Mark Cerny, the veteran architect behind both the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5, and Geoff Keighley, the well‑known host of The Game Awards, Summer Game Fest and Opening Night Live, have joined forces to create the Nova Games Foundation. This initiative is a philanthropic fellowship designed specifically to back up‑and‑coming talent in the video‑game industry. While the foundation shares its founders’ high‑profile names, it operates independently of The Game Awards ceremony and has no formal ties to Sony’s PlayStation brand.
According to reporting from Game File, the Nova Games Foundation will distribute a total of $100,000 in grant money to twenty young designers each year. Roughly one‑quarter of those recipients will be eligible for an extra award of up to $500,000 for projects that demonstrate exceptional promise or a particularly innovative vision. The financial support is paired with mentorship from seasoned professionals, giving awardees the chance to learn directly from industry veterans while retaining full ownership of their intellectual property.
In other words, developers keep the rights to their games and are free to seek publishing deals or platform partnerships of their choosing; Nova will simply act as a connector, introducing creators to potential partners when appropriate. The application window opens in December and will remain open through the graduating classes of 2026 and 2027 from a curated network of thirteen university programs across eight different countries.
Among the participating schools are TH Köln in Germany, RMIT University in Australia, CNAM‑ENJMIN in France, Abertay University in Scotland, and two U.S. institutions—New York University and the University of Southern California.
By targeting graduates from these programs, the foundation hopes to capture a diverse pool of talent that reflects a broad range of cultural perspectives and design philosophies. Both Cerny and Keighley are personally underwriting the foundation with multi‑million‑dollar contributions and have indicated that they intend to continue injecting capital as the organization expands. Keighley emphasized the purely altruistic nature of the effort in an interview with Game File, stating, "Nova is philanthropy: we aren't taking equity or looking to recoup the grants.
The return we're hoping for is creative – helping new voices make games and find their footing." In other words, the founders are not seeking a financial stake in the projects they fund; instead, they measure success by the artistic impact and the emergence of fresh, innovative voices in the medium. To manage day‑to‑day operations, the foundation has hired John Maconga as its executive director.
Former Game Developers Conference director Ashley Corrigan has been appointed head of grants, bringing her extensive experience in evaluating and supporting game development initiatives. In addition, Josef Fares—renowned for directing It Takes Two and Split Fiction—has pledged both a monetary donation and ongoing support for the program.
"I'm proud to support Nova because it gives the next generation of creators the freedom to explore their creativity and hopefully bring their unique visions to life," Fares said, underscoring the collaborative spirit that the foundation hopes to foster. Cerny articulated a broader artistic mission for Nova, describing games as an "artistic medium" that deserves the same kind of patronage traditionally reserved for music, film, or visual arts. He cited several critically acclaimed titles—Neva, Abzu, Gorogoa, Stray, and Outer Wilds—as exemplars of the type of work the foundation wishes to enable. These games share a common thread: they push the boundaries of interactivity, storytelling, and aesthetic design, often delivering experiences that linger long after the console is turned off.
Keighley’s inspiration for the fellowship model stems from a blend of personal experience and admiration for existing grant programs. He recalled his own unsuccessful attempt to secure a Rhodes Scholarship, which sparked his interest in creating alternative pathways for talented individuals. He also pointed to the MacArthur Foundation’s "genius grants" and the career of Jenova Chen—USC graduate and creator of the poetic titles Flower and Journey—as guiding lights.
By marrying the rigor of academic scholarships with the flexibility of industry mentorship, Nova aims to fill a gap that many young developers currently face: the lack of substantial, non‑dilutive funding that also offers guidance from seasoned creators. In practice, a Nova fellowship recipient will receive a lump‑sum grant that can be allocated toward development costs, software licenses, hiring freelance talent, or any other expense that moves the project forward. The mentorship component includes regular check‑ins with assigned advisors, workshops on topics ranging from narrative design to business strategy, and networking events that bring together alumni, investors, and publishers.
Because the foundation does not claim equity, developers retain the freedom to negotiate publishing deals on their own terms, potentially securing better revenue shares or creative control. The establishment of the Nova Games Foundation signals a growing recognition within the gaming ecosystem that nurturing new talent requires more than just exposure at festivals or competitions.
Sustainable financial backing, coupled with mentorship and industry connections, can dramatically accelerate the development cycle and improve the odds that a small studio or solo creator will bring a polished, market‑ready product to the public. As the industry continues to mature, initiatives like Nova may become a cornerstone of the creative pipeline, ensuring that the next wave of games continues to surprise, challenge, and inspire players worldwide.