Sustainable Games Alliance

What Sustainable Games Alliance does

Sustainable Games Alliance (SGA) is a Helsinki-based non-profit cooperative founded in 2024 that develops and maintains the Sustainable Games Standard, the first industry-specific methodology for measuring and reporting Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions in the video games sector. The standard is an interpretation of the GHG Protocol tailored to game development, covering game design, server infrastructure, marketing, and hardware across the value chain, and is supported by Google Sheets-based data input templates, a five-stage ESRS/CSRD compliance roadmap, and Double Materiality Analysis templates. The organization serves game studios (indie through enterprise), sustainability managers, and service providers, with a stated member base of 40+ organizations including Microsoft, Ubisoft, Unity, Epic Games, SYBO, Rovio, and Sports Interactive. In March 2026, SGA extended its product surface with power-saving plugins for Unreal, Unity, and Godot game engines, which detect idle player behavior to reduce frame rates and rendering resolution, claiming up to 15% battery life extension on handheld devices.

The cooperative is governed by a member-elected board of five directors and led by a small core team of approximately five people, supplemented by an academic network of roughly 200 contacts and three specialized networks (Energy Efficiency, Academic, Sustainable Communications). SGA funds operations through membership fees structured as cooperative shares—one share per €10M of corporate member global turnover (minimum 2, maximum 50 shares)—and association members pay a small fixed sum; the cooperative statute prohibits distribution of surplus to members. The standard is distributed as open-access public downloads, with go-to-market driven by community channels (LinkedIn, Discord, SGA PULSE newsletter, YouTube, industry events) and OEM-style embedding into game engines, positioning SGA as both a standards body and a tooling provider for an industry estimated at 50 million tonnes of CO2 emissions annually.

Name

Sustainable Games Alliance

Legal name

Sustainable Games Alliance Cooperative

Website

https://sustainablegamesalliance.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2024

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Sustainable Games Alliance is a Helsinki-based non-profit cooperative that develops the games industry's first standard for measuring and reporting Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions, plus power-saving plugins for Unreal, Unity, and Godot engines, serving 40+ member studios, publishers, and trade associations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Games Industry Sustainability Standards

NAICS

Amusement Parks and Arcades (7131)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Accessibility & Compliance Services (A11y Testing, Ratings, Privacy/Regulatory) (MPAFAKAO)

Keywords

• Games sustainability standard
• GHG emissions reporting
• ESRS CSRD compliance
• Energy efficiency plugins
• Scope 3 measurement

Headquarters

HQ city

Helsinki

HQ country

Finland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: SGA is a non-profit cooperative funded by membership fees from game companies and trade associations. Corporate members pay annual membership fees based on company turnover (one share per €10M global turnover, minimum 2 shares, maximum 50 shares). Organization members (associations) pay a small fixed sum. The cooperative statute specifies surplus cannot be distributed to members.
2. Services: The cooperative may engage in consulting, training, and research activities related to its field of creating and implementing sustainability standards for the gaming industry.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Sustainable Games Alliance is a non-profit cooperative that develops and distributes the Sustainable Games Standard, an industry-specific interpretation of the GHG Protocol for measuring Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions across game design, server infrastructure, marketing, and hardware. It complements the standard with spreadsheet-based data input sheets, power-saving plugins for Unreal/Unity/Godot engines, and a structured ESRS compliance roadmap, sold primarily through corporate membership fees and direct engagement with game studios, publishers, service providers, and trade associations.

Product overview

The Sustainable Games Alliance offers the Sustainable Games Standard as its core product—a comprehensive, open-access sustainability reporting framework for the games industry that enables measurement and reporting of Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions across game development, publishing, and gameplay. The Standard is supported by spreadsheet-based data input sheets (Google Sheets templates) covering various emission categories, along with a structured ESRS Roadmap for regulatory compliance. Key add-on offerings include energy-saving plugins for Unreal, Unity, and Godot game engines, specialized networks (Energy Efficiency Network, Sustainable Communications Network, Academic Network), and CSRD/ESRS guidance. The portfolio works as an integrated system: the Standard provides the framework, the data input sheets enable collection, the plugins optimize energy efficiency, and the networks facilitate knowledge sharing and continuous improvement across the industry.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Sustainable Games Standard A comprehensive, open-access sustainability reporting framework specifically designed for the games industry, providing activity-based methodologies for measuring and reporting Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions across game design, server infrastructure, marketing, and hardware. Sold to game companies, publishers, service providers, and trade associations via cooperative membership.
• Energy-Saving Plugins for Unreal, Unity, and Godot Power-saving plugins for the three major game engines that detect idle player behavior and dynamically reduce frame rates and rendering resolution to cut energy consumption, extending battery life on handheld devices by up to 15%. Built with contributions from Microsoft, Ubisoft, and Unity alongside independent studios. Targets game developers using Unreal, Unity, or Godot.
• CSRD & ESRS Reporting Guide for Games Businesses A comprehensive roadmap and guidance for game businesses to comply with the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), with a five-stage implementation process from familiarisation through drafting and assurance.
• Energy Efficiency Network A global network of game development professionals focused on advancing energy efficiency in games, providing meetups and best-practice sharing that drives the development of engine tools to improve energy efficiency and player experience.
• Academic Network A network of approximately 200 academic contacts globally who share research and best practices for a sustainable games industry through meetups, joint research collaborations, and funding applications.
• Sustainable Communications Network A network of industry specialists focused on sustainability communication best practices, providing guidelines on ECGT Directive implementation and sustainable campaign roadmaps for transparent player communication.

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 15% extended battery life on handheld devices through power-saving plugins
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• MicrosoftcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 March 2026Microsoft contributed to development of power-saving plugins for Unreal, Unity, and Godot engines. Microsoft/Xbox is represented in the Energy Efficiency Network with Daniel Jacobs (Senior Software Engineer at Xbox) working on Xbox Sustainability Toolkit and carbon negative path by 2030.
• UbisoftcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 March 2026Ubisoft contributed to development of power-saving plugins. Ubisoft participates in Energy Efficiency Network sharing best practices on energy optimization for games.
• Unity TechnologiescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 March 2026Unity contributed to power-saving plugin development. Unity is represented by Laurent Gibert, Principal Product Strategy Architect & Co-Lead Unity Montreal, actively involved in SGA standard development.
• STRATEGIES (Sustainable Transition for Europe's Game Industries)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHORIZON EU-funded multi-university research project reviewing SGA Standard. Since beginning of 2025, fortnightly meetings with Work Package 3 team for expert review of standard components, ensuring scientific rigor and civil society expectations are met. Led by Chloé Wake (Manchester Metropolitan University) and coordinated with SGA.
• Second StageflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerSecond Stage partnered with SGA to develop Environmental Impact Dashboard integrated with TRACKS marketing analytics platform. This feature allows developers and publishers to measure emissions of their campaigns based on activity data, enabling data-driven decisions balancing effectiveness with sustainability.
• Epic GamescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEpic Games (Unreal Engine) contributed to power-saving plugin development. Represented by Ari Arnbjörnsson, Technical Developer Relations at Epic Games, who joined SGA to get clear evidence-based instructions on sustainability.
• European Games Developer Federation (EGDF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEDGF and SGA submitted joint statement on Omnibus Package (EU sustainability regulations) to EU Commission, demonstrating coordinated industry-politics advocacy partnership.
• Deck 13coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDeck 13 participates in Energy Efficiency Network, sharing best practices on energy optimization. Hauke Thießen (Technical Artist at Deck 13) developed energy-saving plugin for Godot engine.
• GOALScoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGOALS represents practical experience in mid-gameplay power measurement on PC and console. Technical Director Torbjörn Söderman leads the Energy Efficiency Network with expertise from shipping Battlefield and Mirror's Edge titles.
• Bold Beetle GamescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-Founder and Creative Director Ashe Foltin contributed to Unity power-saving plugin development as next-generation game developer with active interest in industry sustainability.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• European Games Developer Federation (EGDF): EU-level federation representing national game developer trade associations and submitting joint policy positions on EU sustainability regulation alongside SGA. Directly comparable as industry-policy counterpart.
• Playing for the Planet Alliance: UN-backed industry alliance for gaming sustainability, with member commitments and annual Green Game Jam. Most directly comparable to SGA as a games-industry specific sustainability coalition, though focused on pledges rather than emissions measurement methodology.

Emerging players

• Persefoni: Climate management and accounting platform for enterprises, including media and entertainment verticals. Comparable as an alternative software path for CSRD/Scope 3 compliance that competes with spreadsheet-and-standard approaches like SGA's.
• Watershed: Enterprise SaaS platform for carbon accounting and ESG reporting, used by major tech and media companies. Comparable as a competing tooling choice for games studios needing to operationalize emissions reporting under CSRD.
• Climeco (Climatize) / Climate Neutral Certified: Certification brand for carbon-neutral businesses, applied across consumer brands including entertainment. Comparable as third-party sustainability certification body that games companies could alternatively pursue.

Broad incumbents

• Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP): Global disclosure system for environmental impact used by thousands of corporations including games companies. Comparable as a reporting-standards infrastructure that companies engage with for ESG compliance.
• Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi): Validates corporate emissions reduction targets against climate science. Comparable as a reference standard that games companies pursuing SBTi-validated targets would align with through SGA's framework.
• International Game Developers Association (IGDA): Global industry association for game developers, with active Climate Special Interest Group partnering on industry sustainability. Comparable as the broader trade body whose members overlap with SGA's constituency.
• GHG Protocol: The parent emissions accounting standard on which SGA's methodology is built. WRI/WBCSD-managed global framework for corporate emissions reporting. Comparable as the upstream standard SGA adapts to the games vertical.
• B Lab (B Corp Certification): Certifies companies on social and environmental performance. Comparable as a competing standards/certification infrastructure that gaming companies might adopt to demonstrate sustainability credentials.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@SustainableGamesAlliance
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sustainable-games-alliance

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sustainable Games Alliance