The London Games Festival gets underway today! We're really pleased to say that the Games London team and its many partners have been able to pull together a range of online events to keep the show going during these challenging times.
But what exactly can you expect to take place in the coming weeks? Let's take a look at nine amazing virtual events or activities taking place in the coming week and a half for you to tune into.
1) Ensemble launch - Thursday 26 March
Games London’s annual programme promoting BAME video games talent unveils its eight artists chosen for 2020 today, on the original first day of London Games Festival.
You can find out all about the class of 2020 in the Ensemble video documentary here: www.games.london/ensemble2020
2) Meet the Indies @ Rezzed Digital – Thursday 26 March & Friday 27 March
Gamesindustry.biz is running a virtual meeting event called Meet the Indies to help bring together publishers and developers at Rezzed Digital.
Sign ups for the event have been taking place for a number of weeks, but you can find out all about it the event at https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2020-03-19-gamesindustry-biz-is-running-a-free-online-meeting-event-for-developers-next-week
3) Rezzed Digital - Thursday 26 March to Saturday 28 March
The Gamer Network crew is also putting together an all singing, all dancing version of Rezzed to keep you entertained throughout the weekend.
Eurogamer, Rock Paper Shotgun, GI Biz, Dicebreaker, Outside Xbox and VG24/7 will be putting on a whole load of streams, talks and let's plays with a big focus on indie games.
Rezzed Digital goes live at 10am here: https://www.rezzed.com
4) Games London Business Hub- Monday 30 March & Tuesday 31 March
This industry event is now focused on using the Deal Room meeting system to allow delegates to register and book video or voice meetings with their peers, Office Hours experts, investors or other partners. You build a schedule on the platform and can go to video calls in-app with one click. The platform is open 1pm to 8pm on Monday 30 March and 10am to 4pm on Tuesday 31 March.
Delegates can register here: https://www.universe.com/events/games-london-business-hub-2020-monday-30-march-tuesday-31-march-tickets-london-R5DWFY
5) Games Finance Market- Wednesday 1 April & Thursday 2 April
This world leading event will still take place, also through the Deal Room meeting platform. Sign ups have closed and companies taking part will have had their meetings set up already. But you can contact Matthew Charlton on the Games London at matthew.charlton@games.london if you do need any help.
6) BAFTA Games Awards- Thursday 2 April
The BAFTA Games Awards remain a highlight of the festival whether online or not - this year the event will be live-streamed to announce the winners.
You can watch it live here: https://www.twitch.tv/bafta
7) Ukie Student Conference – Friday 3 April
Ukie’s Student Conference is shifting to Friday 3 April and will be broadcast live on Ukie’s Twitch channel. Students will have a chance to hear from a number of great speakers from the safety of their own home, with the schedule coming shortly.
Watch it live here: https://www.twitch.tv/ukietv
8) #AutisticaPlay: Autism and the Games Industry - Friday 3 April
And on the same day as the Ukie Student conference, we're also supporting the fantastic #AutisticaPlay and their live streamed Autism and the Games Industry event. Running across the afternoon of Friday 3 April and featuring some familiar faces - including our office manager Dom - it's well worth signing up for.
You can get the details on how to pop by to watch the stream here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/autisticaplay-autism-and-the-games-industry-digital-event-tickets-96975814271
9) Now Play This At Home - Friday 3 April to Sunday 5 April
Finally, we recommend you round off your virtual London Games Festival with a trip to Now Play This At Home. Full details are still being pulled together, but expect a menagerie of games that delight, thrill and challenge the way you think in ways you may not have imagined.
Keep an eye out for news at: https://nowplaythis.net