For years, Melbourne has been the heart and hub of the Australian video game industry.
The grounding for this was fostered when, at a national level, the industry was significantly weakened by the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, which was later followed another major blow when the Australian Government ended the Interactive Games Fund in 2014.
The Victorian Labor government, via the screen-development agency ScreenVic, then became the primary source of funds and support for video game studios across all of Australia.
In addition to funding, Melbourne is also home to multiple tertiary institutions offering video game degrees and cultural institutions with a focus on video games such as the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI).
The city also hosts Melbourne International Games Week (MIGW) in October each year, which features various industry and public-facing events, awards and conferences.
The most prominent are the industry-focused networking and upskilling event, Games Connect Asia Pacific (GCAP), and the public facing Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) gaming cultural festival.
Australia’s arguably most significant game, in terms of recent history, Untitled Goose Game, was developed in Melbourne and benefited from the funding available.
Not surprisingly, as recently as 2021, 39 percent of video game studios were based in Victoria with the next highest, 25 percent, based in New South Wales, followed by 20 percent in Queensland.
But hold that thought.
In the most recent statistics released by the Interactive Games and Entertainment Association, Queensland had surged ahead to be the second centre of video game development in Australia.
The state is home to 25 percent of studios compared to Victoria’s 28 percent.
These statistics do not represent studios and developers moving around; the industry has doubled in size in terms of employees since 2021.
And Queensland has been a big winner, and driver, in terms of that growth.
An early harbinger of that growth was the game, Unpacking, released in 2021.
Developed by a small, independent, Brisbane-based studio called Witch Beam, the game is a mix of story and unpacking simulator.
It won two BAFTAs. It received funding from Screen Queensland.
Another shining example is Halfbrick Studios, which developed the mobile-based video-game phenomena, Fruit Ninja and Jetpack Joyride.
Support is really key to the resurgence of the video game industry in Australia and Queensland.
The Federal Government and all states now offer video game grants for studios.
But Screen Queensland goes further.
In addition to grants, which are essential to support fledging studios, they also offer market and travel grants so studios and developers can attend key industry events and conferences and a 15 percent rebate on expenditure (with a cap) for Queensland-based studios.
Successful rebate applicants are required to provide internships for Queensland residents.
Screen Queensland also helps support the Queensland Games Festival, held annually, which allows developers to showcase their games to the public, get feedback, and playtest them.
In 2025, the Festival needed to expand into larger space given its popularity with the public and developers.
In a unique approach, Screen Queensland also offers a 12-month video game residency.
The residency program provides successful applicants with a co-working space in Brisbane, access to leading industry experts, business mentoring and income support.
Screen Queensland also runs events for developers outside of Brisbane, including in North Queensland and the Sunshine Coast.
Jed Dawson, Head of Games at Screen Queensland, attributes the growth of the Queensland video game industry in part because developers can "access support at every stage of their video game development whether they are starting out or are more experienced – and that's been a strong focus of Screen Queensland for quite some time."
Making video games is hard. Games take years to develop and the Australian industry is mostly made up of small, precarious studios that struggle to access funding or investment.
Government support has been how the industry has survived and grown, which makes the activities of Screen Queensland so important.
Other countries with even smaller and emerging video game industries, for example, Greece, do not have access to the same resources and support that Australia does and are much more fledgling.
But more can always be done to help ensure Australia, and Queensland, has a vibrant, interactive and impactful video game industry.
And make no mistake: video games are not a niche industry – 82 percent of Australians play video games and their average player age is 35 with near gender parity, while the financial value of the video game industry globally is bigger than the global film and music industries combined, and it has been so for some years.
Australians spent $AUD3.8 billion on video games in 2024.
Despite the industry’s financial significance, the global video game industry has been struggling in recent years and undergoing layoffs and economic contraction.
Australia, and Queensland, has been able to avoid the worst of this thanks in part to the support on offer.
But to continue growing and becoming more sustainable, more support will be needed.
UniSC is also helping to grow the video game industry in Queensland.
We offer a degree in video game development via our Bachelor of Design and Game Design major and have researchers working with the industry to explore video game development, production and marketing.
UniSC is also proudly hosting the 2026 Digital Game Research Association Australia (DiGRAA) conference at UniSC Moreton Bay in February 2026 in what will be the first regional DiGRAA conference.
More information about the program and registration is available on DiGRAA’s website.
Media enquiries: Please contact the Media Team media@usc.edu.au