Thatgamecompany, the creative force behind acclaimed titles such as Flow, Flower, Journey, and the widely beloved Sky: Children of the Light, has announced the formation of its own publishing division, dubbed Thatgamepublisher. This move mirrors a broader industry pattern where independent studios that have scored a breakout hit expand into publishing or funding roles to nurture other indie projects. Recent examples include Innersloth, the creators of Among Us, which launched Outersloth in 2024 to back games like Clickolding and The Horror at Highrook; Kinetic Games, the studio behind Phasmophobia, which started Kinetic Publishing and now supports titles such as Precognition, the newest work from Sam Barlow’s Immortality team; Pocketpair, known for Palworld, which introduced Pocketpair Publishing; and Landfall Games, the developers of Peak, which opened the Evil Landfall label. The trend reflects a growing confidence among small studios to leverage their financial windfalls and industry insight to assist peers.
"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." Thatgamecompany’s journey to this point was anything but smooth. When Journey launched in 2012, the project nearly pushed the studio to the brink of bankruptcy, resulting in a massive staff layoff, as Chen recounted to GamesIndustry.biz earlier this year.
In stark contrast, Sky: Children of the Light, released in 2019, has become a global phenomenon, especially in China, and even inspired a feature‑film adaptation. The sustained revenue from Sky now gives Thatgamecompany the financial flexibility to back what it calls "emotionally ambitious" games, a phrase that captures its core mission. Chen also notes a shift in how games reach audiences.
In the early 2010s, distribution channels were dominated by platform holders like Sony. "Today, the distribution network is owned by the players, who are influencers," he says. A successful indie title can amass millions of players who act as organic promoters, often eclipsing traditional media outlets such as GameSpot, IGN, or even Steam in terms of reach.
This democratization of distribution empowers indie studios to become publishers themselves, leveraging their own communities to amplify new releases. Another distinctive asset for Thatgamecompany is its demographic reach.
"We have a much bigger female audience reach than most of the game companies in the world," Chen points out, highlighting that roughly 70 % of Sky’s player base is female. "If we promote a game that appeals to both men and women, our audience creates a unique overlap, because many of our players have never played games before." While the exact titles Thatgamepublisher has already signed remain under wraps, Chen shared the publisher’s philosophical statement in a press release: "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, elaborated on the type of projects the studio seeks. "We are looking for titles that move people through play," he 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 any feeling that lingers after the screen goes dark. He added that Thatgamepublisher is prepared to fund projects beyond the usual sub‑million‑dollar indie budget.
"We are quite flexible when it comes to funding and project scale," he said. "We are open to working with everyone from solo developers with immense creativity to larger teams with AA‑level budgets." The publishing agreements will be tailored to each developer’s needs, with flexible recoup percentages and transparent terms.
Xue emphasized that, as developers themselves, the team understands the importance of fair, developer‑friendly partnerships that provide the necessary support to realize a game's fullest potential. Unlike some indie publishers that operate on a funding‑only basis, Thatgamepublisher is launching as a full‑service publisher. It will offer financing, production planning, platform and launch strategy, marketing, community management, and long‑term IP development.
This comprehensive approach contrasts with modular models favored by studios like Outersloth or Evil Landfall, where developers pick and choose specific services. Luke Keighran of Silver Lining Interactive remarked earlier that "the old school publishing model is dead" and that flexibility is now paramount. Xue reiterated that Thatgamepublisher can adopt modular arrangements when appropriate, but believes many emotionally driven projects benefit from an integrated partnership. "Creative development, production, positioning, marketing, community, and platform strategy are often deeply interconnected for these games.
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 explained. The overarching rationale for developers to join Thatgamepublisher lies in the studio’s founding philosophy: games can forge shared emotional experiences that bring out the best in people. Chen summed it up, noting that this belief has shaped every title from Flow and Flower to Journey and Sky. He added that the company’s experience running Sky as a live‑service with over 300 million downloads and seven years of global operation equips them to help other creators scale without diluting the emotional impact of their work.
By understanding each game's emotional truth, building around its community, and allowing genuine resonance to drive growth, Thatgamepublisher aims to help projects reach broader audiences while staying true to the feelings at their core.