NYU Tandon Names Second Cohort of Game Design Future Lab, Set to Debut at New York Games Week

NYU Tandon School of Engineering today announced the nine companies joining the second cohort of the NYC Game Design Future Lab (GDFL), its Brooklyn-based incubator created in partnership with the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC).

GDFL will introduce the new cohort at its Demo Day on October 6, where founders from the inaugural cohort will present their work as they complete the year-long program. The event is part of the first New York Games Week, running citywide October 4 through 11.

Selected from 50 applicants, the second cohort includes seven game studios and two platform and creative technology companies, bringing together developers building new games with companies creating tools and infrastructure for the broader industry.

During the course of the program, participating companies receive personalized mentorship, industry workshops, investor introductions, access to emerging technologies, and opportunities to connect with industry leaders and NYU faculty, all at no cost. They also receive dedicated desk space at NYU Tandon’s campus in Downtown Brooklyn.

"The first year of this program showed there's real excitement and industry backing for a high-impact games incubator, especially one centered on New York City," said Mitu Khandaker, GDFL's Associate Director. "People across the games industry want to see small companies grow and sustain themselves. So for our second cohort, we looked for teams where our help makes the biggest difference: companies with a proven or highly promising game or product, a validated demo, or an engaged community. We're excited to help them reach the next stage, and to introduce them alongside our first cohort at New York Games Week. GDFL doesn't end after twelve months. As our first cohort become alumni, we want them to stay part of a lasting community of founders who keep learning from and backing each other."

NYU Tandon and NYCEDC announced GDFL’s launch in December 2024 and welcomed its first companies in October 2025 as part of the city’s broader investment in the gaming sector. New York City’s digital games industry now includes roughly 380 studios and 7,900 jobs and generates $2.6 billion in annual economic impact. Globally, the games industry is projected to generate $213.9 billion in revenue in 2026, up 6.1 percent year over year.

“NYU Tandon's commitment to GDFL reflects our broader belief that a research university has a real role to play in building New York City's industries, not just training the people who work in them," said Linda Ng Boyle, NYU Tandon's Vice Dean for Research. "Welcoming this cohort and giving them a stage at New York Games Week puts that belief in practice, and it's part of a lasting foundation Tandon is building to support the city's digital games sector."

"GDFL's first year proved that New York is the place for diverse gaming startups to scale, and this larger second cohort shows the momentum behind that investment," said New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) President & CEO Anthony Shorris. "NYCEDC is proud to continue working with NYU Tandon to give innovative companies leading the charge the resources they need to help build a world-class digital gaming ecosystem across the five boroughs - game on!"

The GDFL’s second cohort companies are:

• Antientropic, the Brooklyn studio behind Dustbunny, a cozy mobile life sim that has reached more than one million players organically and is now expanding into a cross-platform, shared-world version.
• garden robot, co-founded by Creative Director Jude Pinto and Narrative Director Jason Guisao, is developing Ponch: Cyberspace Investigator, a stylish cybernoir detective game set in a depraved virtual metropolis. Jude leads design alongside Jason, whose credits include Destiny 2 and consulting work on Borderlands 4. .
• Kinlo Labs is building a co-op mobile game for families where quests completed together in the real world save your magical world from darkness. Founded by Sarah Huth, Nicole He, and Andrey Dobrikov, their credits include Peloton Lanebreak, The Crush House, and Draw Something
• My Dog Zorro, an independent studio run by Brett Taylor since 2015, now developing Lemony Fresh, in which you play as a tiny lemon who cleans up filthy spaces.n.
• On The March is building Normandie, a narrative "ocean crawler" in which players dive the wrecks of legendary ocean liners in the aftermath of World War II. Founded by Sam Butin, the studio's team includes Aaron Freedman, Angela Vanden Tak, and Nicolás Escarpentier. Together, their credits include 1979 Revolution: Black Friday, Sunburn!, MindsEye, Open Roads, and The Simpsons: Tapped Out..
• Pariah Interactive, the studio behind the award-winning platformer 1000 Deaths, now developing Sound of Smog, a rhythm roguelike set in a pollution-ravaged New Delhi in 2099.
• PlayCog, which is building Portal Fall, a turn-based roguelike that won Best Unity Game at DreamHack Atlanta. The studio's mobile games have reached more than 25 million downloads.
• ScoreSpace, a "game jam powered publisher" pioneering a new model. Its Blackjack game on Discord Activities draws around 850,000 monthly active users, and solo founder Khaalid Booker has raised over half a million dollars to scale operations.
• Video Game Amateurs (VGA), an NYC gaming, education, and technology company. It co-produces the NYC Video Game Festival with the Mayor's Office of Media & Entertainment and NYC Public Schools, supports Battle of the Boroughs, and leads the NYC Collegiate Esports Circuit. It's now building KODA, a privacy-first platform that helps schools launch and scale gaming programs tied to learning and career pathways. .

The second cohort announcement follows an exceptionally active first year for GDFL. The inaugural cohort attended the 2026 GDC Festival of Gaming with support from Medal.tv, giving founders direct access to investors and publishers. In April, former Nintendo of America President and COO Reggie Fils-Aimé met individually with cohort founders before joining NYU Stern’s Joost Van Dreunen for a conversation on the business of the games industry.

The new cohort officially begins the program in November 2026. GDFL is part of NYU Tandon Future Labs, a startup incubator network founded in 2009 with NYCEDC funding.