide, but criminal enterprises systematically exploit these platforms for enormous profits. In 2021, Chinese police shut down a cheating operation generating $76 million revenue through $10-200 monthly subscriptions, seizing $46 million in assets.

University of Birmingham academic research analyzing 80 cheat-selling websites found they collectively generate $12.8-73.2 million annually, with 30,000-174,000 players purchasing cheats monthly. Prices range from $6.63 for entry-level hacks to $254.28 for premium options, with developers updating cheats every 1.5 days to evade detection.

The impact cascades through the entire industry:

- 77% of gamers abandon multiplayer games due to cheating experiences

- 48% reduce in-game purchases when cheating is prevalent

- 12% of players admit to regular cheating (4% always, 8% sometimes)

- Apex Legends banned 500,000 accounts in their first month alone

- Battlefield 6 anti-cheat detected 330k cheating attempts days after Open Beta launch

With games like Fortnite generating $300+ million monthly, even small player churn percentages represent massive revenue losses.

Immediate Regulatory Crisis Forces Compliance

The UK Online Safety Act (July 25, 2025) imposes penalties up to £18 million or 10% of global revenue for platforms failing "highly effective age assurance." Companies are blocking entire countries rather than comply, Janitor AI blocked UK access citing compliance impossibility for their team size.

Market pressure is clear: 42% of parents don't think game companies do enough for child safety, while 60% fear adults contacting children in games. The industry lacks unified identity verification, forcing expensive, fragmented solutions that fail to leverage network effects.

The Cross-Platform Identity

PlaySafe ID delivers a lightweight, anonymous digital identity system that follows users across games while preserving privacy. Their "one life" approach creates verified identities through 30-second KYC onboarding via Onfido, generating anonymous profiles with trust scores and behavioral data across the gaming ecosystem.

Live Platform Results:

- Tech tests with FPS games serving thousands of users

- Automated trust scoring for users and developers

- Zero-knowledge verification without storing personal data

- Proportionate penalties based on context and trust scores

PlaySafe ID is negotiating contracts with major first-person shooters (integrations planned end of Q3 2025) while multiple studios remain in discussions. Early testing generated 1000+ sign-ups and hundreds of KYC-connected Steam accounts, with organic advocacy from streamers and Reddit gaming communities validating market demand.

Inbound Developer Demand Validates Market Opportunity

Developers are approaching PlaySafe ID unsolicited, creating remarkable validation of market demand. CEO Wailes reports: "We've had game developers now start approaching us and asking to do stuff with us. We're not reaching out to them and selling to them - they've got wind of what we're doing, the communities are talking about it, players are excited about it."

The regulatory timeline creates urgency: major studios have resources to comply, but smaller studios are "in a scramble" with many choosing to block entire countries rather than attempt compliance.

Exceptional Technical Leadership with Proven Industry Depth

Andrew Wailes (CEO) brings deep gaming industry expertise from NEFTA, with proven experience selling complex SaaS/SDK solutions to game studios. His product marketing background and direct access to major studio decision-makers provides crucial go-to-market advantages.

Ben Dixon (CTO) brings 9 years from Jagex (RuneScape), leading data infrastructure, anti-cheat systems, and player safety for millions of users. His machine learning and big data background, combined with direct anti-cheating experience, drives PlaySafe ID's security-first engineering approach.

Strategic Co-Investors Enabling Network Effects

Early Game Ventures led the round, with participation from Hartmann Capital and Overwolf. Overwolf's platform provides immediate access to over 15 million monthly active gamers and established gaming studio relationships, creating natural integration pathways that will accelerate PlaySafe ID's adoption across the gaming ecosystem.

Looking Forward: Infrastructure for Gaming's Secure Future

PlaySafe ID is positioned to become gaming's identity infrastructure layer—analogous to Steam's PC gaming distribution dominance. Their technology addresses immediate compliance needs while building the foundation for gaming's future identity system.

Regulatory tailwinds, law enforcement actions against criminal cheating enterprises, and proven developer demand create a compelling path to market leadership. As CEO Wailes states: "We want to give [developers] this weapon where there's this one environment that's cheat-free where everyone has a social contract - I'm playing by the rules or else I will have accountability."

This investment backs transformative technology solving fundamental industry problems while creating defensible network effects, supporting PlaySafe ID as they build gaming's secure identity foundation.

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Resources:

● Learn more about PlaySafe ID: https://playsafe.id

● See integration documentation: https://docs.playsafe.id/developer-guide

● Investment inquiries: invest@hartmanncapital.com

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