Thatgamecompany, the creative force behind celebrated titles such as Flow, Flower, Journey, and the widely adored Sky: Children of the Light, has taken a decisive step beyond development by establishing its own publishing division, dubbed Thatgamepublisher. This move mirrors a growing pattern in the independent‑game ecosystem, where studios that have scored a breakout hit leverage their newfound capital and industry clout to nurture other creators. Recent examples include Innersloth, the minds behind the viral sensation Among Us, which launched Outersloth in 2024 to back games like Clickolding and The Horror at Highrook; Kinetic Games, the team behind Phasmophobia, which introduced Kinetic Publishing and is already supporting projects such as Precognition from Sam Barlow’s Immortality studio; Pocketpair, known for Palworld, which now runs Pocketpair Publishing; and Landfall Games, the developers of Peak, which created the Evil Landfall label.
The trend reflects a broader shift: successful indie studios often find themselves with surplus cash after a hit, yet they prefer to stay lean rather than balloon into a large corporate entity. As Jenova Chen, co‑founder of Thatgamecompany, explained, “When an indie game that was built on a shoestring budget suddenly generates massive revenue, you end up with cash you didn’t anticipate.
You don’t want to turn a small, tight‑knit team into a thousand‑person corporation, so you look for ways to invest that money in areas you understand—namely, other indie games.” The financial landscape was dramatically different when Journey launched in 2012. Chen has recounted that the ambitious project nearly drove the studio to bankruptcy, forcing a wave of layoffs across the company. Fast forward to the present, and the picture has changed entirely.
Sky: Children of the Light, released in 2019, has become a global phenomenon, especially in the Chinese market, and has even inspired a feature‑film adaptation. The sustained revenue stream from Sky now equips Thatgamecompany with the resources to fund what it calls “emotionally ambitious games,” projects that aim to touch players on a deeper, more personal level.
Chen also notes a seismic shift in how games reach audiences. In the early 2010s, distribution channels were largely controlled by platform owners such as Sony’s PlayStation network. Today, the distribution power has migrated to the players themselves, who act as influencers and organic marketers.
A successful indie title can amass millions of players who, in turn, become the most effective distribution engine—far surpassing traditional media outlets like GameSpot, IGN, or even Steam’s curated recommendations. "Your community becomes your marketing department," Chen said, emphasizing that modern indie studios possess a distribution reach that rivals legacy publishers.
Another distinctive advantage for Thatgamecompany lies in its demographic profile. Roughly 70 % of Sky’s player base identifies as female, giving the studio a uniquely balanced audience compared to many other developers.
Chen believes this gender‑diverse community can serve as a bridge for games that appeal to both men and women, especially those that attract newcomers to gaming. "When we highlight a title that resonates equally across genders, we tap into an audience that often includes people who have never played a game before," he explained. Although Thatgamepublisher has kept its initial slate under wraps, Chen confirmed that a “couple” of titles have already been signed. In the official press release, he articulated the publisher’s mission: "When we first began making games, many doubted whether interactive experiences could move players as profoundly as film, literature, or music.
Over the years, we’ve witnessed games forge lifelong friendships, heal personal struggles, reconnect loved ones, and restore hope. Those moments convinced us that games can touch lives in profound 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, elaborated on the types of projects the studio is hunting. He told GamesIndustry.biz that the primary criterion is not genre, platform, or budget size, but the ability of a game to “move people through play.” Xue stressed that the publisher is open to any team—from solo developers with a singular creative spark to larger studios capable of handling AA‑level budgets. "What matters is whether the experience stays with someone after the screen goes dark," he said. "Emotional impact can be joyful, chaotic, even humorous, but the core question is lasting resonance." In contrast to many indie publishers that limit themselves to funding, Thatgamepublisher is positioning itself as a full‑service partner.
The studio will provide financing, production planning, platform strategy, launch support, marketing, community management, and long‑term intellectual‑property development. This comprehensive approach differentiates it from models like Outersloth’s or Evil Landfall’s, which often adopt a modular, funding‑only structure.
Luke Keighran, founder of Silver Lining Interactive, has observed that “the old school publishing model is dead; developers now pick and choose the services they need, whether that’s marketing, console porting, or pure capital.” Xue echoed this sentiment, stating that Thatgamepublisher can tailor its involvement to each project's specific requirements, offering modular arrangements when appropriate while also being prepared to engage deeply across all development stages for projects that demand an integrated partnership. When discussing why developers might choose Thatgamepublisher, Xue highlighted the studio’s foundational philosophy: games are a conduit for shared emotional experiences that can bring out the best in people. He pointed to the company’s own portfolio—Flow’s meditative rhythm, Flower’s poetic interaction, Journey’s evocative pilgrimage, and Sky’s communal exploration—as proof that Thatgamecompany understands how to craft experiences that resonate emotionally. Yet he acknowledged that scaling that expertise beyond a single studio requires collaboration with other creators who are pushing the boundaries of feeling in games.
Xue also described the practical support the publisher will offer. Because the team at Thatgamecompany has operated Sky: Children of the Light as a live‑service title with over 300 million downloads and seven years of global operation, they possess deep knowledge of how to sustain an emotionally driven game at scale without diluting its core sentiment. "We know how to nurture a game’s emotional truth, build around its community, and let genuine resonance drive growth over time," Xue said.
"Our role is to protect the creative process, give developers the space and guidance they need, and align resources so the final product stays true to its heart while reaching the widest possible audience." In summary, Thatgamepublisher represents a strategic evolution for Thatgamecompany: leveraging the financial success of Sky to empower other studios, capitalizing on a modern distribution landscape where players are the primary promoters, and drawing on a uniquely gender‑balanced audience to champion games that aim for lasting emotional impact. By offering flexible, full‑service publishing solutions, the studio hopes to foster a new wave of games that not only entertain but also linger in the hearts and minds of players long after the console is turned off.