1. Promote Germany as a game location for the long term

Video games are a cultural asset, an economic factor and a guarantee for digital innovation. If we aim to benefit from the resulting opportunities for the economy and society in this country, Germany as a game location must catch up with the international competition. The federal government’s strategy for the game sector provides an important basis for further progress and the realisation of potential in many areas. The government wants to see Germany become a leading market for game development. In order to be able to compete internationally with the necessary ambition and to enable significantly more innovation, growth, and creative games made in Germany, strong and targeted efforts are needed to improve the country’s conditions as a game development location.

Competitiveness in game funding

The most important pillar for Germany as a successful game development location is internationally competitive games funding that will allow the country to catch up with the leading game locations worldwide. While the federal government’s games funding programme has so far proved generally successful, it has also been unpredictable, as a lack of concrete resources has led to funding application freezes over long periods. The funding programme is therefore in urgent need of further development. The new federal government’s plan to increase funding to 125 million euros per year from 2026 onwards is an important step in this further development. This means that games funding will be more closely aligned with the actual needs of the games industry in Germany than before and will gain the necessary time to implement the additional tax-based funding for games planned in the coalition agreement. The goal must be a hybrid system combining the existing games fund system with additional tax breaks for games, as has been common practice in the world’s leading locations for many years. Such a funding system would give a significant boost to investment, tax revenue, and value creation. The Analysis of leverage effects^[1]  shows that every euro in tax credits for games in

Germany would trigger 4.80 euros in additional investment, yield 3.40 euros in new tax revenue and social security contributions and generate 8.70 euros in gross value added.

It is crucial that all measures are implemented in an unbureaucratic, predictable, and transparent manner and are designed to be long-term and in line with demand. This also applies to funding provided by the federal states, which play an important role in strengthening regional structures. Specific funding and support for start-up teams complements the promotion of game development. An evaluated continuation of the “Press Start” program for founders therefore appears to be a logical step. The decisive factor is the responsible investment of public funds. It is therefore important to regularly evaluate the effects, developments, and positive leverage for the economy that stem from a strong games industry through market studies.

Campaign for Germany as a game location

Germany as a production location and games made in Germany need good visibility and networking both domestically and internationally. This calls for a prominent location marketing concept that attracts skilled professionals, investors and companies. An integral part of this are the German Computer Game Awards, which together with the games industry must be further developed to achieve the highest international standard.

Building infrastructures for game development

Game hubs with incubator and accelerator programmes serve as an important corporate home for start-ups and provide opportunities for regional business locations. They promote communication between games companies and cooperation with other sectors that seek to benefit from the potential of game development. Support from the federal states and local authorities is essential in bringing these economic and innovation-linked effects into play, such as that provided for the House of Games Berlin.

2. Reinforce Germany’s commitment to game specialists

The German games industry is lacking in highly specialised, experienced professionals. Given this scarcity, training opportunities must be improved, and it must be made easier for these professionals to move here from abroad. It is important that the Federal Employment Agency and other public authorities take the occupational profiles of the games industry into account in career guidance and job placement. At the same time, a welcoming institutional culture is needed that supports incoming professionals in a positive and service-oriented manner.

3. Strengthen games in science, research, teaching and training

Games-related research and teaching must be recognised and academically instituted as an independent scientific discipline, and must also be accorded a place, above the university level, in the canon of established sciences. This will require more and better-equipped professorships, degree programmes and research clusters, support for educational and research networks, uniform accreditation standards, doctoral and post-doctoral opportunities and the founding of a beacon institution, a ‘Games University’, for game research and teaching in Germany that fulfils the highest international standards. We support the establishment of a professional association for game studies and strive for close cooperation.

4. Education needs video games – from school up until old age

Video games are perfect entertainment, but they can also be so much more in almost all areas of life. They open up new ways of acquiring knowledge, promote social interaction, motivate, and are easy to use. Our education system must take advantage of the opportunities games offer for education in schools, vocational schools and universities, for continuing education and for lifelong learning. The use of video games in learning contexts needs targeted support, as does the development of didactically sound educational games. Media literacy and basic digital skills—including programming skills—are key skills for the future and must be integrated into teaching in a mandatory manner.

5. Youth protection legislation: modern, convergent and internationally compatible

Germany’s modern, internationally leading youth protection system enables people of all generations to safely play video games. Uniform, modern, and convergent youth protection laws must reflect the media realities of children and adolescents, enable their rights to participation, and ensure the system’s international compatibility. Many systems and technical solutions from the games industry offer a role model for the protection of children and young people in the digital world.

6. Provide investment certainty, create value

Games are becoming ever broader in scope and the range on offer to users is becoming ever larger and more diverse. We in the games industry develop innovative business models for refinancing investments, such as in-game purchases, which have become firmly established among video game players and are geared toward digital practicality. Across all business models in the games industry, maintaining the trust of players has the highest priority and is a decisive factor for success. Many other industries are taking inspiration from these innovations and adapting them. However, new digital business models need ample latitude to develop, so a fair balance of interests between consumer rights and entrepreneurial freedom must be found in the digital world, as elsewhere. Strengthening empowered and confident users must take precedence over new regulation.

7. Preserve games as a cultural heritage

The International Computer Game Collection (ICS) could become a global beacon for Germany as a game location. Upon its opening, it would already be the world’s largest collection of computer games, with more than 60,000 game titles, along with extensive hardware – right here in Germany. However, this great cultural treasure is currently spread over various locations and cannot be used by the public. Brought together at one site, this cultural property could be safeguarded, made accessible for research and become a unique setting for testing in the area of digital cultural asset protection. The International Computer Game Collection could also play a leading global role in addressing the unique challenge of preserving video games as a dynamic cultural asset. Establishing this public location will require institutional funding from the federal government in partnership with the state of Berlin.

8. Provide digital infrastructure for all

To enable successful game development, internationally compatible cloud gaming, and lag-free gaming experience for millions of players, Germany as a games location must have nationwide gigabit connectivity. This applies to high-performance broadband internet connections as well as to a strong 5G network. Germany needs to catch up quickly across all distribution channels and make a sustainable digital infrastructure accessible to all while maintaining net neutrality. It is only then that games can truly demonstrate their exceptional capacity for innovation in Germany.

9. No space for hate, trolls or piracy: bring security authorities up to speed digitally

We in the games industry are committed to promoting diversity and tolerance on a daily basis. All industry stakeholders must come together to robustly confront hate speech as well as immoral and, in certain cases, illegal behaviour in our digital society. The digital competencies of the authorities must be expanded to create flexible and targeted solutions.

10. Seize the opportunities created by esports: talent, tournaments and public interest

Germany should be one of the most important locations for esports. Given their high societal, cultural and economic relevance, optimal framework conditions must be created for esports. In particular, the valuable work of the organisations that offer esports should be promoted rather than further disadvantaged. These organisations thus must be accorded not-for-profit status in tax legislation. Whether or not esports are sport in a narrower sense is not a decisive factor here. As with other major events, hosting municipalities and their local economies benefit when esports tournaments are held. More local economic development agencies should therefore actively apply to host and support esports events. Esports thrive from talented players who perform at a world-class level, gain wide recognition and become ambassadors for the values of esports and their home country. Germany therefore has a natural interest in providing the best possible conditions and targeted support for esports talent in order to achieve a leading position in esports and present Germany as an attractive esports location. This is more true than ever in light of the Olympic Esports Games.