😍 NEW Finnish games released & soft launched
- Pelimies Remake – in Finnish and in English- now available on Mac App Store!
This week’s news from the Finnish Game Industry has a strong gamescom flavour, with Finnish companies and games appearing across several corners of Cologne next week. Neogames will be at the Nordic All Stars Booth on 26–28 August, together with 13 Finnish game developers, and we will also host drinks at the booth on Thursday at 17:00, sponsored by Housemarque. Remedy’s CONTROL Resonant, now gone gold, will be publicly playable for the first time at the Level Infinite booth, Second Stone by Skyward Entertainment and Sonorous – Deep Down Below by HOONAYA will be at the Indie Arena Booth, and Finnish companies will also be represented at the Creative Europe MEDIA stand. Beyond gamescom, Netflix is planning to close its Helsinki-based Moonloot Games studio, and Nitro Games reported its H1 2026 results alongside continued investment in new growth. On the release side, Lohkare Games’ Last Drop has launched into Steam Early Access. Finnish developers can also apply for €10,000 or €20,000 in AVEK DigiDemo funding until 21 September, and submissions are open for the Finnish Games Week Steam Event on 12–18 October, giving participating games a potential second consecutive week of Steam visibility following Next Fest.
Stay updated on what’s happening in the Finnish game industry by following the Play Finland Facebook group, and help us stay informed by posting your Finnish game industry news there! Follow Neogames Finland also on LinkedIn.
Subscribe to Neogames’ weekly newsletter directly to your email
🇫🇮 Finnish presence at gamescom 2026
- Next week Neogames will be at gamescom at The Nordic All Stars Booth (Hall 4.1, Stand D-033g) on 26–28 August, bringing together exhibitors from Finland, Norway, Estonia and Sweden, including 13 exhibitors from Finland. The booth is co-organised with partners from across the Nordic and Baltic region. Join us at the booth on Thursday 27 August at 17:00 for drinks, sponsored by Housemarque.
- Remedy Entertainment’s CONTROL Resonant will be publicly playable for the first time at gamescom 2026, at the Level Infinite booth in Hall 6
- Two Finnish games at Indie Arena Booth at gamescom: Second Stone by Skyward Entertainment and Sonorous – Deep Down Below by HOONAYA.
- Finnish companies at the Creative Europe MEDIA stand at gamescom – Kalla Gameworks, Fiilin Good Films and Dragonfly Productions are among the Finnish participants represented at the MEDIA stand.
📣 Neogames Dones & News
- Elina Tyynelä and Suvi Latva join the first PGC Nordics speaker line-up – Elina will discuss upskilling and talent–company matchmaking through Gamebadges, while Suvi will explore how founders’ early choices can shape the business built around a game.
📰 Game Industry News, thoughts & discussions
- Finnish Games Week Steam Event returns on 12–18 October, ahead of FGW in Helsinki (19–23 October). Together with Steam Next Fest, participating games can potentially benefit from two consecutive weeks of visibility. Submit your game via the form if you haven’t already.
- IGDA Finland promoted the Thriving in Games Group Summit taking place in Helsinki on 16–18 September.
- Siida Game Jam will take place at the Sámi Museum Siida in Inari, from 3 to 5 September.
- Wacom partners with Expa Game Business Cooperative
🎮News from and about Finnish Game Studios
- Netflix / Moonloot Games: Helsinki studio planned for closure
- Nitro Games: H1 2026 results and continued investment in new growth
- Supercell is preparing major changes to mo.co after the game fell short of expectations following its relaunch.
- Remedy Entertainment: CONTROL Resonant has gone gold; physical release moves to 15 October
😍 NEW Finnish games released & soft launched
- Lohkare Games’ Last Drop released on Steam Early Access. Watch the Launch Trailer here
💰 Funding
- AVEK DigiDemo funding open until 21 September – Finnish game developers can apply for €10,000 or €20,000 in support for demo and pilot projects, covering up to 80% of eligible costs.
- Supercell calls on companies to reach for potential partnerships on new website
📝 Jobs & Recruitment
- Check tips and links from Neogames webpage
👉 Upcoming Events
- 23–25 August – gamescom dev
- 26–30 August – gamescom
- 3rd September Siida Game Jam at the Sámi Museum Siida in Inari
- 8 September – IGDA Helsinki September Meetup
- 16-18th September Thriving in Games Group Summit taking place in Helsinki
- 23–25 September – Northern Game Summit, Kajaani
- 19th October IGDA Finland Leadership Day
- 20–21 October – Pocket Gamer Connects Nordics 2026, Helsinki
- 22-24th October W Love Games 2026
- 3.–4.11.2026. Game Research Days 2026, organised by the Finnish Society for Game Research, takes place at the University of Jyväskylä on
- 5th November Finnish Game Industry DEI summit
See also following calendars:
The Game Industry Events calendar (mostly relevant for Finnish Game industry)
Game Conference Guide Calendar (more international (powered by EGDF and Slovakian games association)
Game Industry Biz
This week’s roundup highlights news from the past week in the Finnish Game Industry. In the future, this bulletin is again posted every Friday afternoon. You can find past weekly roundups from Weekly roundup section.
News are gathered from various industry sources and the Play Finland group posts during the week. Post your Finnish Game Industry related news to the group to get a chance to be included in the weekly roundup!
Best Regards,
Neogames Finland
This week’s news from the Finnish Game Industry starts with Remedy, which is maintaining its 2026 growth outlook despite a weaker Q2 as investments ramp up ahead of CONTROL Resonant’s September launch. There was another milestone for the studio, with Alan Wake 2 surpassing three million copies sold as Control sales continue to grow. This is the week when many in the game industry, including Neogames, are preparing for gamescom, where we will organise the Nordic All Stars booth in the Business Area in Hall 4.1, Stand D-033g from 26 to 28 August, bringing a sizeable group of Finnish companies to Cologne. The game industry is facing turbulent times, and in that context Neogames’ KooPee Hiltunen discussed the current state and outlook of The Finnish Game Industry on Ylen aamu. From a slightly longer-term perspective, PocketGamer.biz interviewed Suvi Latva about how building a game company in Finland has changed over the past two decades. On the release side, new games keep coming: Netflix Star Daily Trivia, developed by Next Games, a Netflix Game Studio, and Tech Lab Games, has been released, Parta Games’ Choppa: Rescue Rivals launched on Steam and Nintendo Switch, and Lohkare Games’ Last Drop enters Steam Early Access on 18 August.
Stay updated on what’s happening in the Finnish game industry by following the Play Finland Facebook group, and help us stay informed by posting your Finnish game industry news there! Follow Neogames Finland also on LinkedIn.
Subscribe to Neogames’ weekly newsletter directly to your email
📣 Neogames Dones & News
- Neogames is organising the Nordic All Stars booth in the gamescom Business Area from 26 to 28 August. The Booth is located in Hall 4.1, Stand D-033g. Exhibitors from Finland are;
- Neogames Finland’s KooPee Hiltunen discussed the current state and outlook of The Finnish Game Industry on Yle’s morning programme Ylen aamu.
- PocketGamer.biz interview: Neogames’ Suvi Latva on how building a game company in Finland has changed over the past two decades
📰 Game Industry News, thoughts & discussions
- Game Hub for SMEs in the Capital Region – Final Showcase & Celebration will be on 18 August 2026
- The Second Finnish Game Industry DEI summit will be on November 5th
🎮News from and about Finnish Game Studios
- Remedy maintains 2026 growth outlook despite weaker Q2 – The company still expects full-year revenue and EBITDA to increase, as investments ramp up ahead of CONTROL Resonant’s September launch with the game already surpassing 1.5 million wishlists.
😍 NEW Finnish games released & soft launched
- Netflix Star Daily Trivia , developed by Next Games, a Netflix Game Studio and Tech Lab Games has been released
- Parta Games’ Choppa: Rescue Rivals launches on Steam and Nintendo Switch
- Lohkare Games’ Last Drop heads to Steam Early Access on 18 August. Watch the Launch Trailer here
💰 Funding
- Kansan Sivistysrahasto Hosts an Online Grant Information Session on 18 August. Registration closes on 16 August, and the session will be held in Finnish.
- Supercell calls on companies to reach for potential partnerships on new website
📝 Jobs & Recruitment
- Check tips and links from Neogames webpage
👉 Upcoming Events
- 18th August Game Hub for SMEs in the Capital Region – Final Showcase & Celebration / Espoo
- 23–25 August – gamescom dev
- 26–30 August – gamescom
- 8 September – IGDA Helsinki September Meetup
- 23–25 September – Northern Game Summit, Kajaani
- 19th October IGDA Finland Leadership Day
- 20–21 October – Pocket Gamer Connects Nordics 2026, Helsinki
- 22-24th October W Love Games 2026
- 3.–4.11.2026. Game Research Days 2026, organised by the Finnish Society for Game Research, takes place at the University of Jyväskylä on
- 5th November Finnish Game Industry DEI summit
See also following calendars:
The Game Industry Events calendar (mostly relevant for Finnish Game industry)
Game Conference Guide Calendar (more international (powered by EGDF and Slovakian games association)
Game Industry Biz
This week’s roundup highlights news from the past week in the Finnish Game Industry. In the future, this bulletin is again posted every Friday afternoon. You can find past weekly roundups from Weekly roundup section.
News are gathered from various industry sources and the Play Finland group posts during the week. Post your Finnish Game Industry related news to the group to get a chance to be included in the weekly roundup!
Best Regards,
Neogames Finland
This week’s news from the Finnish Game Industry starts with a notable investment, as Heikki Herlin’s investment company Mariatorp has acquired a 7% stake in Remedy Entertainment. Housemarque’s upcoming Saros also received a notable mention from Sony, which says the game is steadily expanding its player base. Next Games, a Netflix studio, released Netflix Minigolf last week, and Managing Director Saara Bergström spoke to What’s on Netflix about the game’s development and the studio’s work on Netflix’s cloud-based living-room games. Dirtnap by Part Time Monkey, Unstable Entity and Nitroyale is heading to Steam Early Access on 28 August, while Kitka Games has soft launched Brinko – Party Royale in Finland and India and Warena, developed by Part Time Monkey and published by Coyote Time Publishing, was released on Steam in July. The August event calendar starts next week with the IGDA Helsinki and IGDA Turku meetups on 11 August, followed later in the month by gamescom dev and gamescom in Cologne.
Stay updated on what’s happening in the Finnish game industry by following the Play Finland Facebook group, and help us stay informed by posting your Finnish game industry news there! Follow Neogames Finland also on LinkedIn.
Subscribe to Neogames’ weekly newsletter directly to your email
🎮News from and about Finnish Game Studios
- Heikki Herlin’s investment company Mariatorp has acquired a 7% stake in Remedy Entertainment. (article in Finnish)
- Next Games, a Netflix studio, has released Netflix Minigolf. Next Games Managing Director Saara Bergström discusses the game’s development and the studio’s work on Netflix’s cloud-based living-room games in an interview with What’s on Netflix
- Dirtnap (by Part Time Monkey · Unstable Entity · Nitroyale) Heads to Steam Early Access on 28 August
- Sony Says Saros Is Steadily Expanding Its Player Base
😍 NEW Finnish games released & soft launched
- Next Games, a Netflix studio, has released Netflix Minigolf on last week
- Kitka Games, the Finnish studio behind Stumble Guys, has soft launched Brinko – Party Royale in Finland and India at Google Play on beginning of July
- Warena, developed by Part Time Monkey and published by Coyote Time Publishing was released on Steam July 14, 2026.
💰 Funding
- Kansan Sivistysrahasto Hosts an Online Grant Information Session on 18 August. Registration closes on 16 August, and the session will be held in Finnish.
- Supercell calls on companies to reach for potential partnerships on new website
📝 Jobs & Recruitment
- Check tips and links from Neogames webpage
👉 Upcoming Events
- 11 August – IGDA Helsinki August Party with Supercell
- 11 August – IGDA Turku August Meetup
- 18th August Game Hub for SMEs in the Capital Region – Final Showcase & Celebration / Espoo
- 23–25 August – gamescom dev
- 26–30 August – gamescom
- 8 September – IGDA Helsinki September Meetup
- 23–25 September – Northern Game Summit, Kajaani
- 19th October IGDA Finland Leadership Day
- 20–21 October – Pocket Gamer Connects Nordics 2026, Helsinki
- 22-24th October W Love Games 2026
- 3.–4.11.2026. Game Research Days 2026, organised by the Finnish Society for Game Research, takes place at the University of Jyväskylä on
See also following calendars:
The Game Industry Events calendar (mostly relevant for Finnish Game industry)
Game Conference Guide Calendar (more international (powered by EGDF and Slovakian games association)
Game Industry Biz
This week’s roundup highlights news from the past week in the Finnish Game Industry. In the future, this bulletin is again posted every Friday afternoon. You can find past weekly roundups from Weekly roundup section.
News are gathered from various industry sources and the Play Finland group posts during the week. Post your Finnish Game Industry related news to the group to get a chance to be included in the weekly roundup!
Best Regards,
Neogames Finland
1. THE WORLD’S BEST GAME INDUSTRY NEEDS ITS TALENT
Finland is home to some of the world’s best game companies, which recruit the world’s best professionals globally. Finland must also educate top game industry talent so that new game entrepreneurs continue to emerge from Finland and drive the country’s economic growth and competitiveness. Access to game culture and game development as a hobby must be available throughout Finland. Literacy in games and other digital content, the ability to create them, and an understanding of the business models and technologies behind them are essential civic skills.
1.1. INTERNATIONAL TOP TALENT TO FINLAND IN SEVEN DAYS
- Finland’s country brand must be sharpened. Finland must have a prominent presence at the game industry’s largest events in the EU, the United States, South Korea, China and Japan.
- The residence permit process, from dealing with a Finnish mission to receiving a residence permit, must be completed within seven days. The entire process, from Migri’s residence permit to registration with Kela and the Finnish Tax Administration, as well as securing school and early childhood education places, must be completed within 14 days. The entire process must be available digitally and in English.
- The three- and six-month unemployment limits must be extended to 12 months, and the employer’s reporting obligation must be abolished to improve the retention of international talent.
1.2. TOP-TALENT EDUCATION PATHWAY – A CLEAR ROUTE IN FINLAND FROM HOBBYIST TO TOP PROFESSIONAL
- Game development must be included in the national basic art education.
- AI-assisted programming must be established as a subject in both general upper secondary schools and vocational institutions.
- Cooperation among higher education institutions, and between educational institutions and companies, must be strengthened in sharing knowledge, teaching content and professional skills requirements.
2. FINLAND – THE WORLD’S BEST PLACE TO START AND BUILD A GAME COMPANY
A well-functioning game industry ecosystem creates new centaurs and unicorns in Finland. Determined RDI policy enables companies to be established and grow.
START-UP FUNDING
- Funding for the DigiDemo production support scheme must be secured. Alongside it, a production incentive must be created to enable smaller companies to develop new Finnish game brands. Game industry support instruments must be brought within the audiovisual exemption under the General Block Exemption Regulation to establish a national production support instrument.
- Business Finland’s direct RDI funding must better recognise innovation funding as part of production and development support. Finland must be willing to invest in promising new entrants so that disruption in the industry can be turned to its advantage.
CLUSTER FUNDING
- Local game industry clusters, hubs and accelerators must be taken into account in national and local strategies.
3. FROM GATEKEEPER POWER TO FAIR COMPETITION IN THE SINGLE MARKET
Gatekeeper platforms and small Finnish SMEs must operate under the same rules in the European game market. For the rights granted to Finnish companies under EU legislation to be realised, authorities must have sufficient resources for implementation, enforcement and advisory services. We must move away from a state aid system focused on minimising subsidy competition between member states and towards one that safeguards the Union’s global competitiveness.
- Regulatory changes in the EU and Finland must not weaken the competitiveness of The Finnish Game Industry. Changes to EU consumer regulation must be carefully balanced against the need to safeguard the industry’s competitiveness.
- Finland must press the European Commission to fully curb the power of gatekeeper companies under the Digital Markets Act and place the protection of technological and cultural sovereignty at the centre of EU funding and competition policy.
- The service level provided to companies by competition, data protection and consumer protection authorities must be raised to the level of the Finnish Tax Administration. Additional funding must be allocated to the police’s online and cybersecurity work. These services must also be available in English.
Further information:
Jari-Pekka Kaleva
Chief Policy Advisor
Neogames Finland
+358 40 716 3640
jari-pekka.kaleva@neogames.fi
This summer’s recap from The Finnish Game Industry brought a colourful first look at what comes next, led by Trine 6: Together in Time in all its kaleidoscopic glory. The latest adventure from Frozenbyte will arrive on PlayStation, Xbox, Switch and PC on 17 September. Rovio unveiled the first official trailer for The Angry Birds Movie 3, and CEO Alex Pelletier-Normand was appointed COO of SEGA Europe’s West Studios. The Finnish industry will soon head to gamescom in Cologne, where Neogames is once again organising the Nordic All Stars booth in the Business Area from 26 to 28 August.
On the operational side, Nitro Games signed a development services agreement worth approximately €2.1 million for an unannounced mobile shooter and transferred the development and publishing of Autogun Heroes to Hyperkani. FakeFish’s frosty survival co-op shooter Frostrail is heading into closed beta on 31 August, and The Last Caretaker received the substantial New Horizons update. The summer also delivered a varied group of new Finnish releases: Antenna Games’ Ogre Chambers 2222, Runoi Games’ debut title Fortune Fragments, Coyote Time Publishing’s cyberpunk body-horror FPS Voltage High Society 1.0, and the Steam Early Access launches of Disc Golf Masters and Bonobo Software’s Taival. However, the summer news was not entirely cheerful, as Tribo Games announced that it is closing after four years. Further ahead, Pocket Gamer Connects Nordics returns to Helsinki on 20–21 October, with Neogames newsletter subscribers receiving 14% off tickets using the code PlayFinland14.
Stay updated on what’s happening in the Finnish game industry by following the Play Finland Facebook group, and help us stay informed by posting your Finnish game industry news there! Follow Neogames Finland also on LinkedIn.
Subscribe to Neogames’ weekly newsletter directly to your email
BIG NEWS!
- Trine 6: Together in Time, in all its kaleidoscopic glory, comes to PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, and PC on 17th September.
- The first official trailer for The Angry Birds Movie 3 Takes a Flight, alongside a fresh poster and first-look images
- Rovio CEO Alex Pelletier-Normand appointed COO of SEGA Europe’s West Studios
- Nitro Games has signed development services agreement with a European Game developer and publisher for an unannounced mobile shooter game. The value of this new agreement is approx. 2.1 million EUR.
📣 Neogames Dones & News
📰 Game Industry News, thoughts & discussions
- Pocket Gamer Connects Nordics Returns to Helsinki with a Broader Regional Focus. Neogames newsletter subscribers can use the code PlayFinland14 for a 14% discount on tickets
- Yle examines the debate over public funding for The Finnish Game Industry (article in Finnish)
- In response on the US export controls on AI tools, EGDF calls on the EU to take action to defend European cultural and digital sovereignty
- EGDF welcomes the Commission’s invitation to engage with the European games industry
- IGDA Announces Three New Board Directors: Natasha Skult, Christopher Hamilton, and Mark Stanley.
🎮News from and about Finnish Game Studios
- FakeFish’s Frostrail Heads Into Closed Beta on August 31
- Remedy’s Sergey Mohov says that the “creative individuals” behind Control Resonant always wanted the new action-RPG to be “made by us.”
- “This is just the start” – Housemarque responds to Saros’ slower sales versus Returnal’s, and compares itself to one of the most beloved studios around
- Metacore appoints Jose Saarniniemi (ex CEO of Small Giant Games) as general manager of Merge Mansion
- Supercell head of investments Jaakko Harlas departs
- “The goal isn’t to build something that burns brightly for a few years and disappears” – Cosmic Division CEO on launching a “responsibly ambitious” studio & “The times show that smaller is better when it comes to game studios”
- The Last Caretaker Expands with the Major New Horizons Update
- Nitro Games transfers a development and publishing of Autogun Heroes for Hyperkani
- Tribo Games is closing down after four years.
😍 NEW Finnish games released & soft launched
- Antenna Games released Ogre Chambers 2222 on Steam
- Runoi Games released its debut title Fortune Fragments
- Coyote Time Publishing released Voltage High Society 1.0
- Disc Golf Masters launched in Steam Early Access By Bonus Stage Publishing
- Bonobo Software’s Taival Launches in Steam Early Access
💰 Funding
- Kansan Sivistysrahasto Hosts an Online Grant Information Session on 18 August. Registration closes on 16 August, and the session will be held in Finnish.
- Supercell calls on companies to reach for potential partnerships on new website
📝 Jobs & Recruitment
- Check tips and links from Neogames webpage
👉 Upcoming Events
- 7 August – IGDA Lahti August BBQ
- 11 August – IGDA Helsinki August Party with Supercell
- 11 August – IGDA Turku August Meetup
- 23–25 August – gamescom dev
- 26–30 August – gamescom
- 8 September – IGDA Helsinki September Meetup
- 23–25 September – Northern Game Summit, Kajaani
- 19th October IGDA Finland Leadership Day
- 20–21 October – Pocket Gamer Connects Nordics 2026, Helsinki
- 22-24th October W Love Games 2026
- 3.–4.11.2026. Game Research Days 2026, organised by the Finnish Society for Game Research, takes place at the University of Jyväskylä on
See also following calendars:
The Game Industry Events calendar (mostly relevant for Finnish Game industry)
Game Conference Guide Calendar (more international (powered by EGDF and Slovakian games association)
Game Industry Biz
This week’s roundup highlights news from the past week in the Finnish Game Industry. In the future, this bulletin is again posted every Friday afternoon. You can find past weekly roundups from Weekly roundup section.
News are gathered from various industry sources and the Play Finland group posts during the week. Post your Finnish Game Industry related news to the group to get a chance to be included in the weekly roundup!
Best Regards,
Neogames Finland
This two week’s news from the Finnish Game Industry starts with Remedy, as Control Resonant launches on PS5 on 24 September and new CEO Jean-Charles Gaudechon discusses the next steps for Alan Wake and Control as franchises. Neogames has released its new report on game industry growth and entrepreneurship, Game Industry Entrepreneurship Paths from Start-up to Growth. Regarding to industry support, Jyväskylä is forming a shared strategy for games sector development. For game developers, there are several international opportunities to note: the W Love Games scholarship for gamescom dev and gamescom Cologne 2026, the Creative Europe MEDIA stand at gamescom with a 26 June deadline, and China Game Business Boost 2026 at China Joy, with the deadline today. On the studio side, SEGA and Rovio have appointed Toons Max as the official Angry Birds licensing agent in China, Rovio’s Anastasiya Kara discusses the shift from core-first to event-first mobile games. New releases include Tree Men Games’ HELI 100, Jestercraft’s Mining Grounds, MicroDose’s Marble Sort with Voodoo, and Pelimies Remake for iPhone and iPad. The Finnish Society for Game Research has also awarded the 2026 Game Studies Thesis Competition prizes to Vilma Varismaa from Tampere University and Sina Berger from South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences, with Mikko Korpela from Tampere University receiving an honourable mentionAlso worth noting: Ari Pulkkinen was recognised to legendary status at the Nordic Game Awards, and the Way Forward Forum takes place in Oulu today.
Stay updated on what’s happening in the Finnish game industry by following the Play Finland Facebook group, and help us stay informed by posting your Finnish game industry news there! Follow Neogames Finland also on LinkedIn.
Subscribe to Neogames’ weekly newsletter directly to your email
BIG NEWS!
📣 Neogames Dones & News
- Neogames has released a new report: Game Industry Entrepreneurship Paths from Start-up to Growth
📰 Game Industry News, thoughts & discussions
- W Love Games announces a unique scholarship to attend Gamescom dev and Gamescom Cologne 2026 in Germany. Apply here
- IGDA Finland Presented Volunteer of the Year and Lifetime Achievement Awards at Finnish Game Awards
- Winners of the Game Studies Thesis Competition 2026: The Finnish Society for Game Research has awarded the prizes for the 2026 game industry thesis competition to Vilma Varismaa from Tampere University and Sina Berger from South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences. Mikko Korpela from Tampere University also received an honourable mention.
- Apply Now: China Game Business Boost 2026 for Finnish Game Studios at China Joy
- Jyväskylä city forms shared strategy for games sector development
- Juha Huhtakallio is doing discovery for Curve Games to find games for publishing!
- Gamebadges just launched the Challenge Week.
🎮News from and about Finnish Game Studios
- Remedy’s
- SEGA and Rovio Appoint Toons Max as Official Angry Birds Licensing Agent in China
- Angry Birds Friends and Angry Birds Dream Blast are returning for the 2026 Green Game Jam, marking Rovio’s sixth consecutive year participating in this incredible global initiative.
- Why mobile gaming has shifted from a ‘core-first’ to an ‘event-first’ model. Rovio’s Anastasiya Kara discusses how live ops continues to be a dominant force in driving long-term mobile success
- Finnish Game of the Year 2025 winner The Last Caretaker by Channel37 releases new trailer and updated demo
- Lost Lures, co-op fishing adventure set in the Finnish wilderness, is out as a free Steam demo. Developer Hatfuls Games and publisher Bonus Stage are launching the demo a few weeks before Steam Next Fest to give players a head start with the game.
- Forsaken Realms: Vahrin’s Call — a self‑published indie RPG inspired by Fable and The Elder Scrolls. Feel free to wishlist it on Steam.
- Regret & Rewind coming to Steam wishlisting soon from Add Inspiration. Join the community on Join our community Discord !!
- Not Suspicious opened a new office in Finland
- Ari Pulkkinen, the audio lead for Saros and creator of Angry Bird Tunes, was elevated to legendary status at Nordic Game Awards
😍 NEW Finnish games released & soft launched
- Tree Men Games released HELI 100 also on Steam
- Jestercraft released Mining Grounds on Steam
- MicroDose released Marble Sort in collaboration with Voodoo (iOS & Android) and is currently in the top 50 grossing games on iOS in the US!
- Pelimies Remake now available also for iPhone and iPad on App Store!
💰 Funding
- Finnish game companies can now apply to join the Creative Europe MEDIA stand at gamescom! The application deadline is 26 June 2026.
- Supercell calls on companies to reach for potential partnerships on new website
📝 Jobs & Recruitment
- Kainuu Gems is recruiting a 35% eu project assistant for accelerator project
- Check tips and links from Neogames webpage
👉 Upcoming Events
- 5th June Game Educators Network meetup in Oulu
- 5th June Way Forward Forum / Oulu
- 10th June Summer Days of Game Education
- 23rd June annual Aalto Games Alumni Day
- 19th October IGDA Finland Leadership Day
- 22-24th October W Love Games 2026
- 3.–4.11.2026. Game Research Days 2026, organised by the Finnish Society for Game Research, takes place at the University of Jyväskylä on
See also following calendars:
The Game Industry Events calendar (mostly relevant for Finnish Game industry)
Game Conference Guide Calendar (more international (powered by EGDF and Slovakian games association)
Game Industry Biz
This week’s roundup highlights news from the past week in the Finnish Game Industry. In the future, this bulletin is again posted every Friday afternoon. You can find past weekly roundups from Weekly roundup section.
News are gathered from various industry sources and the Play Finland group posts during the week. Post your Finnish Game Industry related news to the group to get a chance to be included in the weekly roundup!
Best Regards,
Neogames Finland
Game Industry Entrepreneurship Paths from Founding to Growth is a project carried out by Neogames Finland ry and funded by the AEL Foundation. The project examines early-stage entrepreneurship in The Finnish Game Industry, business model choices and the conditions for growth.
The report (written in Finnish) looks at why an increasing number of new or small Finnish game companies choose business models that do not primarily aim for scalable growth. It examines this question in a changing operating environment where funding, platforms, distribution channels, discoverability and revenue models are all undergoing significant changes at the same time.
The aim of the project was to identify barriers to growth and business development, as well as structural factors that affect the ability of early-stage game companies to develop, grow and renew The Finnish Game Industry. Another aim was to build practical tools that help companies and supporting organisations identify critical decision points as early as possible.
The report is based on interviews with Finnish game industry entrepreneurs, funders, educational institutions, incubators and ecosystem actors, as well as a project workshop, case examples and background material on the game market, funding and entrepreneurship.
The report and its appendices are currently available in Finnish.
Key findings
A key finding of the report is that the choices made by early-stage game companies cannot be explained by one single factor, such as lack of funding or limited business competence. Instead, they are shaped by the combined effect of several factors: the goals of the founding team, market understanding, funding path, production scope, team competences and how early business-related decisions are recognised.
1. Game industry entrepreneurship should not be viewed as one linear path from idea to growth
Early-stage companies may move towards growth entrepreneurship, profitable and sustainable business, or independent indie-driven development. These paths are not ranked against each other, but their goals, risks, funding logic and support needs differ significantly.
2. Growth entrepreneurship is not the automatic starting point for most early-stage companies
For many new teams, the primary goal is to make a good game, employ themselves, realise their own creative vision or build a manageable business. Growth may be a desired outcome of a successful product, but it is not always a consciously planned or realistic goal from the beginning.
3. Business choices are often made too indirectly
Platform, genre, revenue model, target audience and production scope are decisive business choices. In early-stage teams, however, these decisions are often made based on game development, creative vision or existing competences, without sufficiently early assessment of their impact on the market, funding and growth.
4. Market validation often happens too late
Many game projects progress far before the target audience, commercial potential or market space have been tested sufficiently. This can lead to production, team structure and funding needs being built on assumptions instead of market signals.
5. Funding does not only enable activity, it also steers the company’s direction
Different forms of funding support different business models. Venture capital requires a scalable growth story, publisher cooperation emphasises the commercial potential of the product, public support can help in the development phase, and cash-flow-based development limits risk but slows growth. The funding path is therefore a strategic choice, not just a technical application process.
6. The support ecosystem is strong, but fragmented from the company perspective
Finland has a lot of game industry expertise, education, incubators, networks and funding instruments. The challenge is that these do not always form a clear and continuous path from the company perspective. The transitions from idea to a business-ready plan, from first market signals to the next funding phase, are especially critical.
The project resulted in:
- an up-to-date analysis of barriers to growth, profitability and business development for early-stage companies in The Finnish Game Industry
- a structured view of different game industry entrepreneurship profiles and their support needs
- two case examples illustrating different entrepreneurship paths in practice
- an overview of existing support forms for Finnish game industry entrepreneurs
- a visualisation of Finnish game industry entrepreneurship paths, bringing together the key decision points of the report as a practical tool
The purpose of the report is to help game companies, educational institutions, incubators, funders and other ecosystem actors identify early decision points before production, funding, team structure and business model become too firmly locked in.
The appendices include an overview of existing support forms and a visualisation of Finnish game industry entrepreneurship paths. The visualisation brings together the key decision points of the report as a practical tool.
Conclusion
The main conclusion of the project is that early-stage game companies should not be directed too strongly towards one single model of entrepreneurship. Instead, companies should be helped to identify, as early as possible, what kind of company they are actually building.
Supporting growth remains important for the renewal and international competitiveness of The Finnish Game Industry. At the same time, it is important to recognise that profitable, controlled and creator-driven business can be a realistic and valuable path for many companies. What matters is that these choices are made consciously, early enough and in relation to the market, funding, team competences and the company’s own goals.
Download:
Report: Game Industry Entrepreneurship Paths from Founding to Growth
Appendix 1. Existing support forms
Appendix 2. Finnish Game Industry Entrepreneurship Paths visualisation
Please note that the report and appendices are available in Finnish.
Neogames is again organizing Nordic All Stars booth in Gamescom Business Area 26.-28.8.
The shared booth brings together game studios and game industry organisations from Finland, Norway, Estonia and Sweden. It provides a meeting point for publishers, investors and other potential international partners interested in the Nordic and Baltic game industries.
Registration for exhibitors has now closed.
Meet Neogames and the Nordic All Stars at:
Nordic All Stars Booth
Hall 4.1, Stand D-033g
You can find all our exhibitors from MeetToMatch to book a meeting.
To arrange a meeting with Neogames in advance, please contact:
KooPee Hiltunen
Director
koopee@neogames.fi
+358 40 532 4176
See the whole list of the Nordic All Stars below.
Nordic All Stars – who we are?
Organizer
Exhibitors from Finland
Murska Digital
Simucube
Dreamloop Games
Susa Games
Grimtek
Neon Cocoa
Normogames
Bonus Stage Publishing
Kokoon Games
Fennica Gaming
VRKiwi
Curve Games
Business Tampere
Exhibitors from Norway
Rain Games
Megapop
D-Pad Studio
Engaged
Snow Leaf Studios
Billionworlds
Most Likely No Reason for Hysteria
Rock Pocket Games
Underling
Games People Play
Exhibitors from Estonia
Argentum Studio
Radiustech / All Set
Nerd Monkeys
Tall Troll Games
Chaosmonger Studio
Tier Music Publishing
Uppercut
RobotHai
Unlimited Minds
The week we had in the Finnish Game Industry is led by The Finnish Game Awards 2026, where Channel37’s robot adventure The Last Caretaker won Best Finnish Game of 2025, followed by Amistech Games’ My Winter Car in second place and Kimmo Factor’s Sektori in third. The gala also brought several other awards and recognitions: Cities: Skylines II by Colossal Order won the new Best IP Expansion of the Year category, Clash Royale by Supercell received Neogames Finland’s first Business Excellence Award, Kokoon Games was named Rookie of the Year, Sektori won Best Creative Achievement of the Year, and Valtteri “Wanda” Lahti received the Power Player of the Year lifetime achievement recognition. You can find all the winners and awards in the newsletter. Outside the gala lights, Returnal director Harry Krueger announced his new Finland-based studio Cosmic Division, Matias Myllyrinne founded Mainstay Games, and Bonobo Software’s role-playing game Taival continued its wonderfully Finnish one-euro Kickstarter campaign after reaching 10,000 Steam wishlists.
Stay updated on what’s happening in the Finnish game industry by following the Play Finland Facebook group, and help us stay informed by posting your Finnish game industry news there! Follow Neogames Finland also on LinkedIn.
Subscribe to Neogames’ weekly newsletter directly to your email
BIG NEWS!
- The Finnish game industry celebrated its best games.
- W Love Games Excellence Award 2025 for the best indie game of the year was presented to dice-driven role-playing game Paradigm Island by End-all Entertainment.
- IGDA Finland recognizing Joni Paasikivi as the IGDA Volunteer of the Year and The IGDA Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Emma Von Munthe Af Morgenstierne Vantaa.
- The winner of the Bit1 Student Game Competition 2026, with Dappal Interactive taking home the award for its unique tennis game My Tennis Apocalypse.
- Finnish Game Jam presented the Jampion of the Year Award to Noora Archer for her role as the lead organizer of the exceptional Spaceship Game Jam game development event.
- The entirely new award category for Best IP Expansion of the Year was won by Colossal Order’s city-building game Cities: Skylines II.
- The Rookie of the Year Award went to Kokoon Games.
- The Power Player of the Year lifetime achievement recognition in the games industry was awarded to Valtteri “Wanda” Lahti.
- The Finnish game industry organization Neogames Finland presented its own Business Excellence Award for the first time for Clash Royale by Supercell
- The Best Creative Achievement of the Year Award went to Sektori, a fast-paced techno shooter by Kimmo Factor.
- The Best Finnish Game of 2025 Award, was a closely contested race between three titles. Third place went to Sektori, the techno-shooter by Kimmo Factor. Second place was awarded to My Winter Car, the winter driving game from Amistech Games.
- The top prize and the title of Best Finnish Game of 2025 went to Channel37’s robot adventure The Last Caretaker.
- The awards ceremony streamed can be seen on YouTube
- Harry Krueger, director of 2021’s PS5 exclusive Returnal, has announced the formation of a new game studio based in Finland: Cosmic Division!
📣Neogames Dones & News
- Neogames Suvi Latva visited at Jyväskylä Game Track program
📰 Game Industry News, thoughts & discussions
-
Green Party MP Atte Harjanne calls for a national game institute to be established in Finland. (article in Finnish)
- Game Educators Network meetup in Oulu on 5 June 2026.
- GN! Exhibition 2026, 27th April – 22nd May 2026
- What are the sustainability challenges you face in game & engine design and development? Answer the survey by May 31st!
🎮News from and about Finnish Game Studios
- Matias Myllyrinne has founded a new studio, Mainstay Games and is happy to have your CV and get to know you before we need you.
- A Finnish studio Bonobo Software’s role-playing game Taival is raising funds on Kickstarter with a funding goal of just one euro, after gaining 10,000 Steam wishlists in ten days. (article in Finnish)
- The second game reveal from Catland stumbles drunkenly back into the Taphouse! That’s right, Taphouse VR (2017) will be updated to Taphouse (2026), featuring OpenXR support, support for the upcoming Steam Frame, 3 new taverns and much more.
- Small Team, Epic Scale: Building Oceanhorn 3
- Heroes Get High as Caretakers take to the skies in Update 04: Below Us
- Smash Harder Than Ever: Major Content Update for Wreckfest Available Now
- After 10 Years of Development, Space Haven Officially Launches into V1.0
- “Switch 2 Is A Great Platform To Work On” – Sektori Developer Kimmo Lahtinen On Bringing The Game To Switch 2, Working On Resogun For PS4, A Potential Vinyl Soundtrack And Much More
💰 Funding
- Supercell calls on companies to reach for potential partnerships on new website
📝 Jobs & Recruitment
- Check tips and links from Neogames webpage
👉 Upcoming Events
- 22nd May to 24th Finnish Folk Game Jam
- The registration for Helsinki
- The registration for Vaasa
- The registration for Jakobstad / Pietarsaari
- 27th April – 22nd May 2026 GN! Exhibition
- 26-29 May Nordic Game Conference
- 27th May TiLA! (Aalto University and the City of Espoo supporting creative professionals with affordable workspaces, community and services) House Party preview event in Otaniemi
- 4th June Games First event –Ticket application is open until March 19th 23:59 CET.
- 5th June Game Educators Network meetup in Oulu
- 5th June Way Forward Forum / Oulu
- 10th June Summer Days of Game Education
- 23rd June annual Aalto Games Alumni Day
- 19th October IGDA Finland Leadership Day
- 22-24th October W Love Games 2026
- 3.–4.11.2026. Game Research Days 2026, organised by the Finnish Society for Game Research, takes place at the University of Jyväskylä on
See also following calendars:
The Game Industry Events calendar (mostly relevant for Finnish Game industry)
Game Conference Guide Calendar (more international (powered by EGDF and Slovakian games association)
Game Industry Biz
This week’s roundup highlights news from the past week in the Finnish Game Industry. In the future, this bulletin is again posted every Friday afternoon. You can find past weekly roundups from Weekly roundup section.
News are gathered from various industry sources and the Play Finland group posts during the week. Post your Finnish Game Industry related news to the group to get a chance to be included in the weekly roundup!
Best Regards,
Neogames Finland
The Finnish Game Awards 2026 celebrated a diverse lineup of winners, including a world-saving robot adventure, a distinctly Finnish winter driving experience, an adrenaline-fueled techno shooter, city-building creativity, and an exceptional group of Finnish game developers.
The gala evening began with the W Love Games Excellence Award 2025 for the best indie game of the year. It was presented to dice-driven role-playing game Paradigm Island by End-all Entertainment.
The evening continued with IGDA Finland recognizing Joni Paasikivi as the IGDA Volunteer of the Year. The IGDA Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Emma Von Munthe Af Morgenstierne Vantaa.
The gala also honored the winner of the Bit1 Student Game Competition 2026, with Dappal Interactive taking home the award for its unique tennis game My Tennis Apocalypse.
Finnish Game Jam presented the Jampion of the Year Award to Noora Archer for her role as the lead organizer of the exceptional Spaceship Game Jam game development event.
The entirely new award category for Best IP Expansion of the Year was won by Colossal Order’s city-building game Cities: Skylines II. The highly anticipated update was described as a game-changing addition because it enabled players to create and share their own content for the game. Fans have already created more than 1,500 custom assets, and the number continues to grow.
The Rookie of the Year Award went to Kokoon Games. The experienced team boldly founded a new studio in the highly competitive mobile games market.
The Power Player of the Year lifetime achievement recognition in the games industry was awarded to Valtteri “Wanda” Lahti. He is a key figure in the games industry in Jyväskylä and serves as Chair of Expa Game Business Cooperative.
The Finnish game industry organization Neogames Finland presented its own Business Excellence Award for the first time. Clash Royale by Supercell was recognized for demonstrating that even a long-running hit title can be successfully revitalized and taken to new heights despite the challenging market conditions of 2025.
The Best Creative Achievement of the Year Award went to Sektori, a fast-paced techno shooter by Kimmo Factor that represents Finnish gaming heritage at its best. The game was created by Kimmo Lahtinen, with music composed by his brother Tommi Lahtinen.
The evening’s top honor, the Best Finnish Game of 2025 Award, was a closely contested race between three titles. Third place went to Sektori, the techno-shooter by Kimmo Factor. Second place was awarded to My Winter Car, the winter driving game from Amistech Games.
The top prize and the title of Best Finnish Game of 2025 went to Channel37’s robot adventure The Last Caretaker. Set in a world overtaken by the sea, the game is currently available in Steam Early Access and has already achieved both critical acclaim and commercial success.
“Sometimes a game can be many things at once. Channel37 has succeeded in creating a game that is simultaneously wistful, atmospheric, and visually stunning, while also being engineered with remarkable precision. It’s rare to be able to justifiably fit both wistfulness and engineering into the same sentence. That alone is an achievement in itself,” commented says Joni Lappalainen, Chair of the Board of the Finnish Game Developers’ Studios Association. “Game award galas have been organized in Finland since 1998, although the organizers, award categories, and formats have varied over the years. The Finnish Game Developers’ Association has organized the gala together with Neogames Finland since 2014. The mission of the gala has always remained the same: to bring together the Finnish game industry, celebrate its achievements, and highlight the latest developments for invited guests. This year, the main awards went to outstanding indie productions. Next year, the situation may already be different, as the Finnish game industry is constantly evolving and developing.”
The winners for Finnish Game of the Year 2025 have been selected through a member vote by the Finnish Game Developers’ Studios Association. Nearly 100 commercial Finnish games released in 2025 were included in the voting. All winners and links to the winning games can be found in the list at the end of this press release.
A video recording of The Finnish Game Awards gala can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/live/oBdFR-ePgYc.
The Finnish Game Awards 2026 was sponsored at the gold level by Housemarque and Small Giant Games, and at the silver level by Dreamloop Games, Expa Game Business Cooperative, Fingersoft, Hanki Games, Kuuasema, Metacore Games, Next Games – A Netflix Game Studio, Supercell, and Ubisoft RedLynx.
More info
Photos: The Finnish Game Awards 2026
List of winners:
W Love Games Excellence Award 2025: Paradigm Island (End-all Entertainment)
IGDA Volunteer of the Year 2025: Joni Paasikivi
IGDA Lifetime Achievement 2026: Emma Von Munthe Af Morgenstierne Vantaa
Bit1 Game Competition 2026: My Tennis Apocalypse (Dappal Interactive)
Jampion of the Year 2025: Noora Archer
Best IP Expansion 2025: Cities: Skylines II (Colossal Order)
Rookie of the Year 2025: Kokoon Games
Power Player of the Year 2025: Valtteri ”Wanda” Lahti
Business Excellence Award 2025: Clash Royale (Supercell)
Best Creative Achievement of the Year 2025: Sektori (Kimmo Factor)
Finnish Game of the Year 2025: The Last Caretaker (Channel37)
Links to winning games:
Paradigm Island: https://paradigmisland.blog/
My Tennis Apocalypse: https://www.dappal.com/my-tennis-apocalypse/index.html
Cities: Skylines II: https://www.paradoxinteractive.com/games/cities-skylines-ii/
Clash Royale: https://supercell.com/en/games/clashroyale/
Sektori: https://www.gimblll.com/sektori/
My Winter Car: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4164420/My_Winter_Car/
The Last Caretaker: https://thelastcaretaker.com/
Contact person
Neogames Finland / KooPee Hiltunen / +358 40 5324176 / koopee@neogames.fi
Finnish Game Developers’ Association (Suomen Pelinkehittäjät ry)
The Finnish Game Developers’ Studios Association is a network representing game development companies in Finland. The association fosters collaboration between companies and advocates for the interests of the game development industry. It organizes events, shares industry information, and ensures that the concerns of game developers are considered in relevant decision-making processes. Notable initiatives of Suomen Pelinkehittäjät ry include the Pelimetsä project, breakfast events, and the annual Finnish Game Awards Gala.
Neogames Finland Association
Neogames is a member-based, non-profit game industry association. Its task is to coordinate, accelerate and support the growth and development of the Finnish game industry, as well as to connect stakeholders across the sector and promote shared interests. More information at www.neogames.fi.