Last year we were proud to announce that the NYU Game Center had been selected as one of three gaming hubs to receive support from New York State. As we move into 2017, we’re excited to share a little more of what the Hub has accomplished so far, and how it will grow from here.

The first initiative we’re launching in 2017 is the New York Game Industry Census. In order for the Hub to properly support game makers working in New York – and work with the government on their behalf  – it’s vital that we have as complete a picture as possible about who is working locally, and understand what they’re making. We’re also proud to have an opportunity to showcase to the world at large the breadth and caliber of games being created here. If you’re running a studio, or working independently as a commercial game maker in New York State, please add your information to the directory here and share the link with your colleagues and contacts!

Helping us plan these initiatives and set ongoing strategy is the NYC Games Hub Advisory Board. We extremely lucky to be drawing on the support of a team of people who have a wealth of shared experience in game-making, studio creation, and industry building. We thank them all for their involvement, and look forward to their ongoing input.

  • Howard Tsao, Founder of Muse Games
  • Susanna Pollack, President of Games for Change
  • David Grijns, Founder of Defiant Studios
  • Colleen Macklin, Associate Professor of Media Design at Parsons
  • Jason Della Rocca, Co-founder at Execution Labs
  • Justin Hendrix, Executive Director at NYC Media Lab
  • Austin Walker, Editor-in-Chief at Waypoint
  • Naomi Clark, Assistant Professor at NYU Game Center

Another key 2017 initiative will build on an early Hub project. Last year, with Hub funding support, we were able to open the Incubator to game makers outside of NYU programs. In the months since, we’ve been excited to see several success stories from those Incubator participants. Rewordable aced its Kickstarter goals and signed a contract for retail distribution. The Norwood Suite was featured in Killscreen and BOTOLO debuted on Steam and received an Indiecade nomination.

Watch this space for upcoming Hub activities. Thanks for your support so far, and don’t hesitate to reach out to us with ideas for how the Hub could better support game makers in NYC and NYS as a whole.