Sparkling Society

Sparkling Society is a Netherlands-based game development company focused on mobile simulation games. According to its official website, it describes itself as "one of the leading game developers in mobile simulation games" and the "No.1 mobile simulation game publisher in the Netherlands." The studio began developing its first game, City Island, in 2013, and has since grown a portfolio of city-building and simulation titles. Its games have accumulated more than 200 million downloads worldwide, and the company operates with a team of 25 local and international employees. Sparkling Society develops and publishes its own games, with a strong emphasis on accessible simulation gameplay that runs across a broad range of mobile devices. The company's leadership includes CEO Lukas Hoenderdos, who joined Sparkling in 2014 as a freelance game developer, helped the team adopt the Unity engine, and later became a full-time lead developer and Product Owner before becoming CEO. Other team members include Matthew Groen, Product Owner & Artist, and Deniz Kirhan, Freelance Office Manager. The studio's best-known franchise is City Island, a series of mobile city-building simulation games. Sparkling Society remains a privately held company and continues to release new simulation titles for mobile platforms.

Sparkling Society is a Netherlands-based game development company that began developing its first game, City Island, in 2013. The studio focused on mobile simulation games and grew into what it describes as one of the leading developers in that genre. In 2014, Lukas Hoenderdos joined Sparkling as a freelance game developer. He introduced the team to the Unity engine, and together they built City Island 2 in just three months. Hoenderdos later joined the company full-time, starting as a lead developer and eventually becoming a Product Owner. Over the years, Sparkling Society expanded its portfolio of city-building and simulation titles, accumulating more than 200 million downloads worldwide. The company has grown to employ 25 local and international staff. In April 2026, Lukas Hoenderdos became the new CEO of Sparkling Society. The studio continues to develop and publish mobile simulation games, with the City Island series remaining its flagship franchise.

• 2026

  Lukas Hoenderdos becomes CEO in April.

• 2014

  Lukas Hoenderdos joins as a freelance game developer; team adopts Unity and builds City Island 2 in three months.

• 2013

  Development of first game, City Island, begins.

Leading mobile simulation game developer and publisher, No.1 mobile simulation game publisher in the Netherlands.

• City Island

  First game developed by Sparkling Society, a mobile city-building simulation.

• City Island 2

  Built in three months using Unity after Lukas Hoenderdos joined.

1. 1Sparkling Society Gamessparklingsociety.net
2. 2About Sparkling Society – Sparkling Society Gamessparklingsociety.net
3. 3Sparkling Societywikidata.org