Thatgamecompany, the creative force behind acclaimed titles such as Flow, Flower, Journey, and Sky: Children of the Light, has announced the formation of a new publishing division called Thatgamepublisher. This move follows a growing pattern among independent studios that have scored breakout hits and are now expanding into publishing or funding roles to uplift 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, known for Phasmophobia, which introduced Kinetic Publishing and is supporting titles such as Precognition from Sam Barlow; Pocketpair, the studio behind Palworld, which started Pocketpair Publishing; and Landfall Games, the developers of Peak, which formed the Evil Landfall label. The trend reflects a broader shift in the industry where successful indie developers use their newfound financial resources to nurture the next generation of innovative games.
"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 of people 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 drove the studio into bankruptcy and resulted in a wave of layoffs. The situation is dramatically different today.
Sky: Children of the Light, released in 2019, has become a massive hit worldwide, especially in China, and has even inspired a feature film. The revenue generated by Sky now gives Thatgamecompany the financial freedom to allocate profits toward what it calls "emotionally ambitious games." Chen also points out that the distribution landscape has shifted dramatically since Journey's era. Back then, platforms like PlayStation controlled the primary channels for reaching players.
Today, "the distribution network is owned by the players, who are influencers." A successful indie title can amass millions of dedicated fans who become its most effective promotional engine. "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." Another distinguishing factor for Thatgamecompany is its audience demographic. Chen notes that the studio enjoys a considerably larger female player base than most other game companies, with roughly 70 % of Sky's users identifying as women.
This unique overlap means that a game appealing equally to men and women could resonate strongly with an audience that includes many newcomers to gaming. Thatgamepublisher has already signed a "couple" of projects, though the titles remain under wraps. In a 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 size are not primary concerns. "The typical genre or platform restrictions would not apply to us," Xue said. "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." "'Emotional' can mean many things," Xue continued. "It can be 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." While many indie publishers focus on sub‑million‑dollar budgets, Thatgamepublisher is prepared to support larger undertakings. "We are quite flexible when it comes to funding and project scale," Xue explained.
"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 and recoup terms—will be tailored to the individual project's needs. Xue stressed that, as developers themselves, the team understands the importance of fair, transparent, and developer‑friendly agreements that still provide the resources necessary to realize a game's full potential. Thatgamepublisher is positioning itself as a full‑service publisher, offering not only funding but also production planning, platform and launch strategy, marketing, community management, and long‑term IP development.
This contrasts with some newer indie publishers that adopt a modular, funding‑only approach. Luke Keighran, founder of Silver Lining Interactive, recently told GamesIndustry.biz that "the old school publishing model is dead" and that developers now pick and choose the services they need—be it marketing, console conversion assistance, or full‑scale publishing support. Xue echoed this flexibility, noting that Thatgamepublisher can adapt its involvement based on a developer's requirements, whether that means a modular arrangement focused solely on financing or a deeper partnership covering creative development, production, positioning, marketing, community building, and platform strategy. He argued that emotionally ambitious projects often benefit from an integrated partnership because the creative core, production pipeline, and audience outreach are tightly interwoven.
By staying involved across these domains, the publisher can protect the game's emotional heart and help the team carry that vision all the way to players. Ultimately, the goal is to meet each project where it stands and shape the partnership around what will be most useful to the developer. Xue summed up the philosophy behind the venture: "Games can connect people through shared emotional experiences and bring out the best in us. 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." He added that emotionally ambitious games often require a distinct 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 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 understands how to scale deeply felt experiences without diluting their meaning.
"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.