Screen Australia has today announced a wide-ranging funding boost to the Australian games sector that covers 23 games, the launch of the recently announced ALT: Games Festival and support for seven Australian gamemakers to attend the prestigious Game Developers Conference (GDC) in San Francisco.
These investments, totalling over $1.3 million, represent a strong commitment to both emerging and established local talent, as well as to the originality of the work being produced. This latest funding injection will continue to provide clear pathways for gamemakers to upskill, transition from solo to studio development and drive their games from prototype through to launch. The support is designed to nurture talent, open doors to new professional opportunities and strengthen Australia’s international standing in the billion-dollar global market.
The newly appointed Screen Australia Head of Games Joey Egger said, “We’re thrilled that such an exciting mix of local titles and talent are being celebrated and supported by this investment. From intimate stories to challenging puzzlers, these games showcase our diversity, unique culture and game design expertise, and really demonstrates why we continue to excel on the world stage.”
“We also know the games sector is resilient, adaptive and tenacious, driven by a strong sense of connection and community. That’s why we are proud to support local events such as the ALT: Games Festival and for our gamemakers to forge impactful relationships here and overseas, to ensure their games get into the hands of players around the world,” said Egger.
The 23 games supported
- Dragon Valley (NSW): From creative director Pat Naoum, the gamemaker behind The Master’s Pupil, comes a crafting, sandbox adventure game where players can copy, paste and build with any object in the world, while exploring ancient mysteries and saving their people.
- Bee Major (VIC): From Weird Flex Studios, this educational story-driven game has players take on the role of a bee maestro as they explore through Naarm (Melbourne), collecting musical instrument seeds to grow a beautiful sonic garden. Bee Major is from developers Maize Wallin and Ben Koder, art director Kay-Lynn Cavanagh and writer Nayuka Gorrie (Black Comedy, Thalu). Developed with the assistance of VicScreen.
- Management In Space (NSW): The first game to transition from Screen Australia’s Emerging Gamemakers Fund through to the Games Production Fund, Management in Space is a strategic roguelike management game where players can build space stations across the galaxy to pay off a massive debt. It is from developer Matthew Lucis (Silver Stitch Productions) and composer Duncan Latto.
- These Starless Skies (WA): A discordant team of planetary scientists must confront their personal demons and unravel the enigma of a mysterious tidally-locked planet, all before their inner chaos takes over in this sci-fi point and click adventure. Created by lead programmer/artist/writer/audio designer Camille Woodthorpe, character animator Cody Lehman, astrophysicist/planetary Scientist Dr Eriita Jones, narrative designer Amy Doherty and with quality assurance by Daniel Woodthorpe. Developed with the assistance of Screenwest and the WA Government.
- Hex Bound (NT): In this story-driven puzzle platformer from the NT, players take on the role of a half-witch, half-fae who must utilise her differences to save the Mortal and Fae realms from a cancerous rot that threatens to tear them apart from within. Hex Bound is a story about illness, identity, belonging and bridging a conflict between two worlds – finding a place in both. It is from creative director Skye Lavelle and lead programmer Declan Smyth.
- Dancing Hearts (SA): In this story-driven dating game, players take on the role of the leader of a once-thriving, now disbanded lion dance troupe – climbing their way out from underneath debilitating debt and reclaiming lost glory by convincing former teammates to return and competing in auto chess-inspired dance battles. Dancing Hearts is from game designer and product manager Tessa Touchette and creative director Cai Tse.
- Snow Cone (WA): A puzzle game about rolling icy treats and cleaning up the streets, where players jump into the role of a penguin going undercover as a snow cone vendor to fulfill customer orders. Snow Cone is from lead developer Jack Casey, level designer Nick Lowe, art director Lauren Fletcher, sound designer and marketing manager Ben Hammersley and lead producer Minh Tran.
For the full list of funded gamemakers and projects, please see the Games blocklines here.
ALT: Games Festival funding
The ALT: Games Festival is a new annual festival and a cultural celebration of games presented by Powerhouse. The festival seeks to provide opportunities to connect community and industry, and has been supported through the Games Festivals and Events Fund. ALT will feature an in-person games showcase, workshops, a large-scale interactive art installation, and industry-focused events featuring international speakers.
Future Leaders Delegation recipients
Seven recipients have been selected as part of the Future Leaders Delegation travelling to San Francisco for the Game Developers Conference (GDC) – supporting them to seek out professional opportunities and build relationships that will benefit their careers.
These recipients are:
- Amber Stacey (WA)
- Chantel Eagle (VIC)
- Edwin Montgomery (NSW)
- Heidi Borge (SA)
- Joel Davison (VIC)
- Lindsay Mansfield (TAS)
- Neema Iyer (NSW)
For more information about Games funding at Screen Australia and to apply, click here. For accompanying image assets, click here.
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