Screen NSW has unveiled the nine games that will share $300,000 through its Digital Games Seed Development Program.
They include a first-person narrative survival game inspired by iconic Soviet-era cinema, a roleplaying game that improves the player’s mental health, a pup-tastic puzzle adventure game, a sci-fi tactics game about warring factions set in space, and a haunted adventure game about antiquing.
Entropy Interactive director Jake Truman, whose company will receive funding for its game Myndzai, said the support had enabled them to reach a critical milestone in the project’s development.
“Beyond the tangible impact it has on the game itself, the support of government funding has equally intrinsic value in conversations with potential publishers and investors,” he said.
“Ultimately, it is incredibly motivating for us as a team to see our hard work recognised and allows us to continue our mission of improving mental health through gaming.”
It comes after representatives from Blowfish Studios, Chaos Theory Games, Epiphany Games, Lamington Games, and Lemonade Games take part in this year’s Gamescom trade conference in Cologne, Germany, as part of the agency’s Gamescom 2024 Market Travel Program.
Held August 21-25, Gamescom is one of the world’s largest events for the games industry, showcasing the latest in gaming and providing attendees with global networking opportunities.
Blowfish Studios’ director of business development and partnerships Sebastien Thevenet said it was an honour to showcase the studios’ work at the event.
This fund will be of great help with accommodation and flight tickets to Gamescom where Blowfish Studios will be introducing SHADOWMAN® Darque Legacy and Redemption of the Damned to potential investors and publishers,” he said.
The Digital Games Seed Development Program recipients are as follows:
Death of a Partisan (Studio: Myshkin Entertainment)
Team members: Edwin Montgomery, Matt MacLean, Olga Moskvina, Roger Markwick,
Stephen Panetta and Meredith Hall.
Synopsis: Death of a Partisan is a narrative survival game set on the Eastern Front of World
War 2. Join a small group of Soviet partisans as they brave the harsh winter, fight (or evade)
enemy forces, and confront moral dilemmas in a land torn apart by war. Inspired by iconic
Soviet cinema, this immersive, first-person experience delves into the complexities of
survival, resistance, and the human cost of war.
Deck & Conn (N/A Studio)
Creator: Elissa Harris.
Synopsis: Deck & Conn is a turn-based starship command and combat game with dieselpunk
aesthetics. Set 15 minutes into the future of the 1980s where a cold war is turning hot, the
game is a Military Sci-Fi parody, with human factions endlessly warring with each other in
space.
Game: Doggy Don’t Care (Rotub Games)
Team members: Rohan Nowell, Carlo Delos Santos and Dominique Parker.
Synopsis: Unleash adorable chaos as a mischievous pup! Explore, collect, and smash your
way around the house and beyond in this cheeky adventure. Fetch the approval of your
feathered friends by digging into a list of fun-filled tasks and collecting all the Mischievous
Badges. It’s sure to be a pawsitively unforgettable day!
Dungeonbreakers (Droptable Games)
Team members: Bryn Welch, Kristian Lindsell and Sophie Ware-Maloney.
Synopsis: Dungeonbreakers is a turn-based roleplaying game. Adventure through a hopeful
post-apocalyptic fantasy world, leading a party of lovable misfits, each with their own stories
to unfold.
Insignia (Uppon Hill)
Team members: Adam Younis, Luca D’Annunzio, Morgan Ridley-Smith, Yamnaa Haq and
Morgan Prior.
Synopsis: Accompany Armin on the adventure of a lifetime on his quest to learn the magical
arts of blacksmithing, discover the fate of his lost father and race to stop a force threatening
the destruction of the kingdom. Insignia is an action-adventure game being developed for pc
and consoles.
Enfant (Zebrar)
Team members: Saxon Dixon, John Doolan, Samuel Elmohamed, Andrew Lodge, Simone
Clow and Dominic Mazur.
Synopsis: Join the Nomad, our elephant protagonist, on a quest to unite with his lost herd. A
3D Metroidvania set in a distant future where the natural world flourishes and humanity is
just a footnote in history.
Myndzai (Entropy Interactive)
Team members: Jake Truman, Jessica Matotek, Steven Hughes, Alexander Degiorgio, Olly
Rybak, Inès Rotzinger, Scott Russell and Emily Wilkinson.
Synopsis: Restore a cosy fantasy world and repel a sinister force, undertaking a journey of
self-understanding in a RPG that improves the player’s mental health. Engage in
mindfulness, narrative therapy and gameplay features that combine to create personalised
experiences best suited to each user.
Mystiques Haunted Antiques (Lemonade Games)
Team members: Ally McLean Hennessy, Adam Matthews, Inge Berman, Benjamin Retter,
Robert Gordon Archer, Nicole Archer and Shaun Bright.
Synopsis: Mystiques Haunted Antiques is a game about the four worst women you’ve ever
met. Gem, Aspen, Winnie, and Barb run a failing antique store which is saved by their new
business strategy: developing psychic powers.
Resonant (N/A Studio)
Creator: Callum Denmead.
Synopsis: Resonant is an experimental walking simulator game, infused with elements of
puzzle, rhythm and exploration that forms a heavily sensory experience to be enjoyed by
every type of audience. With a focus on visual and auditory experience rather than firm narrative, the goal is to create an emotional response in the player, similar to what one might experience when they observe an artwork.
Gamescom 2024 Market Travel Program recipients:
Studio: Blowfish Studios
Travelling applicant: Sebastien Thevenet
Game: Shadowman®: Darque Legacy
Studio: Chaos Theory Games
Travelling applicant: Nico King
Game: Crab God
Studio: Epiphany Games
Travelling applicant: Morgan Lean
Games: Tiny Troopers: Global Ops and Beyond the Black Sea
Studio: Lamington Games
Travelling applicant: David Kilford
Game: Blink
Note: David is also representing Mellow Games’ Blueberry.
Studio: Lemonade Games
Travelling applicant: Ally McLean
Game: Mystiques Haunted Antique