Game development contract checklist: what to agree before work starts

The short answer

Before work starts, your contract should fix five things above all: what will be delivered, how each milestone is accepted, when payments are due, that all intellectual property transfers to you on payment, and how either side can exit. Everything else supports those five. Have a lawyer review the final document. This checklist helps you arrive with the right questions.

1. Scope and deliverables

• A specification attached to the contract, not just mentioned in emails.
• Platforms, target devices and performance goals.
• Counts: levels, characters, screens, languages.
• A list of exclusions. What is not included prevents more disputes than what is.

A game design document or a short development brief can serve as the attachment.

2. Milestones and acceptance

Each milestone should produce something you can run, with criteria a third person could check.

The review period protects both sides. Slow feedback is the most common cause of late projects.

3. Payment terms

• A deposit to start, then payments on accepted milestones.
• A final payment linked to delivery of source and assets.
• Currency, method and who pays transfer fees.
• What happens if payment is late, and if a milestone is late.

For the choice of pricing model, see fixed price vs time and materials.

4. Intellectual property

This is the clause to read twice. In many countries the creator owns the copyright unless a written agreement says otherwise. In the United States, commissioned work only counts as a work made for hire in limited categories and with a signed agreement, so contracts normally include an explicit assignment as well.

• All code, art, audio, design and documentation created for the project are assigned to you, usually on full payment.
• The studio may keep its pre-existing tools and libraries, and grants you a permanent licence to use them inside the game.
• The studio confirms its staff and contractors have assigned their rights to it.
• Portfolio rights: whether the studio may show the work, and when.

See game IP, copyright and trademark basics for the background.

5. Source code and access

• The repository is in your organisation's account, or you receive a full copy at each milestone.
• Delivery includes the engine project, source art files, build scripts and documentation.
• Store listings, signing keys and developer accounts are in your name. Losing a signing key or account can mean losing the ability to update the game.

Our guide to version control for game teams explains how to set this up.

6. Third-party and open-source material

Ask for a list of every asset, plugin, font, sound and library that is not original, with its licence. Marketplace assets usually allow commercial use within a game but not resale. Some open-source licences place conditions on distribution. You need to know before launch, not after a complaint.

7. AI-generated content

Agree whether generative AI tools may be used for art, audio, text or code, and require disclosure where they are. Some stores ask developers to declare AI-generated content, and the copyright position of purely machine-generated work varies by country. A simple clause requiring disclosure and human review avoids surprises. We discuss practical use in AI in the game art pipeline.

8. Confidentiality

A non-disclosure agreement should be signed before you share the design. It should cover the idea, documents, builds and business information, for a stated period, with standard exceptions for information that is already public.

9. Changes

Games change during development. The contract should say how: a written change request, an estimate of cost and time, and approval before work begins. A small pre-agreed change budget makes this faster.

10. Warranty and support

• A period after final delivery, commonly 30 to 90 days, during which the studio fixes defects at no charge.
• What counts as a defect versus a new feature.
• Optional paid maintenance afterwards. See game maintenance cost.

11. Termination and handover

• Either side may end the contract with written notice.
• You pay for accepted work and work in progress at an agreed rate.
• The studio hands over everything produced so far, in usable form.

An exit clause that works is the best protection against a partnership that stops working. See why outsourcing partnerships fail.

12. Compliance and data

If the game collects personal data, serves children or runs in regulated markets, name who is responsible for privacy policies, consent and age ratings. Related reading: rules for kids games and game age ratings.

13. Law and disputes

State which country's law applies and how disputes are handled: negotiation first, then mediation or arbitration, then courts. Cross-border projects benefit from agreeing this early.

Red flags

• The studio keeps ownership and grants you only a licence.
• No source code delivery, or delivery only for an extra fee not mentioned earlier.
• Full payment before any build.
• No acceptance criteria.
• No way to exit.

How we handle these

We sign an NDA before discussing your idea, work in milestones with playable builds and assign 100 percent of the source and assets to you on payment. Details are on the offer page and in how to choose a game development studio.

Sources: US Copyright Office: Works Made for Hire (Circular 30) · WIPO: Copyright · Wikipedia: Non-disclosure agreement. Checked November 11, 2026.

Related: Outsource game development · About the studio · Get a quote