Ubisoft has announced an indie fund to support studios in the Canadian province of Quebec. The fund, called Ubisoft RADAR, was worth $10 billion. The project, which includes mentoring, coaching, and many other supports, aims to take the game industry one step further by supporting the indie ecosystem.
Director of Entrepreneurial Accelerator Oliver Delisle, noting that Ubisoft was an independent studio in the past, adds:
“Let’s not forget that Ubisoft started off as an indie studio back in 1986. This project is in line with our CEO Yves Guillemot’s desire to support entrepreneurship and the techno-creative sector in order to give back to the community, in this case, to indie studios. When we support an ecosystem, it becomes stronger, and it’s in the common interest to support this sector to help it become even more vibrant and attractive.”
Ubisoft RADAR will support projects in three different phases. The stages will be as follows:
- Funding will be available while the game is in pre-production
- A finishing fund will be provided to help studios complete their game
- Provide support for marketing and community building processes
Stating that the game developed by the developer needs financing for quality control, polishing and fine-tuning from the second stage, Delisle states that the studios will need financing at this stage.
Delisle, emphasizing that they will not touch the intellectual property of the game and that they will not want to affect the artistic or narrative aspect of the game, continues as follows:
“Ubisoft RADAR’s terms are unique. We don’t touch intellectual property and we don’t want to influence the artistic or narrative direction of a game. We offer fair and flexible financial support and repayment terms, but the studio remains completely independent. We can provide experts and advice if they need it, but at the end of the day it’s their project, and we believe in it enough not to want to distort it.”
In addition, Delisle answered the question of what Ubisoft would do with its share of these games as follows:
“All profits made by Ubisoft RADAR will be immediately reinvested into the program to fund more indie games. And so, the more success we have, the more the fund will grow and be able to accompany new projects in upcoming years. It’s a way to redistribute the success of indie projects to other indie studios that are starting out, and create a virtuous cycle.”
