Exclusive: Exel by Merak showcases 21 games from third cohort
PC dominates as seven games remain prototypes
Saudi-based Exel by Merak has showcased 21 games from the third cohort of its gaming accelerator at its Investors and Community Day on November 10th, Bijetic can reveal.
The games span PC, console and mobile. Seventeen target PC, one of which also targets console, and four are mobile games. Seven are prototypes, five are in alpha, five are in beta, and one is in early access. Three are already released.
Strategy and action each account for four games. Horror, puzzle and narrative games have two each, and platformer, adventure, shooter, casual, party, RPG and sports games have one each.
Exel launched in November 2024 and is backed by Merak Capital's $80 million gaming fund. Selected startups receive up to $300,000 per team. Cohort 3 opened its virtual bootcamp in June 2026 with 60 startups competing for a place.
All 21 games in Exel by Merak Cohort 3
- Keko & the NightShard: A 3D puzzle platformer where a pirate cat and a living fragment of the night sky share one body. PC, console. Prototype.
- Najd: A narrative adventure inspired by Najdi culture, in which a young girl's braid becomes her power. PC. Prototype.
- Metro Surge: A single-player superhero action RPG where players design a hero and receive a random power system. PC. Prototype.
- Noctuaria: A mystery adventure in a village caught in a time loop. PC. Beta.
- Bou's Revenge 2: Hunt Begins: The horror sequel to Bou's Revenge. PC. Alpha.
- Henkaa: A strategy game that brings traditional Saudi games to mobile, played against friends or an AI. Mobile. Released.
- Renegade Brigade: A first-person shooter immersive sim with two playstyles and multi-route missions. PC. Alpha.
- Sands of the First Kings: A 2.5D narrative adventure in a reactive Arabic world with character recruitment. PC. Prototype.
- Blindspot: An asymmetric co-op mystery in which two players see different realities and must talk to uncover the truth. PC. Alpha.
- SYNERGY: Sanity Break: A four-player online co-op psychological horror game with a sanity system. PC. Prototype.
- Ice To Meet You: A match-3 puzzle game with strategic combat and character progression. Mobile. Early access.
- Gumball Hero: An FPS action roguelike in which players control a candy machine defending a mall at night. PC. Beta.
- Sheep Salon: An idle clicker in which players run a sheep grooming salon and grow it into a clothing factory. Mobile. Released.
- Rising Together: Nayyar and Riab: A couch co-op 2D action-adventure for fans of It Takes Two. PC. Alpha.
- FryDay: A 2v2 online cooking party game in which players are ghosts possessing the ingredients. PC. Alpha.
- Desert Revenant 2: The Reawakening: A tactical strategy game with roguelike deckbuilding, set in a world drawn from Mesopotamian and ancient Arabian myth. PC. Beta.
- For Nora: A 2D precision platformer in which the player has one week to save a kidnapped younger sister. PC. Beta.
- JunkLite: Crackdown: A cyberpunk RPG that pairs 2D pixel characters with explorable 3D environments. PC. Prototype.
- Chess Nuke: A chess game in which pawns merge into a nuclear bomb that can be set off mid-match. PC. Beta.
- Galaxy Soccer: A third-person mobile football game. Mobile. Released.
- Captain's Orders: A turn-based roguelike strategy game about commanding a pirate ship. PC. Prototype.
Bijetic's studio and game directories list profiles and pages for the studios and games above.
