Thatgamecompany, the creative force behind acclaimed titles such as Flow, Flower, Journey, and the recent hit Sky: Children of the Light, has announced the formation of a new publishing division called Thatgamepublisher. This move follows a growing pattern in the indie sector where studios that have scored a breakout success expand into publishing or funding roles to uplift other independent developers. Recent examples include Innersloth, the creators of Among Us, which started Outersloth in 2024 to back games like Clickolding and The Horror at Highrook; Kinetic Games, known for Phasmophobia, which launched Kinetic Publishing with titles such as Precognition from Sam Barlow; Pocketpair, the studio behind Palworld, which introduced Pocketpair Publishing; and Landfall Games, the makers of Peak, which rolled out the Evil Landfall label.
The trend reflects a desire among small teams to reinvest their windfalls into projects they understand and love. "Successful indie games are often built on shoestring budgets," explains Jenova Chen, co‑founder of Thatgamecompany. "When a title takes off, you suddenly have extra cash, but you don’t want to turn your tight‑knit studio into a massive corporation.
The logical place to put that money is into other indie games you know well, which is why many independent studios are becoming publishers." Thatgamecompany’s own history illustrates how precarious the path can be. When Journey launched in 2012, the company was nearly bankrupted and had to lay off most of its staff, a fact Chen recounted to GamesIndustry.biz earlier this year.
The situation is dramatically different now. Sky: Children of the Light, released in 2019, has become a global phenomenon—especially in China—and even inspired a feature‑film adaptation. The revenue generated by Sky has given Thatgamecompany the financial breathing room to fund what it calls "emotionally ambitious" games. Chen also points out that the distribution landscape has shifted dramatically.
In the era of Journey, platforms like PlayStation controlled the primary channels for reaching players. Today, the distribution network is effectively owned by the players themselves, who act as influencers and word‑of‑mouth marketers. A successful indie title can amass millions of fans who become the most powerful promotional engine, often surpassing traditional media outlets such as GameSpot, IGN, or even Steam.
Another distinctive advantage for Thatgamecompany is its audience demographic. "We have a significantly larger female player base than most other game companies," Chen notes, citing that roughly 70 % of Sky’s users are women. This gender‑balanced community offers a unique crossover potential for games that appeal to both male and female gamers, many of whom may be newcomers to the medium. While specific titles under Thatgamepublisher have not yet been disclosed, Chen outlined the publisher’s philosophy in a press release: "When we first started making games, many doubted whether 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. 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 initiative, told GamesIndustry.biz that the studio is searching for projects that "move people through play." He emphasized that genre, platform, or team size are not limiting factors.
"We are open to any team, any stage of development, even early prototypes," Xue said. "What matters is whether the game reaches for meaningful emotional territory and uses interactivity to guide players there." Xue clarified that "emotional" can encompass a wide spectrum—from joy and chaos to humor—so long as the experience lingers after the console is turned off. This focus on lasting impact guides the publisher’s selection criteria.
Unlike many indie publishers that concentrate on sub‑$1 million projects, Thatgamepublisher is prepared to back larger, AA‑scale endeavors. "We are flexible regarding funding and project scale," Xue explained. "We can work with solo creators bursting with imagination or larger teams needing AA‑level budgets." The terms of each publishing deal will be tailored to the specific needs of the project.
Xue highlighted that, as developers themselves, the Thatgamecompany team understands the importance of fair, transparent, and developer‑friendly agreements that provide the necessary support to realize a game’s full potential. Thatgamepublisher will operate as a full‑service publisher, offering not only capital but also production planning, platform strategy, launch coordination, marketing, community management, and long‑term IP development. This comprehensive approach contrasts with other indie publishers—such as Outersloth or Evil Landfall—that often adopt a funding‑only model. The industry is moving toward modular publishing, where developers can pick and choose services they need, a shift echoed by Luke Keighran of Silver Lining Interactive, who described the old‑school publishing model as "dead." Xue reiterated that Thatgamepublisher can adapt its involvement based on a developer’s requirements, providing modular options for funding, marketing, or other support.
However, for emotionally ambitious titles, he believes an integrated partnership yields the greatest value because creative development, production, positioning, marketing, community engagement, and platform strategy are tightly interwoven. The ultimate goal, according to Xue, is to meet each project where it stands and shape the partnership around what will be most useful for the developer.
He cites the studio’s core belief that games can forge shared emotional experiences and bring out the best in people. This philosophy has guided every Thatgamecompany title—from Flow and Flower to Journey and Sky. "We know that emotionally ambitious games often need a different playbook," Xue said. "The heart of a project may not be obvious at the outset; it can emerge through prototypes, iteration, quiet discoveries, and the right conversations.
Our role is to protect that process, giving developers space, guidance, and alignment to uncover the strongest version of their work." Drawing on its experience running Sky: Children of the Light as a live‑service title with over 300 million downloads and seven years of global operation, Thatgamepublisher believes it can help other creators scale their emotionally resonant experiences without diluting their core feeling. By understanding each game's emotional truth, building from 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 heart.