There’s no way around it – cannabis is becoming more and more mainstream everyday, and that doesn’t just mean more people smoking up. Cannabis is making its way into other industries as well.
From weed-themed travel companies, to weed-infused weddings, cannabis is making its way into all corners of the Canadian market.
See also:
- Cannabis use in Canadians aged 65 and older has nearly doubled since legalization (REPORT)
- BC wants licensed cannabis suppliers to pitch edible product designs ahead of legalization
- Victoria’s newest licensed cannabis dispensary opens this Saturday
And one Nanaimo-based company has proven that there is room for weed in the video game world, by becoming the largest publisher of cannabis-themed games worldwide.
LRDLY Games,the sister company of Vancouver-based East Side Games, focuses mostly on mobile games and relies heavily on the app store to allow their players to download and play their games.
“Our first cannabis game came out on Facebook nine years ago, as a part of East Side Games. LRDLY took over cannabis games from East Side Games, as they were increasing hugely in popularity, and ESG wanted the freedom to work on other projects,” Jean Guy Niquet, a live-ops lead at LRDLY, explained to Victoria Buzz.
✨We are so excited✨ We've met so many great @BudFarm420 players and #cannabis industry icons at #ocannabiz2019 this year! Thanks @OCannabiz for hosting yet another great Expo! If you have not yet, come say 'Hi' at BOOTH 1️⃣3️⃣7️⃣ #toronto #mobilegame #highsociety pic.twitter.com/dDlMAfOhYA
— LDRLY Games (@LDRLY) April 27, 2019
Since then, the company has found great success with over 20 million installs and 3.5 billion game plays internationally.
Perhaps surprisingly, LRDLY games decided to base their studio in Nanaimo rather than Victoria.
“We looked at a few different options when deciding to expand to the island, including Victoria and the Comox Valley. It came down to two things: wanting to provide a location where cost of living was reasonable, and where there was an opportunity to create a gaming community where there wasn’t previously one,” says Niquet.
So why cannabis-themed games?
“ESG has always made their mark by doing something different and that’s where the idea for cannabis-themed games was born. We wanted to build this community out of nothing. It was a great business opportunity because there wasn’t a market for it, and very few other games in that space,” Niquet explains.
At the end of the day, LRDLY aims to keep its games light-hearted.
“We don’t take ourselves too seriously. We don’t try and make things too controversial. We always try to keep that loveable stoner vibe.”
Check out their website for a list of games you can try out.
