Over 60 teams applied to the Kajaani Game Catalyst program

Five teams were selected to proceed and develop their game ideas together with industry professionals.

Kajaani Game Catalyst program has launched its operations. Kajaani Game Catalyst is one of Finland’s five game accelerators, and its activities focus on increasing the appeal of the game industry and creating new companies in the field. Applications for the first phase of the game accelerator, Kajaani GameLAB, were open late last year.

– We received more than 60 applications, from which we selected the five best teams to continue, says project manager Joonas Pylvinen from Kajaani University of Applied Sciences.

– Now we have five teams with different game ideas, and during the next two years, 10 more will start.

Business operations to gain momentum through three different phases

Kajaani Game Catalyst consists of three phases: Kajaani GameLAB, Kajaani Game Incubator, and Kajaani Game Accelerator. The first Kajaani GameLAB kicked off with a joint meeting of the selected teams in January.

– At the GameLAB section kick-start, there were 40 people from five teams, and the atmosphere was excitedly anticipatory. The teams have shown particular initiative and innovation in developing their game ideas and market validation, says Pylvinen.

Annually, four teams will continue to the second phase of the program, create a business ID, and establish a company in Kainuu.

– Kajaani’s advantage for new companies is a functioning community and ecosystem. The game industry markets are global, so success stories can be created practically from anywhere. Peer support and sharing lessons learned are important, which Kajaani Game Catalyst implements, says Pylvinen.

Kajaani Game Catalyst supports early-stage companies for two years.

– From Kainuu, we now hear a lot of good news about new openings, especially from the IT sector. Over one million euros in funding for the game accelerator is part of this positive development, summarizes Pylvinen.

Kajaani Game Catalyst is a coaching program created in the Kainuu GEMS project, which aims to raise participants’ skill level from game industry student or enthusiast to the level required by a growing game industry company. The project aims to generate 12 new game industry companies in the Kainuu region, two of which are rapidly growing companies. The Kainuu GEMS project is funded by the European Union (ESF). The project’s implementation period is 1.8.2024–31.12.2027.