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New indie publisher Raftur Games was set up late last year, partly in response to the layoffs that were blighting the industry. As well as funding, the proudly neurodivergent co-founders hope to offer unrivalled marketing and business support that will help get developers back on their feet. CMO Malize Evans told us more.
You say that Raftur emerged as a response to layoffs. That implies Raftur exists to alleviate them to some degree?
Yes. Currently, extensive layoffs have resulted in numerous skilled developers facing unemployment. Many of them are now seeking opportunities to initiate their independent projects. Our role is to offer funding and support to these developers, empowering them to create their own games. This, in turn, will create new studios and new jobs in development, alleviating the unemployment caused by layoffs. This is the reason why we exist in the first place.
How have games industry redundancies shaped what Raftur is about?
Raftur Games originated from in-depth discussions within the gaming industry involving both AAA and indie developers. These conversations highlighted the issue of widespread layoffs, where major companies were downsizing despite experiencing record profits and releasing exceptional games and how developers felt powerless about it. Additionally, we discussed the impact of new technologies, such as the advanced tools introduced by Unreal 5, which were streamlining development processes and enabling the creation of higher-quality games on a smaller scope. Through these dialogues, we gained insights into what developers believed was essential to propel the industry forward and to mitigate the damage of layoffs. As a response to these identified needs, and around these needs, we established Raftur Games.
Where does the name come from?
A raftur is a rafter in Norse. As rafters, we aim at providing support.
Funding, marketing and development support would seem to be common to what most indie publishers offer these days. What makes Raftur different?
In our discussions with developers, a common sentiment emerged — many expressed dissatisfaction with the current roles of publishers and investors. Concerns were raised regarding the significant control exerted over games and the inconsistent marketing support available to showcase their work effectively. Developers also lamented the disproportionate amount of time and resources dedicated to business-related aspects, often at the expense of actual game development. Some developers even pursued MBAs to grasp fundamental business concepts, such as scaling a studio.
Our services are specifically designed to address this challenge: the struggle to find a balance between extensive business development efforts and the limited focus on game development. Whether developers need assistance with scaling and require recruiters or seek guidance in business strategy, our offerings provide tailored solutions. It’s worth noting that our approach differs significantly from traditional publishers, as we prioritise establishing a unique partnership with game studios, providing guidance and assistance without exercising any kind of creative control over the project.
How do you hope to carve out a niche in what is a very competitive market?
Listening to developers and taking decisions as gamers. Decisions have to make sense under a business perspective, but the core is always to bring value to gamers and to the developers who create these games. It’s only when you have developers at the center of your activity you can truly stand out. We’re not exactly a publisher, we’re not an accelerator program either, even if we have things in common with both. Our way of working and the services we offer were designed from developers to developers, by listening to devs and understanding what they need that they’re not currently offered.
What can developers expect from you when they first get in touch?
What developers can expect from us is finding a partner who wants them to win and will not interfere in their creative decisions.
The first stage is to submit a project for consideration through our website www.rafturgames.com or our LinkedIn page. We take three types of projects: game funding (earlier stage than beta), game publishing (beta or later), and game related tech or service. The first filter to accept a game is always asking if this product brings value to gamers. This means that we only accept games that prioritise gameplay and creating a fun experience, and if they have in-game monetisation, that it is done in an ethical way (no pay-to-win, no loot boxes). This filter by itself sets us aside from many other publishers in the market, who prioritise economic gain. The second filter is assessing market potential, and if there is space in the market for a game like this.
The third, only for early stage funding, is assessing the team behind the game and their previous development experience to make sure they can do the game they want to develop. Once the game is taken in, the approach differs depending on the stage of the game. For early funding, we supervise their business proposal to make sure no expense has been forgotten and we create a marketing budget depending on the scope of the game and the size of the market. You wouldn’t believe how often a game project is presented to investors without a marketing plan or even a promotional budget consideration, assuming publishing will come on its own, which does not always happen, with disastrous results for developers and investors. Once numbers make sense, we present the project to our private net of investors to find the best match. For later stage projects, we take care of putting the game in front of gamers.
