Sep 23–27, 2021

Play unique games by unique creators.

As always, we’re hosting a variety of games by creators of color from around the world. Below are some of the confirmed games you’ll learn about at the expo — and how we’re giving them space to shine with our online format.

Featured games

Button City

Subliminal

A narrative adventure about cute animals, friendship, and arcades.

Spirit Swap: Lofi Beats to Match-3 to

Soft Not Weak

Spirit Swap: Lofi Beats to Match-3 To is an action-puzzle game set in a lush, narrative-driven world of witchy demons. Cast spells, be queer, & crash the biggest concert of the year!

Aerial_Knight's Never Yield

Neil Jones AKA (Aerial_Knight)

Take the role of Wally. A mysterious kid out to recover items from his past with the hope of saving what's left of the future. Hopefully, you're fast enough to outrun your enemies and expose the truth. Or at least live long enough to see what happens.

Innchanted

DragonBear Studios

Innchanted is a co-op adventure where you discover magical potions, serve otherworldly guests, and pacify monsters. Gather your party and journey on a quest to overcome the evil Wizard – your landlord!

Common'hood

Plethora Project

After losing everything, it's time to start from scrattch. Occupy an abandoned factory and craft the community you want to live in, taking it from surviving to thriving.

START AGAIN START AGAIN START AGAIN: a prologue

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START AGAIN START AGAIN START AGAIN: A PROLOGUE (or: START AGAIN: a prologue) is a story driven RPG where you, Siffrin, are stuck in a time loop for no reason you can find.

Our America VR

Fishean Studio

What starts as a simple commute for Malcolm and his dad quickly escalates into a life-or-death encounter that both father and son must be cautious to survive. Put on your VR headset and see life through the eyes of a Black father in the U.S. as you take a ride in Our America.

Night Reverie

Somber Pixel

Night Reverie is a Puzzle/Adventure game in which a child must solve the mystery behind the distortion of his house. Explore puzzle-filled environments and discover strange creatures living in the house as you reach the truth behind of what looks like a bizarre nightmare.

Sephonie

Analgesic Productions

Memories linger across time, deep under Sephonie Island. Explore a massive cave network, link with unidentified species, and unravel scientific and spiritual mysteries, all while watched over by a supernatural being existing beyond human history. By Anodyne 1+2’s creators!

Midautumn

Team Midautumn

Midautumn is a supernatural game about blasting evil spirits, saving your hometown from gentrification, and Asian diaspora culture. For Robin Lam, crashing at Grandma's was meant to be a break from their responsibilities.

She Dreams Elsewhere

Studio Zevere

You wake up in a foggy haze with one hell of a headache. The way ahead is dark and foreboding. You remember who you are, but not a lick of how you got there. And to top it off, you’ve got a persistent little pest of a doppelgänger out for your blood at all times.

Welcome to your coma - enjoy your stay!

Danny Fisher Kills the Government

Danny Fisher

Danny Fisher Kills the Government is a satirical political video game, taking the player through the journey of Danny Fisher, as he and a party of local New Yorkers foster community, tussle with the NYPD, girl-bosses, CEOs, and Mayor de Blasio himself.

Space Warlord Organ Trading Simulator

Strange Scaffold

Buy, sell, and trade organs in a strange and evolving universe. Dive into the quivering innards of alien capitalism in the sci-fi body horror market tycoon game you didn't know you needed.  

Alpaca Stacka

Michelle Ma and Sebastian Baracaldo

Alpaca Stacka! is a 3D adventure platformer where you play as Paz, a kind alpaca dedicated to helping their animal friends.

We're celebrating extra hard

Since we’re online, we wanted to give even more love to the game creators in our community. In addition to our online showcase, here are more ways you’ll be able to experience the games in this year’s event:

#GDoCExpo Direct

Our second-ever direct will be packed with exciting announcements from games by creators of color! We can’t wait to share what our community has been working on. The direct will premiere on YouTube the week of our event.

Subscribe to our Youtube

Gradient Convergence 2021

We’ll be taking over Steam again with our second annual Gradient Convergence sale. You’ll be able to directly support creators of color by wishlisting games that aren’t yet available and buying games that have recently been released.

Follow our Steam page

Developer interviews

Throughout the event, our fave DaPurpleSharpie will host interviews with creators of color. You’ll hear directly from independent game designers about the process of building and releasing their work.

Get tickets

Game development grants

Many games don’t get released because creators lack access to funding. We’re changing the landscape by partnering with games industry leaders to give money directly to game creators of color. In 2020 we gave out $90,000 in game development grants. In 2021, we’re looking to do even better.

Anyone who applied to speak or show a game at this year’s event is eligible to receive a grant. We’ll announce the winners on the last day of our event!

Learn about grant sponsorship

...and more!

Updates coming soon, so stay tuned ✨

Stay up-to-date

More information is coming soon! Subscribe to hear when we add new games, speakers, and more! We send emails less than once per week.

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Games FAQ

Can I still apply to show my game?

We understand your enthusiasm, but applications have closed and we do not accept late submissions. We receive hundreds of on-time applications every year. Make sure to follow us across the internet so you can be kept in the loop for when submissions open in the future.

I applied to show my game. When will I hear back?

You’ll know if we’ve accepted or declined your submission by the end of July (August at latest). If accepted, you’ll be onboarded in time for our event in late September.

What kinds of games should I expect to see?

All kinds! We’ve shown silly games, serious games, queer games, board games, digital games, and more. We like to see orginality and a strong perspective. The narrative-driven games we choose tend to have diverse sets of characters and defy common tropes.

I'm not a person of color. Can I attend?

Yes, you are very welcome to buy a ticket and celebrate game creators of color with us!

Are there ID or minimum age requirements to enter the event?

Game Devs of Color Expo is an event for games professionals, although our content can be enjoyed by other groups as well. While we talk about games, this is an event for adults. Since this is an event for adults, adult content may be present or referenced. This includes, but is not limited to, discussions and depictions of sexuality. Please ensure that people under 18 are in the company of an adult.