Welcome to the NYU Game Center 2024 Incubator Q&A, thanks to all attendants on this year Q&A session for the great questions.
Who is deciding what project and teams are selected?
The Incubator Advisory Board will invite a shortlist of projects to present their game during the Pitch Night on June 5th.
The Incubator Advisory Board will make the final decision of the selected projects.
Who is in the Advisory Board?
The Advisory Board changes every year so it’s hard to share an updated list. Mainly we have 4 groups of advisors: Incubator Alumni, Executive Producers, Industry experts and Indie creators and Publishers both from the digital and non-digital world.
Are the pitches during the Pitch Night private?
In the past edition the format of the Pitch Night was private, the team will share a virtual room with other teams but the pitch was only them in front of the Advisory Board.
If any team has any special request we will be happy to accommodate that. Pitch Night is remote.
How many team applied last year? How many were selected?
Usually the Incubator receives between 40 to 50 complete application, 5 project were selected for the Incubator program in 2023.
Are Board games, TTRPG, card games welcome? What unique challenges do they face in applying?
Every game is accepted, from card games to VR, from social deduction to experimental, following the vision of the NYU Game Center, the Incubator welcomes games of all sort.
Non-digital games are facing a challenge since they will not be able to upload a build of their game, but a link to Tabletop Simulator, or a video of a play session are also accepted and welcomed. In the last edition of the Incubator one of the project selected was a TTRPG game.
How complete should the game be to enter in the Incubator?
One of the question that the Advisory Board will evaluate is “Do this team and project really needs the Incubator?”
If you have a game that is pitch ready, or it’s at a very early stage (prototype) maybe the Incubator is not for you, but if you’re in doubt, always apply, you will never know what can get the interest of the Advisory Board. For sure your pitch and materials should be able to show that enough work has be done (world building, development, etc) for your project to reach a debut stage and start reaching your audience.
What do you mean by launch or debut?
For every project this can take a different shape and part of the Incubator time will be dedicated to understand what “launch” means for every team.
We are talking about your vertical slice, early access Steam build, a published-ready pitch deck, artist statement for a gallery release, a kickstarter campaign and so on.
We are NOT talking about 10 more levels, or an advanced combat system. The “launch” is about getting your game out into the world and in front of people.
When will a team know if they are selected for the Pitch Night?
The Incubator call will close on May 20th at 5pm EST, shortlisted team will receive a communication around May 25th (the date can change), Pitch Night is June 5th.
Can one person work on multiple projects that apply to the Incubator?
Yes, in the past there were people that were part of different project that applied, however multiple commitment raises questions to the Advisory Board and usually only one of the project is selected.
What would you say is the time commitment that people spent working on their game during the Incubator?
A lot! Usually -for at least the core members- is a full-time commitment, and if you’re able to convince the Advisory Board that, this is the case this is usually valued positively. So if the team is of people working full-time that will not be evaluated positively by the Advisory Board.
Can people join a team after this one has been selected for the Incubator?
Yes.
Is Advisory Board checking how much time selected teams are putting in the game?
Nobody is going to check how much time you will put in your game. There are events, workshops and meetings that are part of the Incubator calendar that you have to attend.
Should a team submit a budget?
No. One of the goal of the program is for you to learn how to make a proper budget, so there is no expectation on that side.
Can current students apply?
Only if they are part of a larger team and they are not the leader of the team. The program is intensive and students that have to juggle school are able to participate usually only in limited capacity.
Should the entire team live in New York State to apply?
The Incubator is funded in part thanks to an Empire State Development Grant, this opens up for teams from all over the State to apply. So yes, you, or the majority of the team, should live in NY state in order to be eligible. After the pandemic we understand that work has changed and shifted online so as a rule of thumb you should be able to demonstrate that the majority of the development is going to happen in NY state. The program is in person during the summer and remote from September to April, attending the summer portion is demonstrating that the majority of the development is happening in NYS.
What is the sustainability model of the Incubator?
As a lot of Incubator we apply a revenue share model to the projects that are selected, this is a way for the teams to give back and have more and more projects take advantage of the Incubator. At the moment the model is the following, team members sign a contract with the Incubator that states that they will share 10% of their revenue if their game is successful. We establish as “successful” a project that is able to create revenue for at least 25k in one year.
If, after publishing, you’re able to reach that goal, then the revenue-share contract kicks in; if you make less than 25k, nothing is due to the Incubator. If, after three consecutive years, the project is not able to create revenue for 25k, the contract between the Incubator and the project is considered concluded.
Are there any restrictions or requirement in the case a team get funded later for development purposes, maybe they were able to secure a grant or development fundings?
That’s one of the output that we wish for our teams, development funds are not revenue and the revenue share model is not applied in this case.
Is the revenue share contract the same for each team or everyone negotiate different terms?
The Contract is the same for all selected projects.
What do team use the 15k for?
Every team uses the funds in different ways depending on their goals and production milestones. Some use the majority to fund for travels to convention and exhibition, others for new marketing materials, others for pay their time. The program does not check how the money is spent.
Does the program help with marketing, go to market, and social media?
No. We usually post about the events on NYU Game Center’s LinkedIn, X (twitter) and Instagram pages but it’s on the team to create a plan and pursue their marketing goals.
What did past teams do to get out the most of the Incubator experience?
Check out the recording of the 2022 Incubator Showcase on the NYU Game Center Twitch https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1805320409 to discover how was the experience for the 2022 cohort, or show up for the Incubator Showcase on April 18th.
Where can I see what are the questions in the application form?
Here is a PDF with the questions. The application will go live on May 7th
If you have more questions please reach out to the Incubator Director
matteo.u@nyu.edu