A new platform called Launchable aims to connect studios with development talent and publishing services using a “shared-success framework”. In other words, developers provide their services on the understanding that they will receive a revenue share later on, once the game launches.
Revenue share will be paid to developers for the first five years that a game generates revenue, and the terms are negotiated directly between the developer and the studio. For providing its matching service, Launchable takes a small percentage of a project’s revenue.
Studios can put out calls on the platform for the specialists they need – and the idea is that the platform can help games to reach the market that would otherwise struggle to secure the necessary funding.
Launchable’s co-CEO, Greg Hall, says the platform was inspired by his own personal experiences. “When I was bringing my own game to market, and later looking at projects as an angel investor, I kept meeting incredibly talented studios facing exactly the same problem; they were passionate about building their own IP, but spending a huge proportion of their time pitching for fundraising or taking on work-for-hire simply to keep the studio going, all to the detriment of their own IP projects,” he tells GamesIndustry.biz.
“What struck me was how far along some of these games already were. They had great teams, playable builds and, in some cases, communities with tens of thousands of wishlists, but publishers had become increasingly risk-averse and the funding just wasn’t there.
“Ultimately, it’s about giving more great games a chance to make it to market.”
Shared success
Hall says Launchable’s shared-success model means that developers, studios, and Launchable itself all stand to benefit. “We all make money when a game launches. The more successful the game, the better we all do.”
But of course, there is also a risk. If the game underperforms at launch, the development talent might receive relatively meagre compensation – and there is always the chance that the game might not make it to launch at all.
Hall says that Launchable has tried to minimise that risk by ensuring that the games on the platform have been “vetted” and are “fairly well along the way.”
“Launchable sets a hurdle bar for every project we accept into our ecosystem,” he says. “In addition to an evaluation of design and production documentation and team leadership, we have executive producers who approve all new entrants to the platform, ensuring we have quality projects with a strong chance for success. Additionally we will be providing service partners and other support to get the games to launch; our interest is aligned with the participants, so we are heavily invested in the success of these projects.”
This kind of revenue share model isn’t new: bootstrapped start-up studios, like Starship Bloopers creator Big Dumb Games, sometimes elect to pay employees via future profit or revenue share in the early stages of the company, before their first game is released and the money starts coming in. But a deferred payment model – even though it could be potentially lucrative if a game sees outsize success – won’t suit everyone, given that any financial reward could be months or even years down the line.
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Hall expects the platform will attract a mix of people interested in full-time, part-time, or weekend work, with some being freelance and others signing up for multiple projects. “Some studios may choose to pay their talent a full or reduced salary directly as employees and use Launchable to provide upside for successful projects,” he says.
“Others will work on a full shared success model, where all of the talent’s compensation will come from revenue generated by the game. We place no restrictions on studios or talent on how they choose to engage with us from a compensation standpoint.” But he says the platform does mandate full transparency on expected ship dates and project status, “so that all parties have the same understanding of their arrangement.”
Launch preparations
Along with Hall, the team behind Launchable includes co-CEO Andie Stokoe, chief publishing officer David Miller, and chief business officer Morten Juul.
Hall founded Reptilian Rising studio Gregarious Games in 2018, while Juul is a lawyer and dealmaker who has spent over 20 years in the games industry. Miller is a veteran of MGM, NBC Universal, THQ, Codemasters, Tencent, and Warner Bros, and Stokoe is a technology entrepreneur who has worked in energy, financial services, and fintech.
So far, Launchable has signed seven studios: Hyper Luminal Games, Bad Rhino Studios, Bossa Studios, SoKrispyMedia, Observer Interactive, Big Moxi, and Expression Games. Launchable says that it is “rapidly filling up” its closed beta phase, which is set to host a further 30 studios. These are set to be announced in early 2027.
Launchable aims to match talent with projects by asking participants to submit detailed information on their career and work preferences. “The platform then uses a combination of third party sourced verification and self-declared experiences from the talent to build a complete profile as to the skills offered,” Hall explains.
“Once a studio broadcasts their need for a milestone or task, the talent matching works to find the exact person that is best suited for that role. It also provides a list of similar talent, as well as a scoring methodology that explains why each option has been proposed. The platform gives the studio and talent a visual representation of how well an applicant suits a specific role using what we call a signal map. It also allows talent to see where upskilling may improve their ability to secure new roles.”
In addition to the talent-matching component, Launchable says that its platform provides “suggested deal structure” as well as “templated legal documentation” so both experts and studios can agree to “their own specific deal terms”.
“Once that deal has been agreed, Launchable will crystallise and store that contract on behalf of both parties, as well as managing all downstream revenue distribution to the talent; so the talent can be confident that they will get their revenue entitlement on game launch,” Hall says.
“From a studio perspective, the platform provides milestone creation and tracking functionality that allows them to see the delivery progress of each talent member in real time in the lead up to delivery. The intended result of this functionality is that a project lead using the Launchable system can easily construct, broadcast, agree and monitor all tasks involved in the next development milestone.”
High bar
Launchable is aiming to work with “independent” studios, although as anyone in the industry will tell you, the meaning of this term has become vague, encompassing everything from tiny indie studios to large companies without an overall owner. But that distinction doesn’t matter that much to Launchable, which welcomes both.
“Prior to our public launch, we have already secured seven studios that are either actively looking for talent or have successfully on-boarded all of their necessary additional talent via Launchable,” Hall says. “We are inviting a second wave of 30 studios in the coming months on a closed-beta basis, with half of those partner studios already in discussion or committed.
“When looking at where those studios sit in terms of scale, our current closed-beta wave of partner studios spans from independent developers all the way up to AAA studios.”
Launchable is also taking pains to ensure that the projects that make it onto the platform pass a certain quality bar.
“Not every project is suitable for Launchable, and not every project will be accepted onto the platform; our initial focus is on projects that are from a capable, experienced team but need some additional specialist resources to reach the finish line,” Hall explains.
“Launchable can provide those resources and a framework to engage with them, without the need for substantial up-front investment. Only projects that meet the requirements of the platform will be accepted so talent should have confidence that the game is leading towards a viable launch.
“We are coming out of stealth, this is our first moment we are officially saying hello to the world, so talent can begin signing up today. We welcome talent of all sorts, from part time indies to co-dev studios between projects. Because talent can choose the projects they work on, and the length of time they work on them, we expect to have self-selected passionate believers developing these games.”
The rewards for those developers could potentially be great in the long term: if a game takes off, they could see payments coming in for years after their work on the game is long finished. The model also offers a way for studios to get a game over the line in an environment where funding is incredibly hard to come by. But it hinges on whether enough “passionate believers” will be willing to bear the kind of risk that is normally borne by publishers and investors: the risk that a game might fail.