Norway has unique prerequisites for shaping an interactive, digital entertainment industry where equality, artistic quality, innovative design, and decent working conditions provide tangible advantages for companies competing for talent, publishers, investors, and markets.
The Games Cluster draws together companies from across Norway who develop video games for the consumer market. It also comprises investor groups, research and educational institutions, the public sector, and companies who develop video game technology for the business-to-business market.
Video games constitutes a fast-growing creative entertainment industry with a global turnover of more than $177 billion (2020). With excellent digital infrastructure, a high level of education, good access to public and private funding and an attractive jobs market, Norway is ideally suited to take part in this growing industry.
The video games industry in Norway generates more than 90 % of its turnover from exports and employs a wide range of creative disciplines, from developers and designers to illustrators, musicians, and writers. Harnessing the considerable potential for growth inherent in the Norwegian games industry will not only increase exports but create new job opportunities for many creative disciplines.
The games industry is a decentralised, digital creative industry. It presents attractive employment opportunities for educated professionals regardless of where they live and is ideally suited to a digital, decentralised economy in a post-pandemic world.
Four main challenges are facing the Norwegian games industry.
We need a more structured and collaborative development of skills and proficiencies among employees to be competitive in a global marketplace.
We need greater focus on
internationalisation and global marketing of
games, services, and companies.
We must recruit more broadly and develop
a more diverse workforce.
We need better
access to investment capital.
The realisation of a national Games Cluster will accelerate growth, innovation and cooperation between Norwegian games companies and partners. The key to accelerated growth is facilitating closer cooperation between companies to carry out a set of common projects beneficial to the industry. Greater cooperation and closer ties between businesses, as well as academia, investors, and the public sector, will enable companies to grow more rapidly and increase their chance of long-term success in a fiercely competitive, global market.
Innovation Norway’s «Arena» programme is a three-year project with an estimated total annual budget of 2,5 million NOK. By the end of the project period the Games Cluster aims to double the yearly total investments going into the Norwegian games industry, increase turnover by 50 %, employment by 25 % and ensure that at least 40 % of employees in the industry are women. The Cluster will promote an inclusive work environment friendly to minorities.
Noneda
Dirtybit
Bergen
Breach/Kick-Ass Invest
Trondheim
Hyper Games
Oslo
