Australia’s largest video game developer, PlaySide Studios (ASX: PLY), has launched its third-party publishing division today to enable independent (aka ‘indie’) PC and Console game developers globally to create and launch their video games. 

“We are thrilled to introduce our publishing division and provide best practice and support indie game developers bringing their games to the PC and Console market, both in Australia and globally,” said PlaySide CEO, Gerry Sakkas. 

The new division, under the handle of ‘PlaySide Publishing’, will encompass a full suite of services for developers, including; marketing, communications, game localisation, quality assurance and project funding support. 

The idea of facilitating and participating with indie game developers is a strategic move the Company is taking to gain exposure to  a collection of indie game titles without the much higher level of risk and investment required to fully develop a game in house.

According to data from YouGov, gamers that choose indie games over mainstream games have risen 31% in 2022, compared to 2021. “The rise of indie titles may be attributed to the rising popularity of Steam, which offers its users a huge library of titles from independent developers. Fueling the spread of indie games may also be Roblox, a gaming storefront dedicated to user-made games.”

Given the scale and revenue opportunities, PlaySide has constructed a framework where developers will receive milestone-based investments to be paid to them to encourage the title to be completed. Such investments are provided on the basis that both the publisher and the developer are entitled to percentage royalties following game sales. 

PlaySide Publishing will be led by a team of industry experts that have been involved in the publishing of AAA games and entertainment. Among this crew will be Harley Homewood, who will join as Global Head of Publishing. Homewood has over eight years of experience where he helped get a few notable games to market, including; Overcooked!, Hell Let loose, The Escapist and Blasphemous. 

“We are commencing a new era for PlaySide Studios, supporting developers in their vision to launch new, industry-leading experiences fans will come to love,” commenting on the launch, Harley Homewood. 

PLY shares peaked in February 2022 at a price of $1.42 following a rally from $0.46 in October 2021. Currently, shares are worth $0.64 at the time of writing.