Fig (company)

Fig was created to address a financing gap between traditional game publishing and ordinary crowdfunding. The company was founded in 2015 by industry figures including Tyler Glaiel and sought to support independent developers through curated campaigns rather than operating as a general-purpose fundraising site.¹ Its campaigns typically presented a playable concept, development plan, budget, and production team to prospective backers. Fig Publishing also functioned as a publishing arm, offering selected projects assistance with funding, production, marketing, and distribution. This hybrid identity distinguished Fig from platforms centered solely on donations or pre-orders: a campaign could involve both consumer rewards and a structured financial interest in a game's revenues.

Fig’s defining innovation was the attempt to let qualified participants invest in the commercial performance of games. Alongside reward tiers such as digital copies, physical editions, and merchandise, some campaigns offered Fig Game Shares, a form of security tied to a project's future revenue rather than direct ownership of the developer.¹ The arrangement operated within the legal framework for securities crowdfunding, an area regulated in the United States by the Securities and Exchange Commission under Regulation Crowdfunding.² Fig did not make every campaign an investment offering; eligibility, disclosure, investment limits, and the structure of a particular offering varied. The model therefore required more financial and regulatory explanation than a conventional Kickstarter-style pledge.

Fig became associated with projects from established independent studios as well as smaller teams, including campaigns for Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire, Psychonauts 2, and Wasteland 3.¹ Its portfolio reflected a preference for narrative games, role-playing games, strategy titles, and other projects with identifiable enthusiast audiences. The platform’s publishing role was significant because a successful campaign did not end when its funding target was reached: developers still had to complete production, manage delays, fulfill rewards, and bring the game to market. In practice, Fig occupied an intermediate position among crowdfunding site, publisher, and investment intermediary. That combination expanded the possible sources of game finance but also exposed participants to the ordinary risks of software development, including cancellation, delay, and weak sales.

Fig was acquired by Republic in 2023, bringing its game-focused crowdfunding and publishing activities into a broader private-investing platform.¹ The transition illustrates how specialist crowdfunding services can be absorbed into larger financial-technology ecosystems rather than remaining independent brands. A lesser-known aspect of Fig was its attention to the secondary economics of games: its investment design attempted to align backers with downstream revenue while preserving familiar reward tiers for fans. That alignment was not equivalent to guaranteed profit, shares in a public company, or control over a studio. Regulation Crowdfunding itself imposes limits and disclosure requirements because these offerings can be illiquid and speculative.² Fig’s history is consequently relevant both to digital publishing and to the wider evolution of online securities markets.

Crowdfunding

Raising money from a large number of contributors, usually through an online platform.

Fig Game Shares

Fig’s investment-style interests connected to the future revenue of selected game projects.

Regulation Crowdfunding

A United States securities framework allowing eligible companies to raise limited amounts from the public through registered intermediaries.

Reward-based crowdfunding

Crowdfunding in which contributors receive products, experiences, or other non-financial rewards rather than an investment return.