Galway-based Ardán is taking a central role in a renewed national programme supporting Irish game developers. The latest round adds to the city’s growing connection with games and the wider creative industries, with funding and training both forming part of the 2026 scheme.
€500,000 Fund Puts Games Back in Focus
Screen Ireland confirmed the return of the Digital Games Portfolio on 5 August 2026, following its first year in 2025. The €500,000 programme combines direct funding for studios with training for people building careers in games. Through the Irish Games Fund, developers working on original projects can apply for €12,000 in prototype funding or €50,000 in development funding. A new Release Fund has also been added for games approaching launch.
Large digital libraries also need a clear way of organising what they contain. One example of how this works can be seen in this review of TonyBet’s game library, which separates a broad selection by game type rather than presenting it as a single total. Similar categories are commonplace across digital storefronts, where genre and format help users find relevant titles.
Imirt handles the funding side of the new portfolio, while Ardán focuses on developing new talent. That gives studios a route to seek support for projects while people entering the industry can build the skills needed to work on future releases.
Galway Is Building a Bigger Role in Games
The funding follows several other games and creative-industry developments in Galway this year. In May, Galway hosted EDGE26 at Dexcom Stadium, bringing together people working across games, film, television, animation, design, music technology and other creative fields. The event drew more than 350 delegates, 34 speakers and 30 startup and SME exhibitors.
EDGE26 placed games alongside film, television, animation, design and music technology. Many of the skills involved overlap, with developers working alongside artists, animators, writers, sound designers and producers. Publishing, marketing and distribution also form part of getting a finished title to an audience.
That crossover matters in a city where creative work already spans several disciplines. Events such as EDGE26 can give studios and freelancers a place to meet potential collaborators, funders and publishers without leaving the region.
Ardán already works across several of those areas from Galway. Its role in the renewed portfolio gives the city a direct connection to a national games programme while keeping the focus on practical support.
Getting a Game From Prototype to Release
The structure of the Irish Games Fund reflects the different stages between an initial idea and a finished title. Prototype funding is aimed at developers who need to test whether a concept works in practice. Development funding supports more advanced projects, while the new Release Fund is aimed at games closer to reaching players.
Each funding stream is aimed at a different stage of development. A small team testing a concept has different needs from a studio preparing a completed game for release. Early funding can help create a playable version, test mechanics or establish an art style before more time and money are committed.
Later-stage support can help when the core game already exists but further work is needed before launch. Developers can therefore apply to the fund that matches their project’s current stage instead of trying to fit every title into the same funding model.
New Talent Is Part of the Plan
Ardán opened applications for the Irish Games Talent Incubator on 6 August, with the eight-week programme due to begin in the week starting 14 September.
This year’s incubator is online-only and open to participants across the Republic of Ireland. Applications close at 5pm on 26 August, with applicants due to hear the outcome by 4 September. The programme covers both creative and entrepreneurial skills, giving participants experience in the practical side of building a career in games as well as developing the work itself.
For people at the start of a games career, that mix can be useful. Independent developers may also need to understand pitching, planning, collaboration and how to present a project to potential partners or funders. The programme gives participants space to work on those areas while meeting others at a similar stage. Although the programme is open nationwide, it is being led from Galway through Ardán.
Where Galway’s Games Scene Goes From Here
August has brought both new funding and another training programme for Irish game developers, with Galway involved in both. The announcements also follow EDGE26, which brought hundreds of people from different creative industries together in the city earlier this year.
Applications for the incubator close on 26 August, successful applicants are expected to be confirmed in early September and the programme begins later that month. Meanwhile, the renewed Irish Games Fund gives studios another route to seek backing for original projects at different stages of development. For Galway-based developers, there are now more routes from an early idea to a finished game.
