Highrise (video game)

Highrise is a free-to-play virtual world and social simulation game designed primarily for mobile devices. It was created and is run by Pocket Worlds, a studio headquartered in Austin, Texas. Players can design personalized avatars, construct and furnish their own virtual rooms, take part in social events, and trade digital goods with one another through a player-driven marketplace. The game is accessible on iOS, Android, Windows, and macOS.

History

Pocket Worlds was founded in 2013, focusing on social games for mobile. Highrise first launched in beta on iOS in March 2015, with an Android version following in January 2020. The company took part in Y Combinator’s Summer 2018 batch, and in January 2021, Bitkraft Ventures led its Series A funding round. By 2023, the platform had surpassed 20 million total downloads, and its secondary marketplace had generated over $250 million in cumulative revenue.

In 2024, Pocket Worlds released Highrise 4.0 and Highrise Studio, and introduced the Highrise Earn Program. In January 2025, the company acquired Infinite Canvas, an AI-driven user-generated content studio. Pocket Worlds also owns Everskies, a browser-based avatar community platform that it bought in 2021.

Gameplay

In the game, players build avatars from a catalog of more than 50,000 items spanning various styles, which can be traded or saved to a wishlist. The platform features player-created virtual rooms for socializing, with text and voice chat, emotes, and a feed for sharing content.

Highrise centers on social interaction and self-expression, offering crew-based cooperative events, a friend system, and player-hosted social spaces that keep the community active. It has been described as a mobile virtual world focused on avatar customization and online socializing. In April 2024, Highrise Studio launched, giving users tools to create 3D environments, game modes, and assets in Unity, with creators paid based on item sales and user engagement.

Reception

By 2025, Highrise had more than 50 million registered users and was available on Google Play, the Apple App Store, and Steam. It won a Gold Stevie Award in 2025 and was a finalist at the Tech in Motion Timmy Awards 2024 and the Pocket Gamer Mobile Games Awards 2025. That same year, Fast Company named it one of the Most Innovative Companies of 2025.