Dubai Launches GameForward to Boost Emirati Gaming Startups

Mohammed Fathy

Last updated 30-01-2026

3 min

Dubai launches GameForward to back Emirati developers building “proper businesses”, not just passion projects.

The accelerator targets a booming global games market worth nearly $189bn by 2025.

GameForward links to D33 and Gaming 2033, aiming for 30,000 jobs and global status.

From March 2026, teams get masterclasses, mentors and pitch practice, ending at a Demo Day.

Winners gain grant funding and scaling support to take Dubai-made games worldwide.

Dubai has rolled out a new push for homegrown game developers with the launch of GameForward, an accelerator aimed squarely at Emirati talent looking to turn bright ideas into proper businesses. The programme comes from Dubai SME, part of the Department of Economy and Tourism, working alongside Dubai Culture, and it lands at a moment when gaming is anything but child’s play. According to Newzoo, global games revenues were expected to reach $188.8 billion in 2025, which is no small change.

GameForward is designed to help local developers move from passion projects to commercially viable ventures, plugging them into a growing ecosystem that the city clearly wants to nurture. I remember chatting to founders at an Arageek meetup a couple of years back who were building games after work, fuelled mostly by coffee and stubborn optimism. Back then, the support structures felt a bit thin. Seeing a programme like this take shape feels spot on, even if the real test will be in execution.

The accelerator sits neatly under the umbrella of the Dubai Films and Games Commission, which oversees efforts to advance the emirate’s film and gaming sectors. It also lines up with broader plans such as the Dubai Economic Agenda D33 and the Dubai Programme for Gaming 2033, which aims to place Dubai among the world’s top 10 gaming cities and create 30,000 jobs in the sector. That’s a tall order, but then again Dubai has never been shy about ambition.

The programme itself kicks off in March 2026 and runs through a structured mix of technical masterclasses, business workshops and mentorship from industry veterans. Topics range from game design and monetisation to go-to-market strategy and investor pitch prep, with support from Dubai Founders HQ to help teams feel part of a wider startup community. And believe it or not, it all wraps up with a Demo Day during the Dubai Esports and Games Festival in May 2026, where finalists will pitch to gaming leaders and investors for a shot at grant funding.

Winning teams don’t just walk away with bragging rights. The top Dubai-based team will receive post-programme support and help with global scaling, aimed at pushing growth beyond the UAE. Open to individual Emirati developers as well as teams with at least one Emirati founder, the net is cast wide enough to catch both early-stage creators and those already looking to scale.

Ahmad Al Room Almheiri, Acting CEO of Dubai SME, said the idea is to build the gaming economy “from the ground up” by equipping developers with world-class training and mentorship, keeping local innovation at the heart of Dubai’s future as a digital economy hub. From the cultural side, Shaima Rashed Al Suwaidi, CEO of the Arts, Design and Literature Sector at Dubai Culture, noted that the initiative supports Emirati talent while adding real value to Dubai’s creative economy.

That said, accelerators can sometimes be a bit of a faff if they focus too much on slides and not enough on shipping real products. I reckon GameForward’s emphasis on commercial readiness, not just creativity, could make the difference. If it delivers on that promise, it might just turn weekend coders into founders with global ambitions… and that would definately be worth watching.

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