South Australia Invests $2 Million Into Local Video Game Development

The South Australian government has announced it will invest $2 million into video game development, with $1.55 million going funding new development and another $450,000 towards the creation of a co-working space called Game Plus.

Announced late on Friday evening, the release on the South Australian Premier’s website says that the fund was established following feedback from industry.

The grants portion of the fund will total $1.55 million, with grants available for skills development (up to $20,000 a piece), marketing (from $5000 to $15,000) and production ($15,000 to $50,000).

The latter is perhaps the most significant, as the production grant is targeted to help studios employ “additional staff with specialist skills, acquire hardware or software, or cover other genuine production-associated costs for creating new content”. Studios applying for the production grant, however, will have to match the funds “on a 2:1 basis”.

The full announcement is as follows:

Funded under the South Australian Game Development Fund (SAGDF), the strategy was developed in response to industry feedback and outlines a three-tiered grant program with grants of up to $50,000 available. The grants will help game development companies to produce globally competitive content, execute marketing plans for their games in target markets, and create original, South Australian-owned intellectual property. The South Australian Government has also invested $450,000 to help establish Game Plus, a game development co-working space on Pirie Street, which provides a hub for digital entrepreneurs to co-locate and share knowledge, resources and opportunities. Game Plus anchor tenant, Mighty Kingdom, has recently relocated to the new premises with the company set to launch its new Kitty Keeper digital game on to the United States market with support from a $480,000 Future Jobs Fund State Government grant. The government grant will assist Mighty Kingdom with the completion, marketing and regular content updates of the Kitty Keeper game, which has created 16 new jobs. The State Government’s Innovation Showcase will be held at the Adelaide Convention Centre and will invite key industry leaders, start-ups and researchers to network and learn about the world-leading ideas, products and services being developed in South Australia. The event will feature 12 exhibitors spanning health and medical, space, animation, mixed reality, gaming, 3D volumetric and defence and drone technology. The SAGDF has been established to support South Australia’s entrepreneurs and businesses to create high quality digital games and target new markets. The fund is expected to create up to 500 new local jobs and position South Australia as a national leader in the growing industry. A total of $1.55 million will be available across three grant categories: Production – Grants from $15,000 up to $50,000 to employ additional staff with specialist skills, acquire hardware or software, or cover other genuine production-associated costs for creating new content. Production grants must be matched on a 2:1 basis.

Marketing – Grants from $5,000 up to $15,000 to develop and execute marketing plans for games in target markets.

Skills development – Grants of up to $20,000 for game developers to attend conferences and speaker events and to grow their industry capability through training, scholarships, mentorships and event sponsorship.

Any developers or studios interested in applying for the new grants can find more information on the Innovation in South Australia website.