TIf you’re just entering the gaming realm, you may not be aware of Pax Australia. This large-scale gaming conference and exhibition occurs annually at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Center every October. My favorite area has always been Pax Rising, which showcases indie video games and tabletop games, predominantly from Australia. This year, however, notable changes have emerged, with many outstanding titles coming from New Zealand across the Tasman.
At a booth hosted by Code – the New Zealand Government-supported Center for Digital Excellence – 18 developers from New Zealand showcased their upcoming games, drawing in a busy crowd excited about the local gaming scene. In terms of humor, head lice allowed me to control a parasitic headcrab monster that could seize control of people’s brains and manipulate them like puppets. how was your day is a charming time-loop game set in New Zealand, revolving around a young girl on a quest to find her lost dog. Meanwhile, kill something with friends is a cooperative multiplayer action game featuring bizarre medical trials, where I ripped off my own arm to battle hordes of enemies.
Two years after the massive success of Dredge, New Zealand’s independent gaming industry continues to flourish. According to an investigation by the New Zealand Game Developers Association (NZGDA), local game developer studio revenues have increased steadily each year since 2018, seeing a 38% rise to NZ$759 million (A$657 million) from 2024 to 2025. This amount is nearly double the A$339.1 million generated in Australia in 2024.
This surge in revenue is backed by remarkable successes such as Grinding Gear Games’ acclaimed Path of Exile series, which reported revenue of NZ$105 million between October 2024 and September 2025. PikPok, the studio behind the acclaimed Into the Dead series and the mobile hit Clusterduck, has recorded over 500 million downloads worldwide across all titles. Additionally, projects such as Flintlock: Dawn Siege, Crypto Master, and Dungeons and the Decadent Gambler have seen impressive figures as well. Some of these projects benefit from a 20% rebate provided by NZ On Air, which has paid out $22.4 million by 2024/25 to around 40 companies. For smaller studios lacking new investment, Code has become a vital vehicle for growth.
Founded in Dunedin in late 2019 by the New Zealand Government to support South Island studios, Code received a boost from government investments in 2022 to expand its national program, which not only funds developers but also provides them with industry-best practices. Recent funding rounds yielded nearly NZ$960,000 in prizes across 13 studios, with New Zealand National Party Minister Shane Letty promising double the funding in September, providing an additional NZ$2.75 million per year.
Multiple countries offer federal funding for game development, but what sets Code apart is its emphasis on training developers to compete on a global scale. Its programs encompass not only grants but also mentorship and professional skills workshops (covering areas such as media communication and budgeting). It also provides multiple funding streams, ranging from travel assistance to substantial grants (up to $250,000) for teams poised to grow. The initiative aims to empower developers to become independent. “In today’s environment, publishers and investors want to engage only with those who already have some validation,” states Vee Pendergrast, Code Development Manager. “We built that into our model.”
Mr. Pendergrast emphasizes that industry leaders invited to mentor will offer “cost-effective solutions to expensive challenges.” “Even if they’re receiving a consulting fee, their skills return to the ecosystem.”
According to Code’s estimates, every NZ$1 they invest yields NZ$2.67 in returns, and this is evident in the upcoming console release of Abiotic Factor, a Code-supported title by Deep Field Games, which has sold over 1.4 million copies solely on PC.
At the Code booth during Pax, developers shared similar traits: their games looked fantastic, the demos were engaging, and they had strong media communication skills. One standout for me was Canvas City, a turn-based tactical combat game involving rollerblading. The studio, Disc 2 Games, spun off from Black Salt Games, the creators of the Code-backed hit Dredge. The success of Dredge provides separate funding for Disc 2, enabling them to innovate without growing the original company.
“Code offers excellent support for first-time developers,” says Nadia Thorne, CEO and producer at Black Salt. Since Dredge launched, she has become a mentor for Code. “Many indie studios lack the luxury of [coming to Pax for] this kind of exposure. Pooling our resources allows us to attend numerous shows that we otherwise couldn’t access.”
Jevon Wright is developing his first game, Adaptory, after four years. This 2D survival game features players managing a crew that crash-lands in space and must build a base to survive. They discovered Code halfway through its development, allowing them to become part of the broader New Zealand scene. “We all know each other,” they express. “And we’re all here to support one another.”
Will Adamson demonstrating the game Apothecurse also praised the cooperative nature of this scene, stating, “We not only share ideas, experiences, and contacts, but also developers… There’s a true sense of community here.”
Steam lists 61 upcoming games from New Zealand for PC. This figure is impressive for a small nation, yet it’s just a fraction of the 19,000 games released on Steam in 2024 alone. To carve a niche in a saturated market, the games highlighted at Pax all presented something distinct. “We have a multitude of inventive, quirky, Kiwi-oriented products. That’s part of our overall brand,” explains Pendergrast. Consider Middle Management, for instance, an irreverent satire addressing office culture featuring a mind-draining octopus creature, or Dream Team Supreme, where two players control a two-headed robot using two decks of cards to battle monsters.
Not all projects backed by Code have emerged as commercial successes, but some stand out. “We’re happy to share our triumphs and setbacks and the experiences leading up to them,” notes Thorne. “We’re simply striving to make it easier for the next wave of developers.”
Source: www.theguardian.com
