The UK games industry is to receive a £10 million cash injection from the government, with significant investment going to centres of excellence in Dundee and Manchester.

As previously reported, £2 million has been earmarked for a prototype fund being administered by Abertay University, which will play home to a specialist development centre helping students and small firms create new projects, while a further £1m will be given to a linked centre at MediaCityUK in Manchester.

With complementary investment from European development fund initiatives in Manchester, Scotland and from the North West Development Agency, a total of up to £10 million is expected to be pumped into the two centres.

Over the next three years the co-ordinated project is expected to create 30 new companies and 400 new jobs, while building the skills of a further 300 workers, reports the BBC.

Richard Wilson, CEO of UK developer trade association TIGA, welcomed “the intention to use the funding to invest in prototypes to support new intellectual property (IP) development. Finding sources for finance for new IP is difficult at the best of times”.

Scottish culture minister Fiona Hyslop said: "Games are a Scottish success story and a vital part of our creative industries. This funding underlines the Scottish government's commitment to supporting and developing the games industry in Scotland."

Image credit: Abertay University