Thatgamecompany, the creative force behind acclaimed titles such as Flow, Flower, Journey, and the recent 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 scoring a breakout hit, choose to leverage their newfound resources by supporting other indie developers. Recent examples include Innersloth’s Outersloth, which backed games like Clickolding and The Horror at Highrook; Kinetic Games’ Kinetic Publishing, home to Sam Barlow’s latest Precognition; Pocketpair’s Pocketpair Publishing; and Landfall Games’ Evil Landfall label. Jenova Chen, co‑founder of Thatgamecompany, explains that the shift is almost inevitable for small studios that suddenly find themselves with surplus capital.
"When an indie title takes off, the cash flow can be overwhelming, but we don’t want to morph into a massive corporation overnight. The sensible choice is to invest in areas we understand—namely, other indie games," he said. The company’s own history underscores the significance of this transition. When Journey launched in 2012, it nearly drove the studio to bankruptcy, prompting a wave of layoffs.
In contrast, Sky: Children of the Light, released in 2019, has become a global phenomenon, especially in the Chinese market, and even inspired a feature film. The revenue generated by Sky now enables Thatgamecompany to fund what it calls "emotionally ambitious" projects.
Chen also notes a fundamental change in how games reach audiences. In the era of Journey, distribution channels were dominated by platform holders like PlayStation.
Today, the distribution network belongs to the players themselves, who act as influencers and word‑of‑mouth marketers. "A successful indie title can amass millions of fans who become its most powerful distribution engine," Chen asserts. This democratization of reach gives indie studios the confidence to act as publishers, as they already possess a built‑in audience that craves similar experiences. Another differentiator for Thatgamecompany is its unusually high proportion of female players—about 70 % of Sky’s user base is women.
"We have a unique demographic that bridges both male and female gamers, many of whom are new to gaming altogether," Chen explains. This overlap creates an ideal platform for promoting titles that appeal across gender lines. While specific titles under Thatgamepublisher remain under wraps, Chen outlined the publisher’s philosophy in a press release: "When we first began making games, many doubted that interactive experiences could move people as deeply as film, literature, or music. Over the years, games have proven they can forge lifelong friendships, heal personal struggles, reconnect loved ones, and restore hope.
Thatgamepublisher exists because we believe countless creators worldwide are exploring new emotional frontiers, 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 looking for games that "move people through play." He emphasizes that genre, platform, or team size are irrelevant; what matters is whether a game can linger in a player’s mind after the console is turned off. "Emotional can mean joyful, chaotic, even funny. The through line is always: will this stay with someone after the screen goes dark? If a game is chasing that, we want to have the conversation," Xue said.
Unlike many indie publishers that limit themselves to sub‑million‑dollar budgets, Thatgamepublisher is prepared to back larger, AA‑level projects. "We are flexible on funding and scale. Whether you are a solo creator with a brilliant concept or a larger team with a substantial budget, we’re open to working with you," Xue explained.
The terms of each deal will be tailored to the specific needs of the project, with a focus on fairness, transparency, and developer‑friendly arrangements. Thatgamepublisher will operate as a full‑service publisher, offering not only capital but also production planning, platform strategy, marketing, community management, and long‑term IP development. This comprehensive approach contrasts with other indie publishers like Outersloth and Evil Landfall, which often adopt a modular, funding‑only model.
Luke Keighran of Silver Lining Interactive remarked that the traditional publishing model is dead, and developers now pick and choose the services they require. Xue echoed this sentiment, stating that Thatgamepublisher can provide modular support for funding, marketing, or any other specific need, but prefers integrated partnerships for emotionally ambitious projects where creative development, production, positioning, and community strategy are tightly intertwined.
The core belief driving the new label is that games have the power to connect people through shared emotional experiences. "That belief has shaped everything we’ve made—from Flow and Flower to Journey and Sky—but we know the journey is bigger than a single studio. Creators worldwide are pushing the boundaries of what games can make us feel, and we want to help those ideas reach players," Xue said.
He added that emotionally driven games often require a distinct playbook, with the heart of the project emerging through prototypes, iteration, and quiet discovery. Thatgamepublisher’s role is to protect that process, providing room, guidance, and alignment to help developers uncover the strongest version of their work. Drawing on its experience running Sky: Children of the Light—a live‑service title with over 300 million downloads and seven years of global operation—Thatgamepublisher believes it can scale heartfelt experiences without diluting their impact. By understanding each game’s emotional truth, building around its community, and allowing genuine resonance to drive growth, the publisher aims to help projects reach broader audiences while staying true to the feelings at their core.