Thatgamecompany, the creative force behind celebrated titles such as Flow, Flower, Journey and the recent hit Sky: Children of the Light, has announced the formation of a new publishing division named Thatgamepublisher. This move mirrors a broader industry pattern where successful independent studios leverage their financial windfalls to become publishers or investors for other indie projects. Recent examples include Innersloth’s Outersloth (launched in 2024) which backs games like Clickolding and The Horror at Highrook, Kinetic Games’ Kinetic Publishing (home to titles such as Precognition from Sam Barlow), Pocketpair’s Pocketpair Publishing, and Landfall Games’ Evil Landfall label, among many others.
"It’s 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‑person 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, the studio was far from flush with cash. Chen has recounted to GamesIndustry.biz that the development of Journey nearly bankrupted the company and forced a mass lay‑off.
The situation has shifted dramatically since then. Sky: Children of the Light, released in 2019, has become a global phenomenon—particularly in the Chinese market—and even inspired a feature‑film adaptation. The revenue generated by Sky now enables Thatgamecompany to allocate profits toward what it describes as "emotionally ambitious games." Chen also notes a fundamental change in distribution dynamics. In the era of Journey, console manufacturers such as Sony controlled the primary channels for reaching players.
Today, however, 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 dedicated fans who become its most powerful promotional engine, often surpassing traditional media outlets like GameSpot, IGN, or even Steam in reach. Another distinctive advantage for Thatgamecompany is its audience composition.
"We have a much bigger female audience reach than most of the game companies in the world," Chen says, pointing out that roughly 70 % of Sky’s player base is female. This demographic overlap creates a unique platform for promoting games that appeal to both men and women, especially those who may be new to gaming altogether. 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 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 lead 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 label will not limit their interest. "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." Xue elaborated that "emotional" can encompass joy, chaos, humor, or any feeling that lingers after the screen goes dark.
The publisher is willing to back both modest indie efforts—typically under $1 million budgets—and larger AA‑scale productions. "We are quite flexible when it comes to funding and project scale," he said. "We are open to working with everyone from solo developers with immense creativity to larger teams with 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, they understand the importance of fair, transparent, and developer‑friendly partnerships. Thatgamepublisher will operate as a full‑service publisher, offering financing, production planning, platform and launch strategy, marketing, community management, and long‑term IP development. This contrasts with some indie publishers that adopt a funding‑only or modular model, allowing developers to pick and choose services such as marketing, console conversion assistance, or additional funding.
Xue explained that for emotionally ambitious projects, an integrated partnership often yields the best results. "Creative development, production, positioning, marketing, community, and platform strategy are often deeply interconnected. Being involved across those areas allows us to bring the most value, protect the emotional core of the game, and help the team carry that vision all the way to players," he said.
"Ultimately, we want to meet each project where it is and shape the partnership around what will be most useful to the developer." The underlying philosophy driving Thatgamepublisher is the belief that games can forge powerful shared emotional experiences. "That belief has shaped everything Thatgamecompany has made, from Flow and Flower to Journey and Sky: Children of the Light," Xue noted.
"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." Drawing on their experience running Sky: Children of the Light—a live‑service title with over 300 million downloads and seven years of global operation—the team understands how to scale heartfelt experiences without diluting their impact. By focusing on the emotional truth of each game, nurturing its community, and allowing genuine resonance to drive growth, Thatgamepublisher aims to help each project reach a wider audience while staying true to the feeling at its heart.