Social Thinky Games
What we’re thinking
We want to fund social thinky games.
We love games that give players the space to think and see the beauty in elegant systems. But, we want to see more games where players are (i) collaborating or competing to problem solve or (ii) problem solving to create and share.
We’re financing established developers to develop these projects.
What you’ll get
Up to $2mm in project and performance-based funding
Developer-friendly Terms
Supportive mission-focused funder and ecosystem
What’s our process
Apply using this LINK. We accept submissions on a rolling basis.
FAQ
What makes a game “thinky” to us?
Thinky games are games where the player develops, through discovery, a mastery of deep systems and mechanics. These games often evoke “aha moments” and involve creative problem-solving, logical reasoning, strategic decision making, and/or deep planning to achieve success. Such games include Baba Is You, Patrick’s Parabox, and Factorio.
What makes a thinky game “social” to us?
In social thinky games shared problem solving is a core pillar of the game design. We see two broad categories of social thinky games: co-op or competitive thinky games, which could encompass anything from ibb & obb to chess to Prismata to Portal 2, and create & share, which encompasses a range of games from Minecraft to Mario Maker.
How does our non-profit status come into play?
Our funding exists to take big risks that align to our org’s mission of inspiring more people to fall in love with and see the beauty in math and mathematical systems. We care a lot more about reaching and impacting a lot of people vs. maximizing our return on investment. We also require a limited quantity of the created games are made available for free to kids from low income families and to educators.
Do you have content restrictions?
We want games that everyone is able to play and enjoy so we only consider projects that are rated E. Wide accessibility is important to us, so we prefer projects that are playable on the web.
What is project based financing?
At this time we’re only offering funding for projects. This is a milestone based revenue share agreement. We’re not investing in studio equity and we don’t offer publishing services.
What is performance based financing?
A portion of the funding will be available via traditional project based financing. The remainder is follow-on funding if the project meets agreed upon performance targets.
If we receive this funding, can we also receive additional funding from a publisher?
Yes!
What is your evaluation criteria?
Track record and pitch (including plan to reach large audiences).
Contact us
Contact us at games@carina.fund to start a conversation.
