How Indie Game Incubator seeks to take Japanese indies global

gamesindustry.biz:

Success as an indie developer is tough. For every game that finds critical and commercial acclaim another ten projects fail to make a profit for the creators who put years of their lives into their art.

Behind that are another ten projects that dream of a shot at commercial success, but lack the experience needed to polish their prototypes into a finished product, or lack the connections needed to reach publishers who can elevate the profile of their games above the sea of also-rans. Game incubators are one way of bridging this gap.

Programs such as the MENA Hero Project or NYU Game Center Incubator are run with one goal in mind: transform small independent game projects into polished, launched games, connecting first-time and smaller creators with industry veterans and investors. Workshops, co-working spaces, and even funding are usually provided via these programs, to help creators dedicate greater time and refine their work for commercial release.

Especially in developing regions or those with a smaller indie scene, incubators can be a way to grow the industry and provide a platform to put the country on the map. As Japan's indie scene continues to grow, it should come as no surprise that new game incubators are looking to support ambitious creators looking to take their games to the next level.

The Indie Game Incubator was established in 2021 as a joint initiative managed by Marvelous Entertainment, Ludimus (a consulting company in the realms of anime, manga, and games) and Head-High, a development tools creator founded by indie creator Takaaki Ichijo. They also manage the Indie Developers Conference and Japanese indie gaming news resource indiegamesjp.dev.

This six-month incubator includes mentoring and workshops, and a publishing event to connect the incubated developers with publishers from Japan and around the world like Room6, Devolver Digital, and TinyBuild. It additionally focuses on bridging the language gaps that have typically held Japanese games back from