Fig Pays Out More to Investors in 2019 Than All Previous Years Combined
Average Returns Positive for Third Straight Year
The last year saw some of the most significant events since Fig first launched in 2015! Investors in several classes of Fig Game Shares benefited from major third party deals, Fig funded games Outer Wilds and What the Golf? won major awards, games like Homeworld 3 and Chorus ran hugely successful campaigns, and we launched a new campaign format for developers called Open Access. The year as a whole continued to show that bringing in investment and support from the gaming community can help fuel passionate and creative developers while simultaneously providing financial returns.
In addition to looking back on this years milestones, we are releasing information on the investment returns that have accrued through December 31, 2019 on all our Fig Game Shares for released games:
The average return across all the above Fig Game Shares was about 118% (or a 18% return on investment), meaning that an investor who put the same amount into each of the above Fig Game Shares would have accrued an average ROI of 18% through December 31, 2019. Of the 15 games listed above, so far 8 have generated positive returns, 7 have returned less than breakeven, and 5 are still generating revenue for Fig and Fig’s investors.
We are happy to announce that investors in Fig Game Shares — WTG have already accrued return of 225% through December 31, 2019 (or a 125% ROI)! This return reflects a deal made for timed exclusive distribution of What The Golf? on the Epic Game Store. With the support of backers, investors, and other partners, What the Golf? Won ‘Best Mobile Game’ at the 2020 Game Developer’s Choice Awards and was also a featured launch title for Apple Arcade. They join Outer Wilds, which won Best Game at this year’s BAFTA awards, as a critically acclaimed title which also generated over 2X returns for Fig investors!
One of the most significant events of the past year was Microsoft’s deal with Fig to purchase our licensing agreements for three games — Pillars of Eternity II, Psychonauts 2, and Wasteland 3 — following Microsoft’s acquisition of those studios. The Psychonauts 2 and Wasteland 3 deals generated an ROI of 39% and 32% respectively to Fig investors, with cash paid out long before the release of these titles. These buyouts, along with a handful of distribution deals entered into by our developers in 2019, has shown flexibility in the way that Fig investments can provide value to shareholders as the gaming industry evolves. We have seen over the past year how quality games made by quality developers can continue to find financial success regardless of the source of returns, and our shares are designed with that in mind. By supporting studios that create compelling content for both consumers and distributors, our investors have been able to generate profits on some investments months or years before the games even launch!
In the past year, Fig also entered into a deal with a third party to buy out the remaining revenue rights of Etherborn. However, this deal took place subsequent to the launch of the game after it was recognized that the game would not be generating significant revenue to investors. To make sure that investors would be able to recoup some of their investment, and to prevent a possible situation where both the developer and game would be shut down due to bankruptcy, we were able to negotiate the transfer of our revenue share in exchange for the ability to provide investors with 32% of their investor capital.
The Fig successful campaigns of 2019 are sure to lead to more exciting and high quality games in the future. We ended the year with a bang with both Chorus: an Adventure Musical and Homeworld 3 showing that our community continues to provide the foundation for both brand new innovative projects as well as the modernizing of beloved classics. Chorus, created by David Daider (veteran writer of Dragon Age and Knights of the Old Republic titles) and voiced by industry icons Troy Baker and Laura Bailey, brings character and story to life through music based RPG battles. Homeworld 3, developed by Blackbird Interactive (creators of the Homeworld Remastered Collection and Deserts of Kharak) and published by Gearbox Interactive,
Beginning last April, we also introduced a new type of Fig campaign — Open Access. The first few games to try out this system, such as Vagrus: the Riven Realms and Arcanium, have leveraged Open Access to give backers a look at early builds while collecting early feedback and additional funding for subsequent updates. Developers have been thrilled to utilize this option to build early communities and testing groups around their game before release, as well as boost backer and investor funding.
And the most recent, and most momentous news to share is Fig is joining Republic! You can find information on that here, and we look forward to sharing more with you about this new development in the coming weeks.
We also can’t wait for the upcoming campaigns of 2020, as we bring more exceptional developers and games into our community! Stay tuned for updates on exciting new projects funding on Fig. For more information on our current games and investment offerings, check out fig.co.
