Screen Australia today announced the recipients of A$1.6 million worth of video game funding. This amount will be divided between 12 applicants for the Game Production Fund and 15 applicants for the Emerging Game Makers Fund. The funded projects chart a variety of topics and genres that reflect the creativity and talent of Australia’s local games development scene.
The Games Production Fund, the Emerging Game Makers Fund and the GDC Oriented Future Leaders Delegation were established in October 2023 with support from the Federal Government’s new National Cultural Policy. As part of this policy, Screen Australia will be provided with gaming funding totaling A$12 million over four years.
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“Australia has a proud history of game development dating back to The Hobbit. What this (funding) will do is support the future of Australian game development and ensure you don’t miss the next Unpacking or Untitled Goose Game. ,” Arts Minister Tony Burke said in a press release.
“Many of these games may not be set in Australia, or even around the globe, but they showcase the best of Australian creativity and storytelling.”
Here’s the full list of games being funded as part of Screen Australia’s Game Production Fund: The fund provides grants of up to A$100,000 to support the development of original new Australian independent games with budgets of less than A$500,000.
Ascending Inferno (ACT) – A 2.5D high-precision platformer that reimagines Dante’s Inferno by fusing voxel and pixel art. Anvilheart (SA) – In this story-driven store management game, a vagrant’s dreams of a better life suddenly come true when he stumbles upon a blacksmith apprenticeship. Finch and Archie (Washington) – A cooperative murder mystery in which players become one half of a crime-fighting duo: Detective Jack Finch or Police Dog Archie – Use your skills to find evidence, interrogate suspects, and track down criminals. I will arrest you. A gritty noir 1930s setting. Kādomon: Hyper Auto Battlers (SA) – This automated combat deck builder roguelike game allows players to collect and battle over 180 unique creatures called Kādomons. Lighthaze World (TAS) – A story-driven puzzle game where players take on the role of an anxious Nym. Nim is tasked with retrieving food for her dog Chewie at the local shopping center, Light Haze World. Momento (QLD) – A room decoration game where players choose meaningful objects to decorate their space and influence the life they experience. Mystiques Haunted Antiques (New South Wales) – Four frightening women, Jem, Aspen, Winnie and Barb, employ a new business strategy of developing psychic powers to save their failing antiques store. It’s a haunted exploration game. My Arms Are Longer Now (VIC) – A comedic stealth/narrative game where you play as a criminal mastermind with a long weapon. They will do whatever it takes to pull off the perfect heist, including bypassing security systems, deciphering blueprints, and seducing lone guards. Rat Trap (VIC) – Developed by lead developer Beau Whitehead, Rat Trap is a 2D hand-drawn Metroidvania adventure platformer in which players adopt the character of a lab rat trying to escape from captivity. Squidge (QLD) – A story-driven exploration game that follows Squidge, an alien who crash lands on Earth and is captured. His ultimate goal is to return home. Your mission is to rescue your friends, find lost parts of your ship, and destroy a secret government laboratory. On the way. Whith Way Up: Galaxy Games (NSW) – The ultimate gravity-defying party game in space – up to four players compete in unique bite-sized events. Winnie’s Hole (VIC) – In this dark comedy roguelite strategy game, players join Winnie the Pooh on new adventures from the inside. Play as a virus within the body to specialize the host, multiply mutations, and refine the bear’s form to adapt for survival.
And here are all the games funded by the Emerging Gamemakers Fund, which provides grants of up to AUD 30,000 to support new projects from Australian independent game makers.
Apothecary of City Bones (Washington) – In this 2.5D adventure puzzle game, players follow the story of Bones, a small skeleton living in a big city. Bones is removed from his coffin by a crane that moves the grave to make way for a new apartment building. Catto’s Post Office (QLD) – In a friendly town filled with adorable kitten residents, players take on the role of “post cat” Catto in this casual story-driven game – navigating around town and delivering mail Find the correct location to deliver before completing the resident task. Clown baby! (VIC) – Clownbaby is a love-starved clown in this comedic dating horror deck builder. Crimson Cutlass (SA) – In this 2-player roguelite co-op multiplayer game, players take on the roles of Priscilla, a fearless warrior looking for the fun of battle, and her beloved gentle giant childhood friend Jim (Main) Role play. Deficit – The ADHD RPG (VIC) – As players experience the life of someone with ADHD and navigate the diagnosis and treatment of ADHD, they make choices that shape the story, and the biases that often accompany both. Gale from the Mantle (WA) – From independent developer Cody Lehman, Gale from the Mantle is an action-adventure, story-driven exploration platformer. Key Fairy (QLD) – A stylized 2D action RPG that utilizes mixed media and a limited color palette to create a world filled with ancient forests and ravenous monsters. Players take on the role of characters who can skate, dance, and wrestle. Surround monsters at high speed. King Tidal (VIC) – This post-apocalyptic dress-up game follows Mt Isa’s last drag queen on her journey through the sunken Australian region. Planet B (VIC) – A dystopian branching narrative mobile game that explores the inevitable destruction of Earth. Players are transported to the year 2054 and must take charge of a space mission to see if there is hope for a planet in a neighboring solar system. It’s a second chance. River Scene Zine (VIC) – Developed by developers Max Myers and Tim Snowdon, River Scene Zine is a point-and-click exploration game about coexistence, attention, and homosexuality. Roots (ACT) – This point-and-click puzzle game challenges players to research their family history as a young man who has recently lost his mother. SPÜTWEISER (VIC) – A narrative-focused rogue-lite point-and-click survival game in which players control a moving settlement while navigating a post-apocalyptic map. Give me some tea! (New South Wales) – A point-and-click, story-driven game from independent developer Siobhan Willoughby that contrasts the monotony and noise of office life with the incredible happiness and peace that comes from working remotely during lockdown. I will explore. Tomorrow’s Pasts (VIC) – A narrative role-playing adventure game where players experience and navigate a world where the actions of generations have changed the course of history in order to build a better future for Australia.
For more information about these games and their creative teams, visit the Screen Australia website.
