Until very recently, games scholarship has directed little attention to the local game developmentscenes and their interrelations with regional and global production networks. Although the logic ofglobalization continues to erode cultural differences, regional aspects still importantly contribute tothe forms of game development, producing characteristically glocal (global + local) assemblages ofwork and play. In this paper, we explore the policies, funding schemes and support structuresaround national game industries, putting the focus on Nordic countries and especially Finland,Norway and Sweden. While all governments strive to develop policies that contribute to innovationand create new ways of organizing economic activities, our specific focus is in understanding whatkind of context the Nordic welfare state model has provided for game development.

As argued by Kerr & Cawley (2012), the spatial distribution of the games industry is importantlyconnected to the local histories and networks, as well as financial, cultural and labour markets.Nieborg & de Kloet (2016) point out significant differences in national game related policy initiatives(e.g. tax incentives, subsidies, industry regulations) within Europe and indicate that the vastlydifferent levels of maturity national game industries demonstrate are closely tied to these creativeindustry policies. They also argue that Northern European countries are leading in research anddevelopment expenditures and game-related public research investments.