‘Monumental step’: Winnipeg-based Activate Games launches Dubai location

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This article was published 17/09/2024 (358 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As of Wednesday, Activate Games’ doors will open to the public in Dubai.

The Winnipeg-based interactive gaming company announced in November it had signed a deal with the Majid Al Futtaim Group, a massive Dubai-based company, to open dozens of locations across the Middle East and Africa.

Ten months later, Activate is launching in City Centre Mirdif, a mall near the Dubai International Airport.

Nine game rooms cover 6,994 square feet of space. Flashy lights and an “Activate” sign look out onto the mall.

Another four to five locations will likely open in the Middle East and Africa next year, according to Tanya Williams, Activate communications director.

Co-founder Adam Schmidt previously said Majid Al Futtaim has the capability to unroll Activate locations quickly because of the firm’s “sheer size” and ability to access real estate. On Tuesday, Schmidt was in Dubai to unveil its first Activate location.

Majid Al Futtaim owns shopping malls, movie theatres, ski resorts in the Middle East and Dubai’s first indoor skydiving centre, among other sites.

It will act as a franchisee, operating Activate at its discretion. It plans to open 40 sites, Ignace Lahoud, CEO of Majid Al Futtaim — Leisure, Entertainment & Cinemas, said in a news release.

Activate’s offerings include technology-filled climbing walls and laser rooms. Its “floor is lava”-style game went viral online.

The Dubai location has more than 50 interactive games and 100 levels to play.

Activate first opened on Portage Avenue in 2019. It now has more than 30 locations across Canada and the United States; 15 more are scheduled to open throughout North America this year, according to a news release.

Schmidt called opening in Dubai a “monumental step” for the company.

— Free Press staff