Government funding gives the industry signs for cautious optimism

In Germany, the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology, and Space (BMFTR) program has expanded its €125 million games fund, which offers grants covering up to 50% of a game’s production and prototype development costs. Everspace developer Rockfish Games became the latest and biggest beneficiary, receiving €8 million, distributed over five years, to help fund its next Everspace title. The studio’s last title, Everspace 2: Wrath of the Ancients, also received funding from the program.

In a Games Industry interview, Rockfish CEO and co-founder Michael Schade said the fund has allowed the team to maintain its “status as a fully independent developer and publisher of our own titles while self-funding the remaining portion of the project’s cost.”. Schade also discussed the stability it brings: “independence allows us to make choices that best fit the studio and team, react to fans’ wants and market needs faster, and create a title that is closest to our vision.”

Schade went on to praise the team behind the program itself, especially their level of expertise. “You’d be surprised at the level of gaming industry knowledge at both the [DLR Projektträger - Germany’s national research centre] and the BMFTR,” he added, describing it as “at the same level as a top-tier publisher or platform holder”.

A government giving a studio the “long term stability” needed is a huge boon for the industry, and has allowed Rockfish Games the headroom to grow.

“In the last six months, we’ve added ten team members to Rockfish Games – a mix of full-time employees and experienced developers from co-dev studios with expertise in specific areas,” says Schade. “Our aim is to keep the team within a certain size, and it’s important that we onboard people at a manageable pace to maintain a positive studio culture and ensure we integrate every new team member successfully”. The funding is noted to also be supporting the up-skilling of current staff.

Meanwhile, fresh off news of the UK games market now being worth £8.76 billion, the UK Government’s £30 million of new funding is absolutely welcome and deserved. The money is split into two pots: £28.5 million for the UK Games Fund and £1.5 million to fund London Games Fest.

Creative Industries Minister Ian Murray came out with strong praise for the industry, following the announcement. “Video games are not only great fun, they are big business – and for too long their value to the British economy has been overlooked.”

Murray went on to discuss the role of the newly-allocated funds to “turbocharge the careers of some of our most talented game developers, creating more jobs and economic growth right across the country as their ideas come to fruition.”

Seeing clear backing from national governments is the glimmer of hope we keep searching for. The will to continue to see games thrive gives us an anchor amongst the sea of negativity. It’s a difficult time for many, but there are reasons for optimism, we just need to keep shouting about them.