Thatgamecompany, the creative force behind acclaimed titles such as Flow, Flower, Journey, and the recent hit Sky: Children of the Light, has announced the creation of a new publishing division called Thatgamepublisher. This move follows a growing pattern among successful independent studios that, after achieving a breakout success, branch out into publishing or investment to nurture other indie projects. Notable examples include Innersloth, the developers of Among Us, which launched Outersloth in 2024 to back games like Clickolding and The Horror at Highrook; Kinetic Games, known for Phasmophobia, which started Kinetic Publishing and now supports titles such as Precognition from Sam Barlow; Pocketpair, the studio behind Palworld, which introduced Pocketpair Publishing; and Landfall Games, the creators of Peak, which formed the Evil Landfall label. The trend reflects a desire to reinvest profits into the indie ecosystem rather than simply expanding internal staff.
"This is a very common pattern because number one, successful indie games usually are on a shoestring, and if the game becomes very successful, suddenly you have an overflow of cash," explains Jenova Chen, co‑founder of Thatgamecompany. "But then you are a small team making games; you don't want to suddenly become a thousands‑person company, right? And then you can't really spend the money, so with additional money, where can you invest?
You want to invest in something you understand, something you really are familiar with. So investing into other indie games is a natural choice for everyone, and that's why many indie companies are doing that." The financial landscape was dramatically different when Journey launched in 2012. Chen has recalled that the project nearly bankrupted the studio, resulting in a mass lay‑off. In contrast, Sky: Children of the Light, released in 2019, has generated massive revenue, especially in the Chinese market, and even inspired a film adaptation.
Those profits now give Thatgamecompany the means to back what it describes as "emotionally ambitious" games. Chen also points out a shift in how games reach audiences. In the era of Journey, distribution channels were dominated by platform holders like PlayStation.
Today, he argues, "the distribution network is owned by the players, who are influencers." A successful indie title can amass millions of players who become organic promoters, often eclipsing traditional media outlets such as GameSpot, IGN, or even Steam in terms of reach. Another distinctive asset for Thatgamecompany is its audience demographic. "We have a much bigger female audience reach than most of the game companies in the world," Chen notes, citing that roughly 70 % of Sky’s player base is female. This gender‑balanced community opens the door for games that appeal equally to men and women, and even to newcomers who have never played video games before.
While the roster of titles Thatgamepublisher will support remains under wraps, the publisher’s mission has already been articulated in a press release. Chen wrote: "When we first began making games, many people questioned whether interactive experiences could move players as deeply as film, literature or music.
Over the years, games have shown us what impact they can have on people. Lifelong friendships formed.
Personal struggles healed. Loved ones reconnected.
Hope restored. Those moments convinced us that games are capable of touching lives in profound ways. Thatgamepublisher exists because we believe there are countless creators around the world discovering new emotional frontiers for this medium, and we want to help them bring those visions to life." SJ Xue, Thatgamecompany’s vice‑president of growth and corporate development and the leader of the publishing effort, elaborated on the kind of projects the studio seeks.
"We are looking for titles that move people through play," Xue told GamesIndustry.biz. "The typical genre or platform restrictions would not apply to us.
We are open to teams of any size, projects at any stage, and ideas still being prototyped. What matters is not the label, genre, scale, or format, but whether the game reaches for meaningful emotional territory and uses interactivity to take players there." Xue clarified that "emotional" can encompass joy, chaos, humor, or melancholy, but the common thread is longevity: "Will this stay with someone after the screen goes dark? If a game is chasing that, we want to have the conversation." Unlike many indie publishers that limit themselves to sub‑million‑dollar budgets, Thatgamepublisher is prepared to back larger, AA‑level projects.
"We are quite flexible when it comes to funding and project scale," Xue said. "We are open to working with everyone from solo developers with immense creativity to larger teams with AA‑level budgets." The terms of each publishing deal will be tailored to the specific needs of the project, including revenue‑share structures. Xue emphasized that, as developers themselves, the team understands the importance of fair, transparent, and developer‑friendly partnerships. Thatgamepublisher will operate as a full‑service publisher, offering financing, production planning, platform strategy, marketing, community management, and long‑term IP development.
This comprehensive approach distinguishes it from publishers like Outersloth or Evil Landfall, which often adopt a modular, funding‑only model. Luke Keighran, founder of Silver Lining Interactive, has observed that "the old school publishing model is dead," and that modern developers prefer to pick and choose services—whether marketing, console porting, or funding—based on their unique needs.
Xue confirmed that Thatgamepublisher can provide modular arrangements as well, but stresses that many emotionally driven projects benefit from an integrated partnership. "Creative development, production, positioning, marketing, community, and platform strategy are often deeply interconnected. Being involved across those areas allows us to bring the most value, protect the emotional core of the game, and help the team carry that vision all the way to players." The overarching philosophy behind the venture is simple: games have the power to connect people through shared emotional experiences.
Xue summed it up: "That belief has shaped everything Thatgamecompany has made, from Flow and Flower to Journey and Sky. We know this path is bigger than a single studio. Around the world, creators are exploring new ways to make games feel, and we want to help those ideas reach players. Our role is to protect the creative process, give developers room to iterate, and provide the resources of a full‑service publisher.
With the experience of running Sky as an emotional live‑service title—over 300 million downloads and seven years of global operation—we understand how to scale heartfelt experiences without diluting their impact. By honoring each game's emotional truth and nurturing its community, we aim to help every project reach farther while staying true to the feeling at its heart."