After two years of virtual gatherings caused by Covid-19, India’s oldest and largest game developer conference, IGDC, is returning to engaging with the public in its original physical version for its 14th edition. The conference is scheduled to take place at the Hyderabad International Convention Centre (HICC) from November 3 to 5 and is anticipated to draw about 5000 attendees.
Each year, game developers, publishers, and investors enthusiastically participate in IGDC, which is a significant accelerator for the expansion of the Indian gaming ecosystem. The developer community will be the main emphasis of Days 1 and 2 of the conference.
A wide range of topics, including technology, innovations, future trends, financial considerations, growth, talent and training, and much more, will be covered by speakers and attendees from the business world, academia, government, and other pertinent organizations at IGDC.
A diverse group of speakers, including Art Directors, Project Heads, Studio Heads, and CXOs from some of the top Indian and international gaming & investment companies will be a part of the conference.
It includes Activision Blizzard King, Aream, EA, Glance, Gametion, Gameberry labs, Good Dog Studios, Jetsynthesys, Junglee Games, Lego, Meta, Moon Active, Niantic, Ncore Games, Paradox Studios, Playtika, Play Rovio, RobloxScopely, Simple Games, Super Gaming, Stillfront, Ubisoft, and Unity3D among others.
Niyati Shirthadi of EA, Khushboo Gupta, Poornima Seetharaman, and Deepanjali Sarna of Zynga, Oscar Clark of Fundamentally Games, Apoorva Joshi of Unity 3D, Elia Mssawir of GXR Records, and Himanshu Manwani of Xigma Games are some of the prominent names among the big list of featured speakers for the event.
On Day 1, a sneak peek of the State of India Gaming study by Lumikai and IGDC will be made public. This report will offer the sector valuable information and chances for expansion. Day 3 offers a new program called “IGDC Futures,” which will concentrate on education, career prospects and skill development in the video game industry, as well as important topics for the future like gaming and climate change.
During the conference, the IGDC Awards will present rewards to the winners in five categories, which are Studio Game of the Year, Indie Game of the Year, Hypercasual Game of the Year, Upcoming Game of the Year, and Student Game of the Year.
In keeping with their new branding, IGDC has also introduced a trophy. They will also have a “popular choice” award that will allow viewers to choose the game they think is the most popular among the shortlisted entries for the awards.
Here’s what Rajesh Rao, Convener, IGDC, said about the upcoming mega event:
“The excitement around this year’s IGDC has been peaking as we are looking forward to gaining from the extensively experienced individuals and institutions from across the world, and we hope the event will spur fresh discussion and debates, ideas and insights, and contribute to the growth of the sector. The conference will also see workshops focusing on multiple facets like the importance of storytelling, game design, and system design, preparing an art deck and using data to grow games, along with the broader role of gaming in combating climate change and imparting positive changes in the society.”