Tokyo-based Sega Networks Co. Ltd.  has made three investments in an attempt to establish more of a foothold in the West: Demiurge Studios, Ignited Artists and Space Ape Games.

Demiurge is a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based independent game maker that Sega is acquiring. The business makes mobile games, including the superhero game Marvel Puzzle Quest, which features characters such as Spider-Man and the Avengers.

Sega is also picking up a majority stake in San Francisco-based Ignited Artists, a startup that is working to develop mobile games. Sega previously participated in a funding round for Ignited, the company says. 

Additionally, Sega made a minority investment in Space Ape Games, a studio headquartered in London, which develops the games Rival Kingdom and Samurai Siege.

Sega, once known for competing against Nintendo Co. (TYO: 7974) in the console space, now makes mobile games including Sonic Dash, Puyo Puyo Quest, Chain Chronicle and Crazy Taxi City Rush. The company is a unit of Sega Corp., creator of the Sonic the Hedgehog series.

Union Square Advisors LLC was Demiurge's financial adviser, and Morse Barnes-Brown & Pendelton PC provided financial advice on that deal.

Other game makers have also been making acquisitions. IN September, Microsoft, which makes the Xbox video game console, agreed to buy Mojang AB, the company behind the Minecraft game, for $2.5 billion. In March 2014, Kabam acquired video game studio Phoenix Age. 

For more on video game acquisition trends, see The Buyside: Kabam to Keep Buyign Video Game Rivals.