LightFury Games, India’s premier AAA gaming studio, today announced that its upcoming title E-Cricket will feature 600+ officially licensed international players from across prominent cricketing nations – marking it as one of the most extensive player licensing rosters assembled for a cricket game, and a first in terms of scale for an Indian gaming studio. The licensing is being done in partnership with Winners Alliance, an athlete-centric commercial solutions company focused on group licensing and collective opportunities for professional athletes worldwide. This partnership represents a significant step in LightFury Games’ long-term vision to bring fans closer to authentic, real-world cricket moments in the form of gaming, enabling the studio to scale the scope and reach of the game.
The licensed roster spans global players across major cricketing nations, including Australia, New Zealand, England, Afghanistan, Ireland, South Africa, West Indies, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Uganda, USA, Canada, Netherlands and Italy, among others, with every licensed athlete available as a playable character inside the game.
The inclusion of this roster of 600+ players brings significant gameplay depth, with each athlete represented through individual player characters, overall ratings (OVT), high fidelity to the players’ real-life signature playing styles, as well as detailed statistical models that reflect real-world strengths, tendencies, and match impact. The line-up features elite figures in international cricket such as Chris Gayle, Joe Root, Rashid Khan, Pat Cummins, Jos Buttler, Travis Head, Devon Conway, Trent Boult, Brandon McMullen, Quinton De Kock, Sikander Raza, and Andre Russell, among many others, with further differentiation driven by progressive performance models within the game.
“E-Cricket reflects exactly why Winners Alliance exists – to make large-scale, fully licensed experiences possible at a global level,” said Tim Cruickshank, VP of Commercial, at Winners Alliance. “Through our partnership with the World Cricketers’ Association, we represent the collective rights of international cricketers, and working with a studio like LightFury Games, whose technical ambition and respect for the sport are clear, sets a new benchmark for how those rights can be brought to life in gaming.”
Beyond scale, the game is designed to deliver meaningful depth through richer player interactions and evolving journeys that move past static ratings and predefined play styles. It features broadcast-style presentation, dynamic AI-led commentary, and strategic batting and bowling systems, all supported by progression-based player models that respond to match situations and player decisions in real time. Together, these systems create a more authentic and unpredictable cricket experience, where athletes behave as situationally aware characters and no two matches, moments, or outcomes unfold the same way.
“What we are building with E-Cricket is bold by design. This is an ambitious effort to redefine how the world looks at games coming out of India. Our goal is to give fans and the cricket community a deeply authentic, real-world experience of the sport they love most — not just to play it, but to truly live it. The inclusion of over 600 licensed international players, alongside several iconic Indian marquee cricketers, is a defining step in that journey. It gives a way for fans to step into the shoes of their heroes and fuels our long-term vision of building and scaling a rich, immersive cricket ecosystem. As we move forward with our mission, we are committed to raising the bar for realism, depth, and technology — and ultimately delivering the best cricket video game the world has ever seen,” said Karan Shroff, CEO and Co-founder of LightFury Games.
E-Cricket is currently in development and is slated for a 2026 release. Since the game’s tech demo at GDC back in early 2025, the response received has been tremendous enthusiasm from the global gaming community. Built on Unreal Engine 5 and designed mobile-first, the game is all set to deliver a high-fidelity cricket experience and true-to-game physics with player gameplay that mirrors their real-world styles, movement, and match dynamics. In addition, the studio plans to onboard more licensed players in future phases, a move that underscores the growing anticipation around the E-Cricket title and the studio’s rapidly growing global reach.
To know more about the game, please visit: https://www.lightfurygames.com/
About Winners Alliance:
Winners Alliance is a global, athlete-centric commercial solution dedicated to creating novel group licensing, sponsorship, partnership, content, investment and event opportunities for world-class athletes collectively. Launched in 2022, Winners Alliance serves as the for-profit affiliate of the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA), World Cricketers’ Association (WCA), and EuroLeague Players Association (ELPA), representing the group commercial rights of hundreds of athletes worldwide. Among its pioneering initiatives, Winners Alliance aims to establish a sustainable group licensing program encompassing video games, trading cards, collectibles, and related opportunities. To learn more, visit www.winnersalliance.com and follow @WinnersAlliance on LinkedIn, Instagram and X.
About LightFury Games:
Founded in 2024 by industry veteransKaran Shroff, Anurag Banerjee, and Tina Balachandran, LightFury Games is India’s premier AAA-focused game-tech studio dedicated to building high-quality, cutting-edge gaming experiences. Together, the leadership team has worked on more than 40 AAA titles.
Backed by $8.5 million in seed funding from Blume Ventures, MIXI Global Investments Inc., Krafton, Gemba Capital and Java Capital, the company is advancing the Indian gaming ecosystem through innovative game development and technology-driven solutions. The studio combines creative vision with technical innovation to create high-quality, globally competitive games. Since its inception, LightFury Games has put world-class tech and talent at the centre of its planning and growth and strives to revolutionise India’s role as a hub for world-class game development.
To know more, please visit https://www.lightfurygames.com/
