Following Shueisha Games’ recent movement to solicit game proposals from creators, Square Enix has announced its own game-making contest. Dubbed the Square Enix Game Contest 2026, the goal is to “pioneer a new future for gaming with ideas that transcend imagination.” To this end, the company will help bring new and interesting game ideas to life by way of monetary backing and full publisher support.
Unlike Shueisha Games’ game proposal initiative, where those without game experience were encouraged to apply, Square Enix Game Contest applicants have to send in a gameplay video of their project. The video, in addition to the accompanying project proposal, will be used in the first round of judging. This will be followed by a second round of judging, which involves playing a working version of the game using an executable file. The third and final round of judging will be an interview.
Proposals will be evaluated across four categories: innovation, originality, entertainment value, and polish.
Interestingly, all games that have not won awards in other contests and have not been sold or distributed for commercial purposes count as eligible entries. Proposals that use AI-generated content will also be considered, though Square Enix is currently working on a list of guidelines that ensures transparency and prevents copyright infringement. Entries should be playable on PC or mobile, while VR titles are not allowed.
To give aspiring contestants ample time to prepare, the sign-up period begins on December 15, 2026 and ends on March 15, 2027. Winners will be announced three months later, on June 30, 2027. Only individuals, groups, and corporations residing in Japan are eligible to enter.
Winners will be divided into three award categories; all of whom will be awarded prize money and publisher support from Square Enix. The only difference is how much money each category receives. The Excellence Award will be given to 10 entrants, who will be awarded 30 million JPY (roughly $189K USD). The Masterpiece Award will have 4 winners, who will receive 100 million JPY ($629K USD) each, and the single Grand Prize winner will win a whopping 300 million JPY ($1.89 million USD). The total prize pool for the contest amounts to 1 billion JPY ($6.3 million USD).
Despite not having begun yet, the contest is already seeing positive reception on social media, with some likening it to the national programming contest Enix hosted many years ago, which spawned classics like Koichi Nakamura’s Door Door and Yuji Horii’s Love Match Tennis. NieR creator Yoko Taro also seemed impressed by the upcoming contest, calling it one of the most interesting Square Enix announcements he had heard of in a while.
You can find the full details of the Square Enix Game Contest 2026 on the official webpage.
