A collaboration that pays studios while funding the next generation of game developers.
TAMPA, FL – June 16, 2026 – Trophy, the brand activation platform created by NextGen Interactive LLC, today announced a strategic partnership with the IGDA Foundation. This new initiative creates a year-round fundraising model that pays participating game studios while funding the next generation of game developers from historically underrepresented communities.
Trophy is a marketing activation platform that helps brands reward gamers by identifying brand moments in player gameplay, and routes brand marketing funds to the studios whose playerbase creates in-game moments through existing game play. Through this partnership, the IGDA Foundation receives a portion of these brand activation funds committed by the participating studios. In turn, the Foundation continues its support for workforce programs, mentorship initiatives and maintaining a global community of game developers.
Players opt in via email or SMS for any participating game, and continue playing with no change to how the game looks or feels. When a player triggers a sponsored moment, Trophy routes a brand activation payment to the studio. Studios keep 88 to 96 percent of every brand activation, with no code changes required and no purchases needed from the player.
Launch studios include Trinket Studios, whose tactical cooking RPG Battle Chef Brigade brings competitive kitchen battles to the platform, and NEARstudios, whose charming co-op sandbox RPG sim Hawthorn invites players into a hand-crafted world of small-town life and discovery.
“The IGDA Foundation has funded the next generation of game developers for years. Trophy extends that work without asking players to change a thing,” says Alyssa Walles, Executive Director of the IGDA Foundation. “They play the games they already love, the experience stays exactly the same, and studios get paid while the next generation gets funded. That alignment is rare.”
“The gaming industry generates over $174 billion a year, and the communities that built the player base are still the most underrepresented in the workforce,” says Marcus Howard, CEO of NextGen Interactive LLC and a mentor with the IGDA Foundation. “Together, Trophy and the IGDA Foundation change that math. Studios get paid, brands get measured engagement, and the next generation gets a foot through the door.”
To find out more about the IGDA Foundation’s initiatives visit https://www.igdafoundation.org/questline. To stay up to date on IGDAFoundation news, please follow us on Linkedin and Bluesky.
About Trophy and NextGen Interactive
Trophy is a brand activation infrastructure platform created by NextGen Interactive LLC. The platform pairs more than 250+ brands with 250+ games through a proprietary brand-game matching algorithm and pays studios for the gameplay moments their players create. Trophy’s technology is covered by multiple provisional patent applications on file with the USPTO. For more information, visit https://www.trophyplatform.com/
About the IGDA Foundation
The International Game Developers Association Foundation (IGDA-F) is a U.S. based charitable organization – 501(c)(3) – dedicated to advancing inclusivity and diversity in the gaming industry by providing opportunities, education, and support for individuals from underrepresented communities. The IGDA-F is sponsored by a generous group of industry companies, including Stride PR, GDC, Apex Systems, and Premack Rogers Downs. Since 2008, the IGDA-F has supported more than 1,000 alumni who now develop games at both AAA and indie studios. For more information, visit https://igdafoundation.org
