Thatgamecompany, the acclaimed creator of titles such as Flow, Flower, Journey, and the widely beloved Sky: Children of the Light, has announced the formation of a new publishing division called Thatgamepublisher. This move follows a growing pattern among successful independent studios that, after scoring a breakout hit, branch out into publishing or funding to uplift other indie developers. Recent examples include Innersloth, the minds behind Among Us, which launched Outersloth in 2024 to support games like Clickolding and The Horror at Highrook; Kinetic Games, known for Phasmophobia, which started Kinetic Publishing with a slate that features Sam Barlow’s latest, Precognition; Pocketpair, the studio behind Palworld, which introduced Pocketpair Publishing; and Landfall Games, the creators of Peak, which formed the Evil Landfall label. The trend reflects a broader industry shift where creators who have amassed capital and expertise choose to reinvest that wealth back into the indie ecosystem.
"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, Chen recalls that the studio was on the brink of financial ruin, with the project's costs nearly bankrupting the company and prompting a wave of layoffs. The situation has dramatically reversed in the years since.
Sky: Children of the Light, released in 2019, has become a global phenomenon, especially in China, and even inspired a feature film. The revenue generated by Sky now provides Thatgamecompany with the resources to back what Chen describes as "emotionally ambitious games"—projects that aim to move players on a deeper level than pure mechanics. Chen also points out a shift in how games reach audiences. In the early 2010s, distribution channels were dominated by platform holders such as Sony.
Today, however, the distribution network is effectively owned by the players themselves, who act as influencers and word‑of‑mouth promoters. "A successful indie title could have millions of players, who are your strongest distribution," Chen says. "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 distinctive advantage for Thatgamecompany is its demographic reach.
Roughly 70 % of Sky’s player base is female, giving the studio a considerably larger female audience than most game companies. Chen believes this creates a unique overlap when promoting titles that appeal to both men and women, especially since many of their players are newcomers to gaming. Thatgamepublisher has already signed a "couple" of projects, though details 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 effort, told GamesIndustry.biz that the studio is hunting for games that "move people through play." He emphasized that genre, platform, or team size are irrelevant; what matters is whether a game can reach a meaningful emotional space and linger with players after the console is turned off. "'Emotional' can mean many things – 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," Xue explained. While many indie publishers concentrate on titles with sub‑million‑dollar budgets, Thatgamepublisher is prepared to fund larger endeavors. Xue noted that the company is "quite flexible when it comes to funding and project scale," welcoming solo creators with big ideas as well as teams working on AA‑level budgets.
The specifics of each publishing agreement, such as revenue share and recoupment terms, will be tailored to the individual project. "As developers ourselves, we understand how important it is to build partnerships that are fair, transparent, and developer‑friendly, while giving teams the support they need to realise the strongest version of their game," he added. 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 contrasts with some newer indie publishers that adopt a modular, funding‑only model.
Luke Keighran, founder of Silver Lining Interactive, remarked that "the old school publishing model is dead," and that developers now choose the specific services they need—whether that’s marketing, console conversion assistance, or full‑scale publishing support. Xue reiterated that Thatgamepublisher can provide modular arrangements, but for projects with an emotional ambition, an integrated partnership often yields the best results.
By being involved across creative development, production, positioning, marketing, community building, and platform strategy, the publisher can protect the game's emotional core and help the team bring that vision to a broad audience. Ultimately, the philosophy driving Thatgamepublisher is the belief that games can forge deep, shared emotional experiences that bring out the best in people. Chen summed it up: "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." The new publishing arm aims to nurture projects that may not fit conventional commercial molds but have the potential to resonate profoundly with players.
By leveraging its own experience running Sky as an emotional live‑service game—with over 300 million downloads and seven years of global operation—Thatgamecompany hopes to demonstrate how heartfelt experiences can achieve scale without sacrificing authenticity. Through this initiative, the studio seeks to empower developers to discover and refine the emotional truth of their games, providing the resources, infrastructure, and compassionate partnership needed to bring those visions to life.