Game Publisher-Developer Cooperation Due Diligence

A large Eastern European game publisher was preparing to release a new title and needed full clarity on its cooperation with the developer before going public. The arrangement covered IP ownership, revenue splits, content responsibilities, and age rating commitments — areas where a single ambiguous clause can derail a launch or trigger a takedown in a key store. The publisher needed a structured review of the contractual relationship and an independent age rating compliance check, with a clear view of every risk on the table — before committing marketing spend and platform submissions to the release.

We ran a focused due diligence of the publisher–developer cooperation and built a publication strategy around the findings:

1. Contractual review — analyzed the cooperation terms between publisher and developer, mapping IP rights, revenue allocation, deliverables, and liability across the agreements.
2. Age rating compliance — assessed the game's content against age rating requirements relevant to the planned distribution, flagging gaps that could affect store approval or marketing.
3. Risk register — consolidated contractual and content findings into a single list of risks, ranked by impact on the publication timeline.
4. Publication strategy — drafted a legal roadmap addressing each identified risk, with clear action points for the publisher and follow-ups for the developer.