Ridge High Alumnus's Gaming Company Gets Big Break, Finds Buyer

BASKING RIDGE, NJ — Raghav Mathur founded a digital-gaming company in 2014 as a junior at Ridge High School. Since then, Black Shell Media has taken off, and it recently reached the final boss of small, independent companies.

Plug In Digital — a large, independent video-game distributor — recently acquired Black Shell Media. In a press release, Plug In Digital proudly touted successful games Black Shell Media worked on, such as "Dungeon Souls," "Zombie Party" and "Raining Blobs."

Seven years ago, Mathur turned his passion for video games into a business. In the summer of his junior year, Mathur found an advertisement for a job in the field. He began working with business partner Daniel Doan to promote "SanctuaryRPG: Black Edition," a retro-style game reminiscent of the late 80s and early 90s.

Coincidentally, Mathur and Doan worked with Plug In Digital on "SantuaryRPG."

"It feels almost poetic that Black Shell Media’s journey in the world of indie games started and ended with Plug In Digital," Mathur said. "I’m happy to be passing the torch of publishing our catalog to someone I know and trust, whose success speaks for itself."

Related article from 2017: Ridge Graduate Turns Gaming Into Successful Company

Mathur assisted with the game's public relations and marketing, helping it sell more than 500,000 units. After also finding success with a game called "Overture," Mathur and Doan discovered their true strength in marketing and distribution of video games. So they quickly pivoted and starting doing consulting and publishing for other developers.

In that time, Black Shell Media published more than 70 games and worked with hundreds of clients, selling more than 2 million units of those games. Mathur eventually bought out his business partner and connected with Plug In Digital about an acquisition.

Francis Ingrand, CEO and founder of Plug In Digital, praised Black Shell Media.

“We have a long history with Black Shell Media," Ingrand said, "one of our very first partners and a perfect example of Plug In Digital values: to make profitable business for everyone while preserving strong loyalty and friendly bounds. Acquiring their catalog when a page is being turned on their side is for us the perfect way to keep this partnership alive and make sure the energy and talent they put into their games are still acknowledged and rewarded."

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