MATCH is a yearly program started in 2018 and powered by SpielFabrique. Originally Franco-German, it now includes the majority of the European continent and additional country partner every year.

The objective is to support studios in their coproduction project, to match them with compatible indie studios and foster interaction between studios from different countries. After the meetings and intentions settled, we facilitate the process of coproduction development by bringing expertise in the field during exclusive workshops.

Join our discord server to get notified when the next program starts!

Applications for this program will open again in 2025.

Apply now for MATCH 2024

Reminder to submit your application by June 10th, 2024 at 23:59 CET. You can do it! Let us know if you need help.

Program stages

Online Recruitment Phase

Apply and present your experience as a studio and current pipeline of projects.

Online Coproduction Mentoring Sessions

Join a webinar to learn about coproduction opportunities and prepare for Stage 3, matchmaking session.

Online pitching session

SpielFabrique organizes the Online Pitching Session to end up the European Games Co-production Market. The Online Pitching Session represents the final event of the program. The teams are now ready to pitch their coproduction! Publishers and financiers are present to the event

Online matchmaking session

Participate in the 2 days kick-off meeting on MeetToMatch with every other indie studios participants in early June. Pitch your projects and meet other European studios to find the perfect Match. You will then have time to continue the discussions with the studios you matched with!

On-site coproduction training

SpielFabrique organizes two days of training for the co-producers couples that will start a project together. High class international mentors and experts of the video game industry will be invited to coach the studios to prepare a co-production pitch and define the co-production agreement frame.

Topics

When people collaborate, they benefit from each other’s experience, skills, and knowledge. They go further in the development of the game on a conceptual level, but also on a technical level, and can offer a bigger, more mature game to the publishers and be more attractive. They are also more competitive for a project with strong European intellectual properties.

We want to offer an alternative way between the classic publishing possibilities and the indie video game studio that is on its own.

Project/Studio Management and Organisation

Publishing Strategies

Long-term financial strategies

Pitching methods

Indie Video Game Coproduction Case Studies

Business Intercommunication

Annual event schedule

The program runs annually from June to October. It ends with an online pitching session to publishers and financiers.

During the on-site coproduction training session in Strasbourg, for 2 days in October, keynotes, case studies, and one-to-one meetings with our experts in publishing, law, co-production and networking events are organized.

May - June
Start

Virtual onboarding and webinars on the program and its structure

20 - 21
June 2024
Matchmaking sessions

Online matchmaking sessio nto meet the other teams and their projects/studios. This is the first step in the selection of the program. The best pitch and presentation will find the best MATCH

22
August 2024
Gamescom Meetup

A Gamescom meet-up, for coproducers who have already matched to meet, and a last chance speed-dating session for the remaining studios.

🔓
14 -15
October 2024
Co-production training

Studios who have found coproductions unlock an on-site training in Strasbourg with 1-on-1 mentoring and support for building their co-productions.

12 - 13 -14
November 2024
Publisher connect

In partnership with Games Ground (14-16 Nov) in Berlin and Soren Lass' Tugboat Interactive, this exclusive event pulls in dozens of publishers from across the world and hand-match them with studios. It's a hybrid event (12-13 Nov online, 14 Nov onsite in Berlin) and available to take part either online, offline, or both!

Who can apply?

Video game studios of all sizes and specializations situated in Europe or within our partner countries can apply for the MATCH coproduction program. This inclusive opportunity welcomes studios regardless of their scale, thus fostering collaboration, growth and innovation within the whole gaming industry’s diverse landscape.

If you want to participate, you need to meet the following criteria:

*We are still developing new partnership with various countries that will be officialised on our social media and Discord, follow us to learn more about the updates.

Our current list of official country partners are:  Brazil, Canada and Turkey. If you are located in one of these country, the program is completely free of charge.

For European studios, please reach out to learn more about your country specific situation.

In cooperation with the program BRIDGE, studios located in any of the countries on the African continent are eligible to partake in joint activities. Please look for the BRIDGE program for complementary information.

Please reach out to olympe@spielfabrique.eu for more information.

Costs

The program is entirely cost-free for studios. Our partners generously cover the program’s financing, meaning no charges will be incurred by participating studios. This commitment underscores our dedication to providing valuable opportunities without any financial burden, allowing studios to fully engage and benefit from the program’s offerings.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the deadline for applications?

The call for applications closes after 10 June 2024, 23:59 CET.

Anybody who is representing an Indie videogame studio in Europe or another country partner (list to be confirm).

Your studio needs to be a registered company, and you need to be ready to pitch a project of your own or be prepared to collaborate on another project with a potential MATCH.

The program itself is free of costs for candidates from partners countries (official list of countries to be announced).

Please note, however, that we are not covering any travel or accommodation costs for the in-person activities and events.
For the workshop in Strasbourg, accommodation prices are on the studios discretion.

For more details on the list of countries, please reach out to olympe@spielfabrique.eu to learn more.

Yes! During the call for application, we will officialise the full list of country partners that support the program for studios.

If you are not based in any of the countries listed, we can offer support in finding partners who can enter the program to support you.

Please reach out to olympe@spielfabrique.eu for more information.

The program begins with online webinars to present the program during the call for application in May 2024, see on our Discord server for more informations.
 
The first activity will be the matchmaking event on the 20th of June, more informations will be communicated with the candidates during the introductionary webinars.
 
The program will finish in November with a Pitching session organised by SpielFabrique with publishers and investors.

Most of the program takes place online (Zoom, Discord, MeetToMatch…). However, we do run a Gamescom meetup in Düsseldorf, Germany on 22 August 2024, and an in-person training in Strasbourg, France on 14 – 15 October 2024.

The matchmaking session of the 20th of June will be the first opportunity for studios to find a good match to coproduce with.

Another opportunity will be the last-chance session held during Gamescom at the SpielFabrique booth on the 22nd of August. If the studio still does not find any match, they are encourage to come back to the next edition with a revised/new project to pitch or to look for a project.

You know that your application has been received when you get a confirmation email. Please make sure to check your spam folders, too. 

After receiving a confirmation email, you can still go back and edit or complete your application until the application deadline.
Please reach out to us, if you have not heard back from us by the 10th of June 2024.

The program’s language, in both verbal and written communication, will be English.

Most people in the program are not native English speakers, so we are not expecting perfection. However, your mentor and other studios in the program may not speak your local language, so please make sure that your studio’s contact person can comfortably converse in English.

As part of our program and through our partner network, we offer a host of opportunities, many involving pitching in front of potential financiers through activities online. Most of these opportunities are reserved to selected collaborating teams, in case there are more interested applicants than spots available.

Other questions? Please reach out to olympe@spielfabrique.eu to ask for more details.

On-site training 2023

During 2 days in Strasbourg, we had the opportunity to meet and get-to-know each other, to share experience and projects and most important, learn how to successfully plan the coproduction projects with other experts.

In 2022 - Cofunded by

In 2022 - Country Partners

Umanimation

France

Platform:
PC, Switch
Genre:
Adventure

Publisher:
Focus Entertainment

accelerated by

& powered by

Dordogne

Experience a unique journey through Dordogne as you uncover lost family secrets and relive your childhood memories.

PlayTix X Tiny Crocodile Studio

France / Germany

Platform:
Mobile

Genre:
Web3, Simulation

powered by

Top Squad

Top Squad, the web3 soccer game with stunning graphics and worldwide quick matches.

Ludopium X CdM

Germany / France

Platform:
PC, Mobile
Genre:
Action, Casual
Publisher:
Arte France

accelerated by

& powered by

Vectronom

2nd Deutscher Computerspielpreis

Get hypnotized by the electronic soundtrack of Vectronom and its pulsing geometric and colorful world.

Seed By Seed

France

Platform:
PC, Consoles
Genre:
Action, Adventure, Casual
Publisher: HandyGames


accelerated by

Pile Up!

Pile Up: 1-4 player 3D platformer. Jump, build piles, explore world. Coordination & creativity required. Friendly creatures await!

Naraven

Switzerland

Platform:
PC, Consoles
Genre:
Adventure, Casual
Publisher:
All in! Games

accelerated by

Backfirewall_

Backfirewall_ is a persistent smartphone OS that crashes until it gets its desired update. As an Update Assistant, you must face the challenge of dealing with its stubbornness.

Label This

Slovenia

Platform:
PC, Consoles
Genre:
Adventure, Casual
Publisher:
Crunching Koalas

accelerated by

The Gap

The Gap tells the story of a man’s quest to cure his family’s illness through exploration of parallel realities, delving into his psyche and cherished memories.

Darjeeling X Feierabend

France / Germany

Platform:
Mobile
Genre:
RPG, Simulation, Strategy
Publisher:
ARTE


powered by

Homo Machina

Homo Machina is a puzzle video game based on a German physician’s illustrations for making biology accessible.

GameExPro X CdM

France

Platform:
VR

Genre:
RPG, Simulation, Strategy

powered by

Critical Mistrust

Play a virtual reality game as four astronauts try to stop a deadly virus, but trust is scarce and the culprit unknown. Choose a side and solve the mystery.

Black Flag

France

Platform:
PC, MAC, Linux

Genre:
RPG, Simulation, Strategy

accelerated by

Orphan Age

Orphan Age is a dystopian life sim game where you play not as the soldiers of war, but as the children left behind.