Curated calendar with indie game events, conferences and play festivals worldwide.
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January 2019
Parallel Worlds 2019
Parallel Worlds, the V&A’s conference dedicated to videogame design and culture, will be back in London for more critical conversations on Friday 25 January 2019, in conjunction with the V&A’s headline autumn exhibition ‘Videogames: Design / Play / Disrupt’. This day long international conference brings together talks from leading game designers, artists, engineers and thinkers on the design of videogames and playful immersive worlds. Speakers include Chris Kujawski, Principal Designer of the Xbox Adaptive Controller; Amanda Johnston-Batt from Framestore’s rides…
Find out more »Ludicious 2019
Ludicious is the distinctive game developer event, focussed on the arts and crafts of game development, where game design and business meet. Core elements of Ludicious are a well curated program, matchmaking which is spot-on and exchanging internationally in a personal atmosphere. We work to support small & midsize developers connecting with the broader industry, and create event formats which bring developers from all domains of game development together on eye level. Ludicious is where creativity, technology and commercial potential come together.
Find out more »February 2019
1UP Conference 2019
"A showcase for the future of gaming" 1UP conference is the go-to event for gaming enthusiasts. Whether you like playing games or you are in the business of gaming, this event is for you. Check out the latest and greatest in today’s videogame landscape. We’re kicking off 1UP Conference with a day full of inspirational talks by some gaming industry giants. This event is tailored to industry professionals and people who want to take their interest in videogames to the…
Find out more »April 2019
CounterPlay 2019
The CounterPlay festival invites playful people from around the world to join the most caring, generous, inclusive and vibrant play community on a remarkable journey into the world of play. We welcome everyone eager to understand play better, no matter your background. If you wish to learn more about why play is essential for learning, working and living, this is for you. http://www.counterplay.org/ CounterPlay community on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/counterplay/
Find out more »Now Play This 2019
Now Play This is a festival of experimental game design which runs at Somerset House in London as part of London Games Festival. In 2019 we expect the festival to run over two weekends 6-14 April, with talks and workshops for practitioners on the first weekend, and more family-focused events on the second.
Find out more »A MAZE. / Berlin 2019
A MAZE. / Berlin is an international festival focusing on the art and culture of games and playful media. A MAZE. / Berlin invites creatives from over 35 countries to experience inspiring talks and workshops, and to celebrate the art of video games making. The four nights of music, plus a life changing and mind blowing interactive exhibition of our medium of the 21st century, will fascinate the general public. A MAZE. invites artists and creatives from diverse fields to…
Find out more »Reboot Develop Blue 2019
The boutique game developers and games industry conference of Europe http://rebootdevelopblue.com/
Find out more »NZ Games Festival 2019
nz games festival is new zealand's own international celebration of gaming, for all ages. The week-long festival is centred around all things games - whether digital, tabletop or otherwise! It's our goal to ensure everybody has the opportunity to be included in the magic of games, so we aim to provide events for all demographics.From workshops to pub quizzes, NZ Games Festival has a little bit of something for everyone and we can't wait to share it with you. https://nzgamesfest.com/
Find out more »May 2019
72 Hour Urban Action 2019
From the website: 72 Hour Urban Action is the world's first real-time architectural competition where international teams design, build, sleep and party together to generate public interventions in a limited space within a short time and on a tight budget. It is a tool for resetting our perceptions of public space. This tool, taking the form of a design festival, has been intervening in different communities since 2010, working hands-on with local partners from the bottom up. 72HUA exposes local…
Find out more »Freeplay 2019
Freeplay 2019 — INTROSPECTION | May 7–12 Freeplay is Australia's longest-running and largest independent games festival. First established in 2004, Freeplay embraces the fringes, spotlights grassroots makers, and acts as a response to and critique of the status quo. We invite artists, designers, coders, writers, players, makers, critics, academics, and students for a celebration of the artistry of independent games & playful culture beyond the mainstream. Join us in 2019 for Freeplay’s 15th year anniversary! Website: http://www.freeplay.net.au/ Twitter:…
Find out more »One2Play 2019
International festival around artistic, cultural and socially relevant videogames. First edition. Exhibition, Arcade, Documentaries, Concert Mount Venus. In collaboration with STUK, Cultuurconnect, VAF/Gamefonds, stad Leuven en Cinema ZED.
Find out more »Arcadia 2019
Join us for day packed full with an amazing array of leading game designers and thinkers co-curated in partnership with V&A Dundee. Coinciding with the latest V&A Dundee exhibition Videogames: Design/Play/Disrupt, the day will bring together a world-leading group of diverse designers and radical thinkers whose work covers the spectrum of game-making; from practical design, to soundscapes and future technologies, as well as exploring games as a cultural force. Arcadia 2019 aims to unpack key stories from within the videogame…
Find out more »V&A Dundee Tay Late: Press Play
What does a videogames arcade made in 2019 look like? Find out for yourself at our raucous club night Join us for a night of jostle-inducing multiplayer games and intimate, reflective experiences. Our next Tay Late sees the independent and alternative games scene, both local and international, take over the museum. Co-curated by We Throw Switches, producers of videogame events and parties from Sarajevo to San Francisco, the night will turn the museum into a combination of club night and…
Find out more »Feral Vector 2019
Feral Vector is not like other game design events. If you feel like an impostor at games events, you’re not only welcome here, we encourage you to attend. If you are in the videogames industry, but looking for more than it can give, Feral Vector is for you. Feral Vector is fundamentally about outside influences, accessible tools, and the fringes of game design – because that’s where the interesting stuff begins. Website: https://feral-vector.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/feralvector
Find out more »June 2019
BitSummit 2019
“BitSummit 7 Spirits” is the seventh iteration of the summit. BitSummit 7 Spirits will take place the weekend of June 1st and 2nd, 2019, and will be open to the public from 10:00am to 5:00pm each day. As has been tradition since the second BitSummit, all activities will take place at the Miyako Messe, the expansive and modern convention site of the past three festivals. As is by now tradition, BitSummit’s annual theme celebrates a distinct facet of Japanese pop culture,…
Find out more »Giocosamente Toffia Playfulness Festival 2019
Giocosamente - Toffia Playfulness Festival From the website: A new Festival dedicated to Playfulness is about to be born. Playfulness as an attitude and disposition of character and it’s cultivation. How is Playfulness cultivated in life, in work, in education? How does Playfulness expand? How is it taught? How can playfulness make our lives more interesting and meaningful? We will explore Playfulness in workshops and happenings. The workshops will be dedicated to two areas: Exchanges of playful practices for facilitators…
Find out more »INDIGOx 2019
From the website: INDIGO, Dutch Game Garden’s largest game showcase, returns in 2019 with a new name: INDIGOx, marking a new direction as well as the 10th edition of the event. INDIGOx takes place June 28th 2019 at Speys, Utrecht, the Netherlands. 2019 is the 10th anniversary of our INDIGO event. At the moment, we are developing the program of INDIGOx – it will be a more business-oriented event, which we will reveal more about later. Blogpost: https://www.dutchgamegarden.nl/indigox-10th-edition-of-indigo-takes-place-june-28-2019-2/
Find out more »July 2019
Playful Learning Conference 2019
Playful Learning is pitched at the intersection of learning and play for adults. Playful in approach and outlook, yet underpinned by robust research and working practices, we provide a space where teachers, researchers and students can play, learn and think together. A space to meet other playful people and be inspired by talks, workshops, activities and events. In its new home at the heart of England at the University of Leicester, we are now opening the programme up to outdoor…
Find out more »Vector Festival 2019
Vector festival is a participatory and community-oriented initiative dedicated to showcasing experimental new media art that draws on digital game technologies and wide-ranging creative media practices. Presenting exhibitions, screenings, performances, lectures, and workshops, Vector festival is organized by Interaccess in Toronto, Canada, and acts as a critical bridge between emergent digital platforms and new media art practices. The festival organizers are particularly interested in featuring artworks that critically explore the artistic use of emerging digital technologies. Open Call - Deadline…
Find out more »Isle of Games 002
Isle of Games 002 is the second installation of Isle of Games, a one day event that showcases alternative games and playful media from Iceland and abroad. At Isle of Games you can experience the weird, the beautiful, the artistic, and the cultural side of modern video games and its extended family. Before the exhibition opens, you can attend short talks by artists featured at the exhibition. In the main hall of IÐNÓ, you can play games in custom installations…
Find out more »Looking for more game industry events?
Check Jurie Horneman’s excellent gameconfs directory.
Looking for festival submission deadlines?
Have a look at the excellent promoter app calendar.
Events for the Dutch industry:
Game Industrie Kalender / DGG / Courage Events