Thatgamecompany, the creative force behind 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 indie studios that, after achieving a breakout title, begin to diversify into publishing or funding roles to uplift other independent projects. Earlier examples include Innersloth, the creators of Among Us, which launched Outersloth in 2024 to back games like Clickolding and The Horror at Highrook. Likewise, Kinetic Games, known for Phasmophobia, started Kinetic Publishing, adding titles such as Precognition by Sam Barlow to its roster.
Pocketpair, the studio behind Palworld, has introduced Pocketpair Publishing, while Landfall Games, the team behind Peak, now operates the Evil Landfall label. The trend demonstrates how indie developers leverage newfound capital to nurture a broader ecosystem of games.
Jenova Chen, co‑founder of Thatgamecompany, explains the rationale: "When an indie title that was built on a shoestring budget becomes a massive success, you suddenly have a surplus of cash. Yet, you don’t want to balloon into a massive corporation.
The logical place to invest that money is in areas you understand best—other indie games. That’s why many indie studios are turning to publishing." The financial reality was stark for Thatgamecompany back in 2012 when Journey launched. Chen has recounted that the development of Journey nearly pushed the studio to bankruptcy, resulting in widespread layoffs.
However, the landscape has shifted dramatically since then. 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 gives Thatgamecompany the means to allocate funds toward what it terms "emotionally ambitious" games. Distribution channels have also evolved.
Chen notes that during Journey’s era, distribution was dominated by platform holders like PlayStation. Today, "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 surpassing traditional media outlets such as GameSpot, IGN, or even Steam in reach.
This player‑driven distribution empowers indie studios to act as publishers, leveraging their own communities to amplify new releases. Another distinctive advantage for Thatgamecompany lies in its audience demographics.
Chen points out that roughly 70 % of Sky’s player base is female, giving the studio a broader gender reach than many competitors. "If we highlight a game that appeals equally to men and women, we tap into a unique overlap, because many of our players are newcomers to gaming," he says. Thatgamepublisher has already signed a handful 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 questioned whether interactive experiences could move players as profoundly as film, literature, or music.
Over the years, games have proven their capacity to forge lifelong friendships, heal personal struggles, reconnect loved ones, and restore hope. Those moments convinced us that games can touch lives in deep ways.
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 effort, told GamesIndustry.biz that the studio is searching for titles that "move people through play." He emphasizes that genre, platform, or size are not primary criteria. "We are open to any team, at any stage, even prototypes, as long as the game reaches for meaningful emotional territory and uses interactivity to carry players there," Xue explains. "Emotional can mean joyful, chaotic, or even humorous. The key question is: will this stay with someone after the screen goes dark?
If so, we want to talk." While many indie publishers focus on sub‑million‑dollar budgets, Thatgamepublisher is willing to back larger, AA‑level projects. Xue states, "We are flexible with funding and project scale, from solo creators with big ideas to larger teams with AA budgets." The terms of each publishing deal will be tailored to the project's needs. Xue notes that, as developers themselves, they understand the importance of fair, transparent, and developer‑friendly partnerships that give teams the resources to realize the strongest version of their game. Thatgamepublisher is positioning itself as a full‑service publisher, offering financing, production planning, platform strategy, marketing, community management, and long‑term IP development.
This contrasts with some indie publishers that adopt a funding‑only or modular approach. Luke Keighran of Silver Lining Interactive observed that "the old school publishing model is dead," and modern developers can pick and choose services—whether it’s marketing, console conversion assistance, or full‑scale support.
Xue reiterates that Thatgamepublisher can provide modular arrangements but believes that emotionally ambitious projects often benefit from an integrated partnership. By being involved across creative development, production, positioning, marketing, community, and platform strategy, the publisher can protect the emotional core of a game and help the team bring that vision to players.
Ultimately, the goal is to meet each project where it stands and shape the partnership around what will be most useful for the developer. Xue ties this back to the studio’s founding philosophy: "Games can connect people through shared emotional experiences and bring out the best in us." He reminds that this belief has guided everything Thatgamecompany has made—from Flow and Flower to Journey and Sky. The company now seeks to extend that legacy by supporting creators worldwide who are pushing the emotional boundaries of the medium.
In Chen’s words, "We learned that emotionally ambitious games often need a different playbook. The heart of a project may emerge through prototypes, iteration, quiet discoveries, and the right creative conversations.
Our role is to protect that process, give developers space, guidance, and alignment, and help them discover the strongest version of their work." With over 300 million downloads of Sky: Children of the Light and seven years of operating an emotional live‑service game globally, Thatgamecompany has proven that deeply felt experiences can scale without losing their meaning. By understanding each game's emotional truth, building from its community, and allowing genuine resonance to create growth over time, Thatgamepublisher aims to help every project reach farther while staying true to the feeling at its heart.