What Every Studio Needs in a Contractor Agreement

By / June 25, 2025

Many studios, especially early-stage studios, rely heavily on the services provided by independent contractors. Contractors may provide anything from commissioned art, to administrative services, to programming services for studios. No matter what services are being provided, there are some core ingredients any studio should want to see in written agreements with these service providers: First …

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Reaction Videos and Their Copyright Implications

By / June 17, 2025

Reaction videos, in which creators capture and share their responses to content such as video games, music, viral trends, and movies, have emerged as one of YouTube’s most compelling and popular genres. In fact, recent studies reveal that over half (54%) of YouTube viewers prefer watching creators react to events rather than viewing the original …

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3 Things Developers Get Wrong About IP

By / June 9, 2025

In the push to meet milestones and impress publishers, development teams often treat intellectual property (IP) as a box to tick rather than a strategic asset. The result can be costly detours exactly when momentum matters most: disputed titles, ownership surprises or stalled funding rounds. Understanding where misunderstandings typically arise helps studios safeguard creativity, preserve …

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Founders’ Agreements 101

By / June 3, 2025

Many budding entrepreneurs know that starting a successful venture requires creating a legal entity and drafting the associated paperwork, but those documents leave many questions unanswered: What role will each founder play in the new business? How will smaller operational decisions, like whether to sign a contract, be made? Can founders “moonlight” and work other …

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Six Legal Mistakes That Indie Developers Make

By / May 27, 2025

“It’s hard being an indie game developer” is an understatement. This is especially true for developers embarking on the indie dev journey for the first time, whether on their own or through a newly formed studio. In addition to juggling the demands of game development and publishing, indie developers must now worry about accounting, marketing, …

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Marketing and Promotion in Game Publishing: Who Controls What?

By / May 6, 2025

Marketing and promotion play a vital role in a game’s success, but control over these efforts can be a significant point of negotiation in publishing agreements. Developers and publishers often have different priorities when it comes to messaging, branding, and budget allocation, making it essential to establish clear terms in the contract. In most publishing …

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The Developer-Publisher Relationship: What Developers Are Signing Up For

By / April 29, 2025

When a game developer signs a publishing agreement, a business relationship is established that extends beyond merely getting a game to market. Understanding the nature of this relationship is crucial in ensuring that a deal aligns with long-term goals. The Role of a Publisher A game publisher provides services that developers may not have the …

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Why Video Game Companies Need Privacy Policies and Why Copy-Pasting Won’t Work

By / April 24, 2025

With games collecting vast amounts of user data—ranging from usernames and IP addresses to payment information and in-game behaviors—having a clear and compliant privacy policy isn’t just a good practice; it’s a legal requirement. However, simply copying and pasting another company’s privacy policy is a dangerous shortcut that can lead to serious legal consequences. Legal …

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How New U.S. Tariffs Could Reshape the Video‑Game Supply Chain

By / April 23, 2025

On April 5, 2025, the President of the United States announced that the United States will impose a minimum 10% baseline tariff on all goods imported from around the world, with many countries subject to higher rates. This announcement sent shockwaves through many economic sectors, causing a large amount of concern over supply chain costs, …

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