As we close this year’s edition of Nordic Game, we’d like to extend a big, heart-felt thank you to each and every NG19 attendee. Even as thousands of games industry peers busily immersed themselves in the conference program and special events last week, that unique Nordic Game atmosphere, of sharing knowledge and enjoying each other’s company without boundaries, was the true hallmark of Nordic Game 2019.
While Nordic Game traditionally spotlights the Nordic region, NG19 set records as our most diverse conference ever, gathering over 1000 companies from more than 50 countries, with double (and triple) digit increases in participants from North America, East Asia and continental Europe.
Opening with an intense procedural generation keynote by Embark Studio’s Anastasia Opara, the NG19 speaker program, featuring talks by over 140 industry experts, was specifically focused on current, burning issues in game development. This year’s expanded Impact Sessions were especially praised for addressing key challenges, like labor relations and diversity, in our evolving industry.
Business at NG19 was equally intense; the Publisher Market kicked-off the week, and an expanded MeetToMatch hosted close to 3000 meetings with nearly 800 participants. Business was indeed good at Nordic Game 2019.
This May’s Nordic Game Expo broke records as well, as our biggest exhibition ever included games and companies from across Europe (and the globe). A highlight was the NGDC (Nordic Game Discovery Contest) Finalist Expo, showcasing the stellar games of this season’s seventeen finalists.
The thirteenth annual Nordic Game Awards also brought excitement and surprises galore to this year’s event, with Sweden’s Hazelight taking the top prize for their game A Way Out. Congratulations as well to NGDC Game of the Year winner Drawkanoid from QCF Design and People’s Choice Award winner Skábma – Polar Night by Red Stage.
On a social note, Nordic Game 2019 offered a multitude of ways to meet old friends and make new ones; from pre-conference events like the investor-focused Games Capital Summit and Exec Lunch, to Happy Hour gatherings and our exciting new Dinner Experience – and the networking event of the week, the NG19 Party.
This year’s festivities included the world premiere of the game Of Bird and Cage, played live by influencer Sam Chaotic while musicians from well-known bands such as Guns N’ Roses performed the score on-stage.
Check out a video from the event here (final performance footage to be released soon):
Over the coming days, there’s much more to share with you from the sixteenth Nordic Game; visit our Flickr page as we upload photos from the event, as well as our YouTube page for upcoming videos of all the NG19 talks in the Unreal Theatre. And of course, be sure to follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook – and subscribe to our newsletter on nordicgame.com, where all the latest Nordic Game news and stories are featured first.
Finally, our biggest possible thank you to all of our fantastic NG19 sponsors and partners. Without your incredible support, we wouldn’t be here. See you all again for Nordic Game 2020, 27-29 May in Malmö, Sweden!
