Poncle, Yogscast Games, Devolver, UK Games Fund, Epic Games, Xsolla, Eaton Smith Solicitors, Pitchify, Plus Accounting, Huey Games and Safe In Our World will be hosting roundtables from 5pm at GaMaYo on 22nd May as the event has sold out.
The event which takes place at Project House Leeds, a new venue for the largest indie gathering in The North, is set to attract over 350 developers from across the region, with 39 new games on show and the first drink sponsored by Plus Accounting.
GaMaYo forms part of Game Republic’s event programme supported by Official Partners Xsolla, Red Kite Games and Barclays Games and Creative and at 4pm there will be a Game Republic Members Reception to celebrate GR’s new partnership with Xsolla.
MD of Game Republic Jamie Sefton said “We are really pleased to not only be showcasing new and unreleased games at the event from all over The North, but also to have such expertise available to developers between 5-6pm that day. The conversations at the roundtables can be of great benefit to studios whatever their size or experience.”
The event comes after one game Dunk Dunk released, with the creators Badgerhammer acknowledging GaMaYo’s role in its success when it was signed to Playtonic Games, as Good Boy is showcased, a game signed by Team17 after GaMaYo and after Yogscast Games confirms its signing of Goodview Games’ Dicealot following the November GaMaYo.
Alongside demos, roundtables and the usual friendly networking with food and drink, there will be a raffle to fundraise for Safe in Our World with a prize bundle to be won including 4 tickets to MegaCon Live in Manchester. For the first time, there will be a special Game Republic zone at MegaCon Live to showcase indies at the show which is set to attract 20,000 on 26th and 27th July. Game Republic members have been invited as part of the partnership to showcase their games at the show, only 5 spaces remain.
Roundtable topics range from publishing tips, pitching, legal issues with AI, financial advice, commercialization, funding and supporting mental health. Here’s a few to look forward to…
Yogscast Games roundtable will be led by Isaac Haslehurst and Matt Plumb. Isaac (pictured) is the Lead Producer at Yogscast Games, where he collaborates with small indie teams to bring their games to life. He has contributed to titles such as PlateUp!, Aces & Adventures, Dungeons & Degenerate Gamblers and many more. Matt is the Product manager and current head of Yogscast Games’ marketing team with 7 years of experience in indie game publishing, having worked on various titles on PC and console from signing to launch.
Dr Gina Jackson OBE from Pitchify will be hosting a roundtable on pitching for investment. Gina Jackson has more than 30 years experience as a games publisher and developer signing more than 200 games, and working with Nokia, Sony Playstation, Eidos, Ocean Software and EG7, being recognised for her outstanding contribution to the games industry and appearing in the Top 100 most influential people in the UK games industry.
Andy Kelly from Devolver will be sharing publisher insights for game developers. Andy is a former journalist (Edge, Vice, PC Gamer, BBC News, Kotaku, etc.) who now does in his own words “PR, marketing, copywriting, design, art, and other creative stuff at Devolver Digital.” Andy has also written the Alien: Isolation companion book Perfect Organism.
Chris Taylor and Sam Crich from Eaton Smith Solicitors will be sharing legal and practical advice about AI in game development with topics ranging from IP ownership to training AI, from ethical use to online safety
Sam Baldwin from Plus Accounting will be running an Ask Me Anything table sharing with us “that the only stupid question is the one you don’t ask”. He is expecting to meet indies looking at how to use VGTR and VGEC to support developments, as well as many other financial issues in setting up and producing games.
If you would like to attend events like these, and develop or support games development in The North, you can apply to join Game Republic or GaMaYo via the Great Northern Games Discord or contact us here.
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