Epic Games Teams Up With Interactive Gaming to Fund Indie Titles
Fortnite publisher Epic Games is teaming up with Interactive Gaming Ventures to provide funding for independent game developers creating titles in Unreal Engine 4. Announced over on the Unreal Engine website, the team-up plans to invest in between 2-3 indie teams each year with a range of $1 million to $5 million per project, running now through the next seven years.
The project is to be led by Jack Tretton, CEO of Interactive Gaming Ventures and former PlayStation President. Tretton revealed that IGV is looking to build up their investment portfolio while also creating deep, impactful relationships with the developers. “We are looking to provide exceptional independent teams building games with Unreal Engine the support structure, cash infusion, marketing resources and relationships that will help them achieve incredible financial returns,” said Tretton.
This doesn’t mean that Epic Games or IGV is taking creative control of any upcoming indie games, though. Any studio that takes investment from IGV retains full control of its IP and the creative process, with the company only partaking in the success of the game once it ships. “This partnership falls perfectly in line with Epic’s philosophy, meaning that we only succeed when developers succeed,” said Joe Kreiner, head of Unreal Engine business development.
From programs like Unreal Dev Grants to one-to-one conversations where we connect teams with strategic opportunities, we have an honest motivation to help our licensees get ahead. We couldn’t be happier to make it even easier for Interactive Gaming Ventures to get behind Unreal indies.”
It will certainly be exciting seeing the fruits of the partnerships between Epic, IGV, and indie developers, especially when the latter will have full access to Unreal Engine 4. Should we see successful games come from the team-up, it could spur other companies to join hands in a similar fashion to help push the envelope even further. For devs looking to reach out to Interactive Gaming Ventures, they can do so here.
So, thoughts on the partnership between Epic Games and Interactive Gaming Ventures? Let us know in the comments section below, and as always, stay tuned to Don’t Feed the Gamers for all the latest gaming and entertainment news! Don’t forget to follow DFTG on Twitter for our 24/7 news feed!
Check out the latest news highlights from DFTG below:
Ryan "Cinna" Carrier3026 Posts
Ryan is the Lead Editor for Don't Feed the Gamers. When he isn't writing, Ryan is likely considering yet another playthrough of Final Fantasy IX. He's also the DFTG cinnamon bun.
