The Metatopia Diversity Sponsorship
The IGDN Diversity Sponsorship is back for its ninth year! Due to the international health crisis, the Diversity Sponsorship has shifted to an online-focused mentorship and support for this year’s recipients.
We will update this page when the next application phase opens. Stay tuned!
What is the Metatopia Diversity Sponsorship?
The IGDN uplifts underrepresented game designers in the analog games industry through our Diversity Sponsorship Program. Each recipient receives a cash grant to help advance their projects and games. Recipients are also partnered with an established IGDN member who will meet with the recipient four times over the course of a three-month mentorship. If the recipient chooses to apply for an IGDN membership and is accepted, their first year’s dues are waived.
IGDN membership is not a requirement to receive the sponsorship, nor are members favored over non-members in the decision process.
How can you help?
At a moment in history when underrepresented people are being driven further and further into the margins, we need to make the analog games industry a place where they can succeed. Our goal for this year is to sponsor six game designers by raising $6,000. Donate to our GoFundMe campaign and help marginalized creators thrive.
Application Process
The 2025 Sponsorship applications are now open! If you design tabletop/analog games, identify as a member of a marginalized community, and want help getting into or growing in the industry, please fill out an application now!
We receive many applicants and select sponsorship recipients based on a large range of factors, so please be detailed in your responses.
Timeline
April 11 - Applications open.
July 11 - Applications close.
August 8 - Recipients notified.
Thank you to our major donors! Your support means everything:
Indie Press Revolution
Magpie Games
Nathaniel Rockwood
2023-2024 Recipients
Tomas Gimenez Rioja
Skylar K. Swift
Kerem Madran
Valis Teoh
Basil Wright
Sinta Posadas
Anne Zhang-Huang
Our 2022 Diversity Sponsorship Cohort:
Krystal Norton
Krystal’s current game in development is They Came from Gods, about high school students who have just learned they are host to a god. They’re looking forward to building a stronger focus on accessibility and inclusion in tabletop gaming.
Benjamin Moses M. Diño II
Part of the #RPGSEA crew, Benjamin is working on Mangayaw, a game set in precolonial Philippines and filled with local legend, folklore, culture, and history. You can check it out here: https://goobernuts.itch.io/mangayaw
Ari
Ari is working on Black Sun, a PbtA game about finding hope in dark places and dealing with personal and communal loss. They’ve also helped organize several game jams on http://itch.io.
Kyle Tam
Kyle is working on Legendary Pro Wrestling, which combines two of her greatest loves – professional wrestling and monsterfolk! She draws upon a variety of life experiences and is learning to wear many hats as a designer.
Kandi J. Williams
A 20-year RPG veteran, Kandi is working on a GMless game called Briar Bound, a reclamation of stories of the African folktale Br’er Rabbit without the slavery themes. It builds the story through five distinct acts and uses RPG, board, and card game elements.
Darby Pak
Darby is working on a solo game titled Daguerreotype Eulogy. In it, you have died, and in the time between your death and the next phase, you document your life as a scrapbook of physical keepsakes, memories, and writing.
Our 2019 Sponsorship cohort! (Missing: Ash Cheshire)
Three recipients from three different years share dinner! Amr from 2019, Alastor from 2018, and Miguel from 2017.
Past winners of the IGDN Metatopia scholarship:
2020: Alexa Fae McDaniel, Bassey Onwuanaku, Chidi Page, Chris Parker, Helena Real, Pamela Punzalan, Raven McKenzie, and Samuel Mui Shen Ern
2019: Avraham Yosef Baez, Amr, Olivia Montoya, India Weston, Fertessa Scott, Nina Henderson, Ash Cheshire, and Mary A. Georgescu
2018: Jabari M. Weathers, Iris Xie, Mabel Harper, Sarah Saltiel, Alastor Guzman, Orion Black, Mariam Ahmad, and Omari Akil
2017: Jessie Yaternick, Justin Rogers, Jeeyon Shim, Jefferson Kwan Lee, Miguel Angel Espinoza, Camdon Wright, Jack Beckwith, and Victoria Caña
2016: J. Derrick Kapchinsky, Darcy Ross, Kiel Chenier, Vivian Paul, Krissy Bullock, Jeremy Alva, and Roe Nix
2015: Alex Helm, Kimberly Lam, André la Roche, and Jay Sylvano
2014: Sarah Doom
If you have any questions, please email our Diversity Coordinator at diversity@igdnonline.com