Tax break joy for Epic Games

Next year the US State of North Carolina will grant its game studios a 15 per cent tax break – a measure which will bring a key competitive advantage to local firms such as Epic Games, FunCom and Red Storm.

The tax break relief will also apply to local companies building game platforms – doubling the delight of Gears of War and Unreal Engine creators Epic Games.

In a statement sent to US-based general trade website Gamasutra, Epic Games president Mike Capps said the initiative will help make both higher quality products and attract more talented developers.

He said, “We hope the primary impact will be to draw new digital media companies to the Tar Heel state. After all, we like having lots of game developers here! A healthy local ecosystem is good for our business, and we like the idea of more gamers here to join our LAN parties and to play tabletop RPGs with.”

Tax break initiatives are being enacted throughout the development world, in countries such as Canada, France and various US states.