This figure was announced by the Deputy Director General of the Institute for Internet Development (IRI), Andrey Voronkov, during a panel discussion at the "RED EXPO" conference. This is 27.4% more than the current year.
"Saturn" — one of the games supported by IRI
Voronkov specified that the amount is approximate. "In the end, of course, it might be less, but this is exactly what we are aiming for," he explained.
IRI also plans to start supporting long-term projects with an implementation period of up to five years. Currently, the maximum established time frame is three years. They have already test-supported one game under their wing, which will take 5–6 years to develop.
The funding will primarily be available to medium and large games. The organization is ready to cover 30% to 50% of the costs of their creation.
Voronkov particularly emphasized that IRI selects games only with high potential. "Even if the game is small, you must have an original idea, a well-developed concept, and a team whose leaders have worked on similar projects. For large games, we recommend submitting an application with a prototype or demo to better evaluate the product," the deputy director noted.
According to Voronkov, it is even better if the applicants have "experience working with public funds, as this would simplify working with IRI by 90%."
Incidentally, during the discussion, the average cost of developing AAA games in Russia was discussed. Participants concluded that it could range from 1.5 to 3 billion rubles.