The Minister of Culture’s new gaming strategy
On September 4, the Minister of Culture and Gender Equality presented a gaming strategy named Game Room. The scheme aims to elevate gaming into a self-sufficient cultural expression, art form, and industry and leisure activity.
The press release from the Ministry of Culture revealed that the gaming plan for Game Room will apply from 2020-2022. With the strategy, the government wants to elevate the Norwegian gaming culture and help the gaming community to develop an industry that can assert itself internationally.
“I have been looking forward to this,” admits Minister of Culture and Gender Equality Trine Skei Grande. “My wish is for everyone who has a curious and playful player or game developer in them, to find a leeway to develop and test their boundaries and to find outlet for their creativity. The creative force must rise, and this strategy will encourage that.”
There are four main objectives for the new gaming policy:
• A varied offering of high-quality Norwegian computer games
• A professional and diverse gaming industry
• Impact for Norwegian computer games
• An inclusive and accessible video game culture
The government believes that computer games are an important part of its cultural and creative industry, and it wishes to facilitate and create more room for development for the players as well as the game developers.
In order to stimulate growth and development within the industry, the government will provide good, solid framework conditions in order to help the gaming industry evolve as much as possible on its own accord.
Also, there will be a focus on bettering the gaming environment, with among other things, grants from the Norwegian Film Institute and regional film companies. In addition, the government will facilitate the dissemination of computer games and arenas, where gaming can build community and social networks.
“With the strategy, the government shows that we are listening to the gamers and taking gaming seriously,” says the Minister of Culture. “We need to encourage gamers so they will produce more games like Emil. So that the next Minecraft or Fortnite will come from Norwegian developers. Today there are thirty million kroner in the gaming pot, but I hope to double this amount during the forthcoming strategy period.”
NFI has been an active working partner on the gaming strategy, Game Room.
You can download Game Room here (In Norwegian Only)