Games Lift Incubator

Games Lift supports developer teams in creating and refining concepts for digital games. Up to five teams will be supported per year. During a three months long intensive program, the teams receive financing of €15,000, a workshop and mentoring program held by experienced industry professionals as well as office desks in a co-working facility. After the end of the intensive program, the teams receive additional individual coachings during the following 12 months to help them prepare their game for release.

What Games Lift offers:

During the intensive program (September - December):

Financial support of €15,000
Talks, workshops and mentoring tailored to the needs of game developer start-ups
Provision of office space in a co-working facility.

As additional follow-up support until the end of the following year:

Individual coaching sessions with professional consultants
Time budget with a PR agency specialized on indie games.

The application phase for 2022 runs from May 9 until June 14.

Apply now

Application

The application phase for Games Lift 2022 runs from May 9 to June 14, 2022. Find all information about the application process here.

Apply now

News

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Games Lift Incubator - The Alumni's Experiences

The Games Lift Incubator is going into the third edition in 2022 already, so we took the opportunity to ask three alumni of the past two years about their experience with the program. These are three very different projects so we were especially curious about their impressions. You can currently apply to the 2022 edition of the Games Lift Incubator until June 14. We hope these reports on the Incubator will help you with your decision to apply.

Apply now for Games Lift 2022

From May 9 to June 14, you can apply for our Games Lift Incubator 2022! Take the chance to bring your game ideas and concepts for digital games to the next level!

Crumbling releases first VR-demo

“It’s action time! Woosh! Bam! Pow!” – this is how the official trailer adequately announces the freshly released demo of the third-person action-roguelike “Crumbling” by Games Lift Alumnus Ole Jürgensen and his team.

Games Lift 2021: Graduated!

For the people behind the project, Games Lift Graduation is a cause for celebration. After three intense months, they can pause for an evening and marvel at the accomplishments of the five incubator teams. For the actual team members, celebration comes only after the presentation. Find out all about our Games Lift Graduation event in this Games Lift Log.

Live today: Games Lift Graduation 2021

Five teams from Hamburg participate in our Games Lift Incubator 2021 with their promising games porjects from September to December - and now it's time to see what they have achieved and what they're up to. Join us for their final presentations on December 2 - live via stream or on-site in Hamburg!

Games Lift: ‘consider it’ get the green light

Timo Schneider and Kevin Westphal have been developing software successfully for years. Then something unexpected happened: An app of theirs was way too much fun to just be useful. With "supernightshift", they are taking the next step. Read more in our Games Lift Incubator Log.

Games Lift: Symmetry Break on finding words and time

Making games is a team effort. Symmetry Break are our biggest team this year; they have thought a lot about what their game is, and how they want to make it as a group. “Prospector” seems to reflect that. Communication is a crucial part of the game. Talking, it turns out, is harder than picking the right option. Read more about them and their game project in this issue of our Games Lift Incubator Log!

Games Lift: Denise Koch and her wicked plans

Her project casts a big shadow. But the artist is taking part in the Games Lift Incubator 2021 on her own. Denise Koch is here to kick-start her project "Monstersongs VR" – an interactive musical for virtual reality. More about her and her project in this issue of our Games Lift Log.

Games Lift: From one milestone to the next

In our Milestone Pitch event, our Games Lift participants presented their progress from the lessons learned in the Incubator program and pitched their development status in their games projects and concepts to mentors and the awarding committee. Find out more about our teams' progressions in our Games Lift Log #7.

Games Lift: SUPERNATURAL GAMES and their little green friends

Good things come to those who start: SUPERNATURAL GAMES are Gerrit and Patrick Henschel. The brothers have been successful in their separate careers. Now, they are working together on their personal dream game. With “The Treepoids”, they are winning over even skeptical experts. Find out more in our Games Lift Log!

Games Lift: tool1 build on their community

Meet tool1: Three guys with big plans and a clear strategy. Their project “The Invitation” already found some success. But it’s still early days; tool1 are planning big things for their audience next year. More in this issue of our Games Lift Log.

Games Lift: What we do in our workshops

Good things are happening in our Games Lift Incubator workshops right now. A lot of them are confidential. But some of them are not! We got to listen in on two veterans of game marketing and pitching. One of them is a new addition. Find out more in our new Games Lift Log entry!

Games Lift 2021 - New and Improved

After our first Games Lift Incubator 2020 was a success, we worked on the program for the new Games Lift teams 2021. Find out what is new and what improved in our Incubator Log #3

Games Lift 2021 - Accelerating Now

The preparations are done. Now comes the fun part: The 2021 iteration of our Games Lift Incubator has begun in full. Workshops are in session. Read more in entry #2 of our Games Lift Incubator Log.

Kick-off for Games Lift Teams 2021!

It’s on: Yesterday, we kicked off the intensive phase of Games Lift Incubator 2021 together with the five dev teams from Hamburg. For the next three months, the teams will be able to fully concentrate on their game ideas and attend workshops and individual mentoring sessions with international industry experts.

Games Lift Incubator: these are the five teams 2021

Five up-and-coming game developer teams from Hamburg convinced the awarding committee with their project ideas, pitching their way into the Games Lift Incubator 2021. The incubator program starts on September 9 and aims to prepare the teams for the challenges of developing and marketing their games projects in the international markets – through start-up funding of 15,000 euros per team and an intensive three-month workshop and mentoring program under the guidance of international industry experts.

Games Lift returns: Apply now to grow your game – like these developers did last year

Last year, Gamecity Hamburg launched the Games Lift Incubator. Five teams took their projects to the next stage during their time in the incubator. Now Games Lift is about to return.

Games Lift Insights on July 8: Basic Market Analysis for Indies

On July 8, our Project Manager Maggie Schneider and Cassia Curran, Founder and Strategic Advisor of Curran Games Agency, will provide insights into the Games Lift Incubator program and host a workshop on market analysis for indie developers. The workshop will be held in English.

Games Lift 2021 application phase has started

From June 21, the Games Lift incubator program launches its application phase for 2021, supporting five games developer teams in creating concepts for digital games with high market potential.

Games Lift Insights on June 3: Crowdfunding for Game Developers

On June 3, our Project Manager Maggie Schneider and Jan Theysen, Co-Founder and Creative Director of KING Art Games will provide you with insights into our Games Lift Incubator program and a basic workshop about crowdfunding for game devs!

Making game development work: Two examples from our Incubator

What is the best way to make a game? Don’t answer! It’s a trick question. There may never be one universal way of managing work across different teams and project sizes. Still, valuable lessons can be learned from the actual experience of the professionals in our teams.

The bar is set: Games Lift Graduation saw 5 strong presentations

We have reached our destination. After three months of hard work, our five teams got to present what they did during the Games Lift incubator. For most of them, this was their biggest showing yet. But to us, it did not feel like an exam – it felt like the celebration after.

Going Live: What to expect from Games Lift Graduation

You can see it in their faces, hear it in their voices, even tell it by the way their e-mails are worded: Our teams are excited. And they have very good reason to. On December 8, the Incubator will end with a public presentation. What’s in store?

Games Lift Graduation is here! Join us live on December 8

The five Hamburg-based teams of the first Games Lift Incubator are coming out of three months of intensive workshops and coaching concerning the development and marketing of computer games. In the final event on December 8, the founders will present how the mentors' input has been applied to further develop their game concepts.

How to promote an indie game: Insights from the Games Lift PR workshop

Working on Public Relations for video games is challenging; it is especially so for small game developers working on tight schedules and limited budgets. That is why at Gamecity’s Games Lift Incubator, PR is a special focus. We sat in on two luminaries coaching our teams.

Games Lift: The Amusement gives VR walking simulators a new meaning

It may be powered by a technical achievement, but this novel VR game is all about the story. Players will walk around a dilapidated amusement park, solve puzzles and take in the scenery. There is a layer cake of a tale to discover.

Games Lift: Leif’s Adventure builds on decades of experience

And it might be done soon! Developer Roman Fuhrer has worked at a variety of successful game studios. But this action-adventure is his very own. And he wants to get it just right.

Games Lift: In Alchymia, players won’t skip the fun

Developer Julia Reberg has a small, but enticing idea: Research alchemy in a fantasy world and find a miracle cure. If you don’t, Zombies will arrive and end the game. But we do not need to worry yet.

Time for the Milestone Pitch: What have the teams achieved in 6 weeks of Games Lift?

The Milestone Pitch on October 19 marked the end of the first half of Gamecity’s Games Lift Incubator 2020. In a two hour presentation, the awarding committee and mentors of the program got to check in on the progress of our five teams. There was a lot to see and talk about.

Games Lift: Crumbling feels like playing with action figures

Ole Jürgensen and Leonie Brosz still remember the way we all used to play when we were kids. Now, they are bringing it back. The novel idea at the heart of VR game „Crumbling“ is a really natural way of controlling your character.

Games Lift: Ninja Brigade will suck you into an Arcade

Or, to be more precise, it is keyboardist and composer Jonah Weingarten who gets sucked in. Players get to look like him and fight through a fantastic landscape inspired by feudal Japan. Dev team members Nico Plötz and Robin Stephan explain their wild idea.

5 unique ideas: The projects that make up Games Lift

It’s time to talk teams and projects. They define the Games Lift Incubator’s purpose: The whole point of the program is to help them thrive. In the coming weeks, we will take a closer look at each of them. But in order to get a sense of their diversity, let’s start with an overview.

Games Lift - What's in a workshop

Good workshops are hard to find. In the Games Lift incubator, they are a main attraction of the program. It’s seasoned game devs giving personal advice to a small group. But there is a crinkle: Because of the pandemic, this time around all talks and workshops of the Games Lift Incubator are being held remotely.

The Games Lift Incubator starts now. What does it incubate, exactly?

As another important program to support up-and-coming game developers and the games ecosystem in Hamburg, our Games Lift Incubator finally lifts off. Time for a quick inventory: What does the program do? What does it hope to achieve? We asked Gamecity Hamburg’s project manager Margarete Schneider to get us into the details of this new incubation program.

More News

Timeline 2022

May 9 - June 14Now

Online Application Phase

Online applications for Games Lift 2022 are open from Monday, May 9 (1 pm) to Tuesday, June 14 (11:59 pm). All information regarding how to apply can be found on the Application page.

May 24 4:30 pm

Games Lift Insights

Join the Gamecity Team and Cassia Curran, Founder and Strategic Advisor at Curran Games Agency, for insights into our Games Lift Incubator program and a workshop about Basic Market Analysis for Indies. Participation is recommended for all teams who are considering an application. Register now on eventbrite

June 15 - July 4

Awarding Process

After careful consideration of all eligible applications, the Awarding Committee invites a selection of applicants to pitch their projects online. The final decision on which teams will enter the Incubator is made after the online pitches.

September 12 - October 18

Incubator Phase 1 | Foundations

The Gamecity Incubator program starts in early September with workshops, the first batch of financing and offering of co-working space.

October 19

Milestone Pitch

Teams present a pitch to the awarding committee as well as their mentors based on the progress they made on their project and new knowledge they gained during the first phase. The second batch of financing is provided to all teams who successfully completed the first phase as well as the milestone pitch.

October 20 - Early December

Incubator Phase 2 | Polishing

Further workshops and talks deepen the knowledge gained during the first phase. Teams prepare their projects for a final pitch.

December 8

Graduation

Teams present the results of their work in a final, public pitch. Watch the Graduation of the 2020 teams here and the Graduation of the 2021 teams here!

December 2022 - December 2023

Follow-up Support

After the end of the intensive program, Gamecity Hamburg provides a time budget with a selection of professional coaches as well as a PR agency specialized on indie games that the Games Lift teams can use to book individual sessions.

Watch the Graduation of the 2021 teams

Awarding Committee

Amanda Förtsch
Project Manager
Gamecity Hamburg
linkedIn

Wolf Lang
CEO
Super Crowd Entertainment GmbH
linkedIn

Mareike Ottrand
Founder / Professor of Interactive Illustration and Games
Studio Fizbin / HAW Hamburg
linkedIn

Ole Schaper
CEO & CTO
Sviper
linkedIn

Jens Unrau
Head of the Media and Digital Industry Department
Ministry of Culture and Media City of Hamburg
website

Funded Projects 2021

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The Treepoids

by SUPERNATURAL GAMES

“The Treepoids and the Island of Professor Flora” starts the adventure series of the Treepoids a plantlike alien race that travels the universe to explore distant planets. Now they need your help! Use your wits and their mental superpowers to solve puzzles, master mind battles and stop the Professor from his evil plans.

PROSPECTOR

by Symmetry Break Studio

Prospector is a 2D sci-fi narrative adventure game about that lump in your throat, and how some things are harder to say than others. As an explorer, you are stranded in a city veiled in toxic fog, whose inhabitants wear masks to survive. Find people you can trust in this alien place, and experience the awkwardness, anxiety and rewards of communication.

supernightshift

by consider it

supernightshift is a minimalistic puzzle racer on the nightly streets of Hamburg. Strategically combine the different means of transportation the city has to offer to reach your destination as fast as possible. Watch your travel budget and don't dawdle on your smartphone, or you'll run out of time!

Monstersongs VR

by Denise Koch

Explore an abandoned theatre that has been taken over by monsters who are hungry for love. Escape the monster lurking within yourself in this part rock musical part adventure game.

THE INVITATION

by tool1

THE INVITATION is a PvEvP loot shooter with a clear goal: maximum player interaction.

Quests in this game are not given by NPCs. They emerge from events, players and the environment, which frequently invite you to new adventures.

All funded Projects

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