In 2019, Germany launched a support program for gaming companies, initially in a pilot phase. Since then, it has become officially established in the country, with developers and publishers receiving millions of euros in subsidies from the authorities.
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War IV
As calculated by the portal GamesWirtschaft, to date, the German government has invested €266.98 million in the creation of 701 games.
Notably, almost half of this amount went to just 25 companies and their subsidiaries. For example, the largest recipient of subsidies was the publisher Kalypso Media, which raised over €19 million from the country’s treasury for the development of Tropico 7, Dungeons 4, Commandos: Origins, and other games.
This is how the top 5 companies by the amount of subsidies received currently look, with the name of the most funded game in parentheses:
1. Kalypso Media (Tropico 7) — €19.54 million;
2. THQ Nordic (Project Super Shotgun) — €13.51 million;
3. Rockfish Games (Project Multispace) — €10.17 million;
4. King Art (Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War IV) — €9.46 million;
5. Ubisoft (Anno 117: Pax Romana) — €9.28 million.
It should be noted that the amount of subsidies in Germany depends on the game budget and the type of company. While large studios can receive funding covering up to 25% of production costs, young indie teams are given enough to cover up to 50% of game development expenses. The German government hopes that, ultimately, this will help make Germany more competitive in the global gaming market.