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 in the indie sector where studios that have scored a breakout success use their newfound resources to support other independent developers.
In recent years, Innersloth, the creators of the viral sensation Among Us, launched Outersloth in 2024 to back games like Clickolding and The Horror at Highrook. Earlier this year, Kinetic Games, known for Phasmophobia, introduced Kinetic Publishing, adding titles such as Precognition—an upcoming project from Sam Barlow, the mind behind Immortality—to its roster. Pocketpair, the studio behind Palworld, has rolled out Pocketpair Publishing, while Landfall Games, famous for Peak, debuted the Evil Landfall label.
The trend is clear: successful indie studios are increasingly stepping into the role of publisher or financier. "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." When Journey launched in 2012, Thatgamecompany was far from flush with cash.
Chen has recounted to GamesIndustry.biz that the development of Journey nearly pushed the studio to bankruptcy and resulted in a massive layoff of staff. The situation has changed dramatically thanks to Sky: Children of the Light, which debuted in 2019 and quickly became a global phenomenon, especially in the Chinese market. The game has generated enough revenue to fund a feature‑length film adaptation and has amassed a massive player base.
Those profits now give Thatgamecompany the financial bandwidth to back what it describes as "emotionally ambitious games"—projects that aim to touch players on a deeper level than typical gameplay loops. Chen also points out that the landscape of distribution has shifted.
In the era of Journey, major platforms like PlayStation controlled the primary channels for getting games into players' hands. Today, the distribution network is effectively owned by the players themselves, who act as influencers and organic marketers.
A successful indie title can reach millions of users simply because those users share their experiences across social media, streaming platforms, and word‑of‑mouth networks. "You have an audience who, let's say, love friendslop games, and they're looking for other friendslop games. You actually have more influence for distribution than GameSpot, than IGN, than Steam, right?
So that's why I think today indie game studios are more likely to become publishers – they also have additional distribution reach," Chen notes. Another distinctive advantage for Thatgamecompany is its demographic reach. Roughly 70 % of Sky: Children of the Light’s players are female, giving the studio a uniquely large female audience compared with most other game companies. Chen believes this creates a valuable overlap for titles that appeal to both men and women, especially those that can attract players who have never engaged with games before.
Thatgamepublisher has already signed a "couple" of projects, though details remain under wraps. In the official press release, Chen articulated the publisher’s mission: "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 initiative, told GamesIndustry.biz that the studio is hunting for titles that "move people through play." He emphasized that genre, platform, or team size will not be limiting factors. "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 explained. He added that "emotional" can encompass joy, chaos, humor, or any feeling that lingers after the console is turned off. If a game can achieve that lingering resonance, Thatgamepublisher wants to start a conversation.
While many indie publishers focus on sub‑million‑dollar budgets, Thatgamepublisher is prepared to back larger endeavors, including AA‑level projects. Xue said the publisher’s funding model is flexible: "We are quite flexible when it comes to funding and project scale. We are open to working with everyone from solo developers with immense creativity to larger teams with AA‑level budgets." The specifics of each publishing deal—such as revenue share, recoupment percentages, and milestone structures—will be tailored to the needs of the individual project. Xue stressed that, as developers themselves, they understand the importance of fair, transparent, and developer‑friendly agreements that give teams the resources they need to realize the strongest version of their game.
Thatgamepublisher is positioning itself as a full‑service publisher. In addition to financing, the company will provide production planning, platform strategy, launch support, marketing, community management, and long‑term intellectual‑property development. This contrasts with some newer indie publishers that adopt a modular, funding‑only approach. Luke Keighran, founder of Silver Lining Interactive, told GamesIndustry.biz that "the old school publishing model is dead" and that developers now choose which services they need—be it marketing, console porting, or funding—rather than signing up for a one‑size‑fits‑all package.
Xue reiterated that Thatgamepublisher can adapt its involvement based on each developer’s requirements, offering modular arrangements for funding, marketing, or other targeted support. However, for projects that are emotionally ambitious, he believes a more integrated partnership yields the best results. "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," he said.
The overarching philosophy driving the publisher is the belief that games can forge deep emotional connections and bring out the best in people. "That belief has shaped everything Thatgamecompany has made, from Flow and Flower to Journey and Sky: Children of the Light. But we also know this path is bigger than the work of one studio.
Around the world, creators are exploring their own ways to expand what games can make people feel, and we want to help those ideas find their way to players," Xue explained. He continued, "We learned from our own work that emotionally ambitious games often need a different playbook.
The heart of a project is not always easy to define at the beginning. It can emerge through prototypes, iteration, quiet discoveries, and the right creative conversations. Our role is to help protect that process, giving developers the room, guidance, and alignment they need to discover the strongest version of their work." Drawing on their experience running Sky: Children of the Light as a live‑service title with over 300 million downloads and seven years of global operation, Thatgamepublisher believes it understands how to scale heartfelt experiences without diluting their impact.
"By understanding the emotional truth of each game, building from its players and community, and allowing genuine resonance to create scale over time, we aim to help every project reach farther while staying true to the feeling at its heart," Xue concluded.