The new incentives aim to do for the video gaming sector what similar incentives have helped achieve in turning the state’s film industry into the new Hollywood, with Australia’s largest publicly listed games developer, Melbourne’s PlaySide Studios, already lured to the Gold Coast.

Playside Studios, creator of The Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners, Jumanji: Epic Run, and The Lego Batman Movie App, confirmed it will establish a new studio on the Gold Coast later this year.

Screen Queensland chief Kylie Munnich said the State Government’s Digital Games Incentive would drive more local, interstate and international games studios to do business within the state.

The Australian gaming industry alone was worth $226 million last year.

“We have seen the enormous success of our incentives in the film and television space, so we are proud to level-up our local games industry with the launch of this brand-new Digital Games Incentive,” Munnich said.

In the past financial, the state’s screen industry generated $478 million in direct Queensland Production Expenditure through 37 films, series and games – almost double the previous high of $262 million.

Among the films attracted through the filming incentives has been George Clooney and Julia Roberts’ Ticket to Paradise that is currently being filmed from Hamilton Island in the state’s north to the Gold Coast.

Media and entertainment giant Disney has also started filming its big-budget, high-end series Nautilus, based on Jules Verne’s Captain Nemo, on the Gold Coast.

Ron Howard’s epic Thirteen Lives and Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis biopic headlined the year’s other blockbuster features filmed on location on the Gold Coast and around Queensland.

The state’s post-production, digital and visual effects incentives also proved a valuable lure in convincing Luhrmann’s team to relocate from New York to Miami on the Gold Coast to complete its year-long post-production process for Elvis.

Munnich said the new 15 per cent rebate for games projects was available for games studios based in Queensland with a minimum eligible spend of $250,000 within the state.

“By offering the country’s highest tax rebate we hope to secure even more investment and partnerships from game publishers and platforms, to create even more jobs for Queensland games professionals and draw new talent into the state,” Munnich said.

“Screen Queensland has supported a vibrant local games sector by financing development, supporting travel to major markets and conferences, and facilitating workshops and mentorships to upskill local games practitioners.

“This new incentive is yet another way Screen Queensland is investing in this rapidly growing industry, opening even more local job opportunities now and into the future.”

Australia’s peak gaming body, the Interactive Games and Entertainment Association (IGEA), said the incentives were not only aimed at multinational studios but would be “a huge boost” for the local games sector.

IGEA head Ron Curry, said the incentive would provide significant backing for the Australian game development industry, which recorded a $226 million return in the last financial year, with the past three years generating 20 per cent year-on-year growth.

Among emerging local digital gaming powerhouses was Brisbane studio Witch Beam that won the 2021 Australian Game of the Year for Unpacking. The game also won Eurogamer’s 2021 Game of the Year and is currently nominated for four 2022 BAFTA Games awards, including the BAFTA EE Game of the Year.