Level Up Accelerator Kicks Off Second Round With Nine Game Teams

Following the success of its launch last year, the Level Up funding programme - the Games/Bavaria Accelerator under the patronage of Digital Minister Dr Fabian Mehring - is entering its next round. Nine developer teams and solo developers from across Bavaria have been selected for the second edition.

The Level Up accelerator programme from Games/Bavaria is launching its second round with nine new teams. The programme supports aspiring developers from across Bavaria on their journey to professional game production. Due to the high volume of outstanding  applications received, the number of places available in this year's batch has been increased from eight to nine.

Dr. Fabian Mehring, the Bavarian Minister of State for Digital Affairs and patron of the programme: "With Level Up, we are specifically promoting young talent from all over Bavaria who have the creative and economic potential to shape the games industry of tomorrow. It is encouraging to see an increasing number of teams led by women capitalising on this opportunity and contributing to the diversification of our games scene with their ideas. Our goal is clear: Bavaria is giving creative minds across the state the support they need to turn their visions into successful projects and actively shape the digital future."

Robin Rottmann, Team Lead Games/Bavaria, said: "With Level Up, we are creating a space for creative development, sustainable entrepreneurship and mutual support within the scene. The response to the second edition has been extremely positive, with praise for both the quality and the diversity of the contributions. The fact that an increasing number of teams with fresh perspectives, new ideas and diverse backgrounds from all over Bavaria are applying is a clear indication of the vibrant state of the games community in the Free State. We are pleased to offer our support and expertise through our network in the coming months, as we assist them in achieving their goals."

The 2025 jury consisted of Georg Baier (New Family Relations at remote control productions (rcp)), Lena Fischer (sub-project manager for Integrative Production Management (IPM) at the Hochschule für Fernsehen und Film (HFF) München), Zoë Koç (co-founder, managing director and game designer at Spellgarden Games) and Dirk Ludewig (managing director of NerdStar).

The following nine teams/persons will participate in 2025: - Alexander Mrohs (Castell): Cube Grinder Factory. In a liminal factory environment, cube structures are dismantled, sorted and reassembled. CommuniCat Studios (Munich): CommuniCat. Players learn the principles of non-violent communication with the assistance of cats. - Favorite Ice Cream Studios (Augsburg): Mad Tilly's Magical Amulets. In a medieval town, Tilly, a witch, uses magical amulets to help cure mysterious illnesses. - Magic Pigeon Games (Bayreuth): Roguelight (WT). In this roguelike dungeon crawler, Nora combats sinister nightmare toys - and her own fears - with her torch. - Memory Forge (Gersthofen): Incredibug. In this 3D platformer, Bobo the pill bug collaborates with Lumi the firefly to combat smart devices. - RocketMIND (Regensburg): RocketMIND. This space adventure for children aims to strengthen resilience, self-esteem and mindfulness in a playful way. - Spicy Sushi Games (Unterschleißheim): OrbiTower. This tower defence game features rotating orbits against alien slime. - Wegfreund Games (Munich). S.T.A.R.V.E. (WT). In this deck-building game, space farmers on a corporate mission must survive on alien planets. - Noah Lederer and Laurin Schürer (Bayreuth). Book of Tiles. By placing hexagonal tiles, players create a world without time pressure in this cosy builder.

The programme will be officially launched in August, with the first workshops, coaching sessions and community formats. Concurrently, Batch 1 will once again be in the spotlight: several teams from the first year will present their progress as part of a joint appearance with Games/Bavaria at gamescom 2025 in Cologne.

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