Game in Lab

What Game in Lab does

Game in Lab is an international research support program co-created in 2018 by Asmodee, the world's leading board game publisher and distributor, and Innovation Factory, a French not-for-profit association. Operating across three pillars — research funding, scientific knowledge dissemination, and event coordination — the program runs annual international calls for projects (with a total annual budget of €45,000 and a maximum grant of €20,000 per project) to fund multidisciplinary scientific research on board games across psychology, education, health sciences, social sciences, design, and game studies. Approximately 30 researchers have been supported across its eight annual calls (2019–2026), and the program maintains a Scientific Committee of international academic experts spanning France, the UK, Australia, the USA, Finland, Switzerland, Canada, Brazil, and the Netherlands.

The program's outputs include open-access scientific publications, recurring scientific mediation conferences at major board game festivals (Festival International des Jeux in Cannes and SPIEL in Essen), community meet-ups, and three CIFRE doctoral contracts with Asmodee (the first defended in December 2023). Game in Lab also acts as a contributing partner in larger academic consortia, notably the Horizon Europe STRATEGIES project led by Manchester Metropolitan University. Its technology footprint is minimal and consists of a website, a YouTube channel, a newsletter, and a LinkedIn page launched in October 2025 — the program develops no proprietary software products and holds no patents.

Game in Lab is legally operated and owned by Financière Amuse BidCo, a subsidiary of Asmodee Group headquartered in Guyancourt, France. It is not a commercial entity: the program does not sell products, charge subscription fees, or generate licensing revenue. Its economic model is that of an industry-sponsored research initiative funded by Asmodee (primary) and Innovation Factory, with no external venture capital or independent equity investors. The 2026 call for projects is thematically focused on 'Sustainability, justice and inclusion' and 'Health and well-being', signaling continued programmatic direction without commercial expansion.

Name

Game in Lab

Legal name

Financière Amuse BidCo

Website

https://game-in-lab.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Game in Lab is an industry-sponsored research funding program co-created by Asmodee and Innovation Factory that finances international multidisciplinary scientific research on board games through annual grants (max €20,000) and disseminates findings via publications and major board game festivals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Research Funding and Scientific Dissemination

NAICS

Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (541720)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Research & Science Fair Competitions (Science Fairs, Research Symposiums) (EDAMAGAL)

Keywords

• Research funding programs
• Board game research
• Scientific knowledge dissemination
• Research event coordination
• Academic grant programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Tourcoing

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Research Funding Grants: Game in Lab operates as a non-profit research funding program that provides financial grants to academic researchers studying board games. The 2026 call for projects has a total budget of €45,000, with a maximum of €20,000 per project. Funding comes from co-founders Asmodee and Innovation Factory. The program does not generate commercial revenue but distributes funds to support scientific research.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Game in Lab is an international research support program that funds multidisciplinary scientific research on board games through annual international calls for projects, with grants up to EUR 20,000 per project from a total annual budget of EUR 45,000. It disseminates scientific knowledge about board games through open-access publications, newsletters, and a YouTube channel, and coordinates scientific conferences, colloquia, science-mediation events at major game festivals (FIJ Cannes, SPIEL Essen), and community meet-ups.

Product overview

Game in Lab is a research support program (not a software product company) organized around three pillars: supporting research through annual funding calls for board game studies, disseminating scientific knowledge through publications and events, and coordinating events including scientific conferences, science mediation at game festivals, and community meet-ups. The program does not offer commercial software products but provides research funding, knowledge sharing platforms, and event coordination services for the academic and gaming communities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• International Call for Research Projects Annual international funding call that awards grants of up to EUR 20,000 per project (total budget EUR 45,000) to academic researchers worldwide conducting multidisciplinary scientific research on board games. Projects can run up to 24 months and are renewable for an additional 12 months. Eligible expenses include research assistants, equipment, field work, travel, and impact/dissemination activities (capped at 10% of budget). Public research laboratories receive funding priority.
• Scientific Knowledge Dissemination Publication and dissemination service that distributes scientific knowledge about board games to diverse audiences (researchers, healthcare professionals, educators, industry, and the general public) through engaging and accessible formats including open-access publications, an email newsletter, and a YouTube channel (@gameinlab).
• Event Coordination Coordination of scientific events including conferences and colloquia, science-mediation events at major international game festivals (FIJ Cannes, SPIEL Essen), community meet-ups in France, and co-organized international symposiums (Generation Analog with Analog Game Studies, JARPS with the Japanese Association for Role-Playing Game Studies, and Multiplatform with Manchester Game Centre).

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 30 researchers supported since program launch
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• AsmodeecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Asmodee, the world leader in board game publishing and distribution founded in 1995, co-created Game in Lab as a founding partner. The company provides primary funding and strategic support for the research program, believing board games extend beyond entertainment to provide societal value. Asmodee's commitment to studying and promoting the interest of games for society is central to Game in Lab's mission.
• Innovation FactorycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2013Innovation Factory, a not-for-profit association (Loi 1901) created in 2013, is the co-founding partner of Game in Lab. Composed of partner companies and digital native students from La Web School Factory, the organization creates innovative interaction and training modules to foster collaboration, training and innovation. It addresses digital technology challenges and companies' needs to accelerate their digital transformation.
• Manchester Metropolitan University / Manchester Game CentremajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerManchester Metropolitan University's Manchester Game Centre is a key research partner. Dr. Chloé Germaine, co-director of the centre, serves as President of Game in Lab's Scientific Committee. The collaboration includes research on games and environmental sustainability, including the STRATEGIES Horizon Europe project.
• Public Research InstitutionsmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPublic research laboratories receive priority support from Game in Lab. Collaborations span universities worldwide including University of Melbourne, University of Poitiers, University of Plymouth, Paris 13, University of Nice, University of Tampere, and others. These institutions host Game in Lab funded researchers and PhD students.
• Horizon Europe STRATEGIES ProjectmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe STRATEGIES (Sustainable Transition for Europe's Game Industries) project is a Horizon Europe funded research initiative co-led by Chloé & Paul Wake from Manchester Metropolitan University. Game in Lab funded initial research that led to this larger European project. The project produces research reports on AI in board game design and game hacking education.
• Japanese Association for Role-Playing Game Studies (JARPS)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJARPS (Japanese Journal of Analog Role-Playing Game Studies) collaborates with Game in Lab for annual virtual conferences, most recently the 2025 edition on 'Tools of the Trade' exploring props, techniques and inspirations for analog role-playing games.
• Analog Game StudiesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnalog Game Studies (AGS), an academic journal and community focused on analog game research, co-organizes the Generation Analog annual conference with Game in Lab. The 2025 edition explored the theme of PUNK through the lens of play.
• Manchester Game CentremajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Manchester Game Centre at Manchester Metropolitan University collaborates with Game in Lab on the Multiplatform annual symposium, exploring intersections between games and contemporary culture. The 2025 edition focused on 'The Rituals of Play' and the occult.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Games for Change: Nonprofit promoting games for social impact. Comparable to Game in Lab in mission (leveraging games for societal benefit) but operates at a much larger scale and focuses on digital/educational games rather than board games.

Direct peers

• DiGRA (Digital Games Research Association): International academic association supporting game research across disciplines. Serves a similar knowledge-dissemination function as Game in Lab's events and publications, but at broader scale and focused primarily on digital games.
• Manchester Game Centre (Manchester Metropolitan University): Academic research center at Manchester Met. Major Game in Lab partner (co-director Chloé Germaine is President of Game in Lab's Scientific Committee) and co-organizes the Multiplatform annual symposium. Highly comparable in research scope and analog game focus.
• NYU Game Center: Academic research and design center at NYU studying games as cultural artifacts. Comparable to Game in Lab as a hub for serious game research and scholarship, though structured as a university center rather than an industry-funded grant program.
• Japanese Association for Role-Playing Game Studies (JARPS): Academic association for analog role-playing game studies. Directly comparable to Game in Lab as a niche research community; partners with Game in Lab on annual virtual conferences (e.g., 2025 'Tools of the Trade').
• Tampere University Game Research Lab: Finnish academic research lab dedicated to game studies. Comparable to Game in Lab's research focus on games and play, and the lab's researchers are represented on Game in Lab's Scientific Committee.
• Analog Game Studies: Open-access academic journal and community dedicated to analog game studies. Like Game in Lab, AGS focuses specifically on board/analog games rather than digital, and co-organizes the Generation Analog conference with Game in Lab.
• Tiltfactor Laboratory: Dartmouth College research lab that studies game design and prosocial impact. Like Game in Lab, Tiltfactor generates academic research on games and play, though it focuses on digital/social impact games rather than industry-funded board game research.

Others

• International Hobo: Game industry consulting firm publishing research on the global games business. Comparable to Game in Lab in producing industry-relevant research, but operating as a commercial consultancy rather than a grant program.

Emerging players

• Mensa Mind Games: Mensa-organized awards program evaluating board games for cognitive/educational merit. Comparable to Game in Lab in promoting the scientific and cognitive benefits of board games, though focused on product evaluation rather than funding research.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@gameinlab
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/game-in-lab
• Xx.com/gameinlab
• Facebookfacebook.com/gameinlab

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Game in Lab