News - NZGDA - Page 6

Entry forms for the New Zealand Game Developers Association startup programme for interactive games businesses, the Kiwi Game Starter, are now open! Entrants should prepare their playable prototypes and business/marketing plans for submission via the submission form. The deadline for submissions is Monday 2 May 2022 at 5pm. Thanks to our kind sponsor University of […]

New Zealand-based video-game developer Space Rock Games raises $650,000 from venture capital investors Hillfarrance and the New Zealand Growth Capital Partners to develop their debut game, Criminals Within. With this round closed, the company has become one of the first venture-backed gaming studios in the country.   Space Rock Games was originally founded by five […]

PikPok expands globally via acquisition to scale studio bandwidth and portfolio Leading games publisher PikPok® today announced the acquisition of Wizard Fun Factory, an independent video game development studio based in Medellín, Colombia. Known for crafting high-quality immersive experiences across mobile, web, and VR/AR, Wizard has collaborated in recent years with PikPok on updates and […]

The Miramar Creative Centre Grant is a $2,200 micro-grant aimed at supporting entry-level & emerging interactive projects in New Zealand. Entries for the Miramar Creative Centre’s Grant for emerging interactive kiwi projects are now open. The deadline for applications for the current cycle is the 3rd of April 2022. Thanks to the kind sponsorship of […]

The University of Canterbury (UC) continues to respond to the needs of the digital screen industries with sponsorship of the NZGDA Kiwi Game Starter 2022, a business start-up competition supporting the best of Aotearoa New Zealand’s up-and-coming game development talent.   The news comes hot on the heels of the announcement of the University’s Digital Screen […]

Rainbite’s “Trigger Witch” will become the first New Zealand-made game to run natively on the PS5 platform when it is released there later this month (21 January 2022). The PS5 version will be a free upgrade for PS4 owners, while physical copies for the PS5 will ship later in January. This makes it the first […]

The New Zealand Game Developers Association (NZGDA) has collaborated with Wellington in a multi-year partnership to increase investment and grow the talent pool in the creative digital content sector. The NZGDA will expand the remit of its annual conference to incorporate the film, screen and interactive media sectors alongside its traditional gaming content. A Collaborative […]

New Zealand game studios created over 200 jobs during lockdown But Australian tax incentives and border restrictions put 300 more jobs at risk, according to latest survey findings.   New Zealand’s video games industry created 222 new jobs during 2020’s lockdowns. While the industry grew employment 30%, the potential to create over 300 future jobs […]

For more information on our board members for the 2021/2022 term, check out their bios here.

The Angel Association (AANZ) and PwC have featured investing in games in their annual Startup Investment report, which included interviews with Tim Ponting, Maru Nihoniho and Jessica Mannins.

We are pleased to introduce the nominees for the 2021/2022 NZGDA Executive Board! Below you will find information on each candidate (these bios are also available as a PDF: 2022 Candidate Election Bios ) Ballots will be emailed to all eligible NZGDA members on Friday November 5th at 10:00AM and voting will remain open until […]

WELLINGTON, New Zealand – November 1, 2021 – Pōneke-based game developers Dinosaur Polo Club, who celebrated the PC release of their award-winning title Mini Motorways earlier this year, have taken the #12 spot on the Deloitte Fast 50 with 333% growth between 2019 and 2021. The studio has also claimed the title of Wellington and […]

Are you a community minded game developer who wants to grow New Zealand’s game development sector? Then consider standing for the 2021/2022 New Zealand Game Developers Association board! The NZGDA welcomes diverse candidates from across New Zealand, in any role in the industry or craft who are current members of the Association. Some of the […]

Please join us for the 2021 Annual General Meeting! You can register for the meeting here. Meeting Agenda (subject to change): Financial Review Review progress on strategic goals Proposed updates to the NZGDA Constitution Updates to membership structure Results of the 2021/2022 NZGDA Executive Board Member Election Updates to the NZGDA Constitution:  The NZGDA Constitution […]

September 11, 2021 – Flesh and Blood, a trading card game made by New Zealand company Legend Story Studios has debuted its latest release, Tales of Aria, at the Las Vegas convention center, with over 1000 fans turning up to celebrate the World Premiere event. The World Premiere running on Friday, is part of a […]