Video game developers with great ideas for the next generation of smash hit games are being urged to apply for a share of a new £28.5 million pot of funding.

The move represents a doubling in funding for the sector as the government puts the Creative Industries Sector Plan into action. These targeted investments are expected to pay dividends to the taxpayer by driving economic growth and creating jobs. Applications for funding will open from 14 April.

The UK is already an international powerhouse in gaming, having created global hits like Grand Theft Auto, Fable, PowerWash Simulator and No Man’s Sky. Across the UK, there are more than 2,000 gaming companies, employing tens of thousands of people recognised globally for their talent and creativity.

Through the Games Growth Package, the government will support newly-formed and expanding developers to turn blueprints for games into reality, enabling them to sell their product both in the UK and around the world.

The package is launching as leading games companies from around the world gather at the London Games Festival. Today the government can also announce that £1.5 million of new funding has been awarded to the festival over the next three years, to help ensure the UK remains at the centre of the sector globally.

The funding will help strengthen investor partnerships, doubling the value to £30 million per year of private investment deals at the festival.

“Video games are not only great fun, they are big business – and for too long their value to the British economy has been overlooked,” Creative Industries Minister Ian Murray said.

“That is why the government has thrown its full support behind the sector with £30 million of new funding. This will turbocharge the careers of some of our most talented game developers, creating more jobs and economic growth right across the country as their ideas come to fruition.”

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The video game market is bigger than ever before, with £8.8 billion being spent by gamers per year, meaning there are excellent expansion prospects for our world-class sector.

This new funding will empower developers to take advantage of these opportunities, creating jobs and driving economic growth.

The sector has strong footholds in areas outside London including Dundee, Leamington Spa and Guildford, and this additional funding will help ensure it thrives in all regions of the UK.