Games Industry Events in the UK and Europe 2023
Charley Waterhouse
There are so many games industry events out there to choose from. Are you looking to network with other devs or searching for advice on getting into the industry? Or maybe you want more business development and dealmaking opportunities? Even if you’re just looking for a casual event where you can have fun and meet some like-minded games industry folk there is an industry event out there for you.
We’ve put together a list of games industry events to look out for across the UK and Europe so you can find the most relevant events to attend.
The information on this page will be updated periodically as more information from organisers get released.
January
2024 events and dates TBC
Mobidictum Network
13th – 14th | Istanbul, Turkey
A smaller-scale games industry event for up to 300 attendees, Mobidictum covers many topics across a full itinerary of speakers with plenty of networking. The event is split into two days, with the career event taking place on the second.
Pocket Gamer Connects London
23rd – 24th | London, UK
Pocket Gamer Connects provides value for every level of the mobile and portable device gaming industry from global corporations through to indie developers, whether you’re looking to develop strategies or make new connections.
February
2024 events and dates TBC
Hyper Games Conference Global
2nd – 3rd | Online
A business event for mobile game and web3 game industry leaders, connecting game developers with publishers and game services around the world.
Guildford.Games Festival
10th | Guildford, UK
A non-profit event put together by local members of the industry, Guildford.Games showcases the latest games from studios in the area as well as job opportunities. This is a great networking opportunity for game devs in and around Guildford to create a better sense of community and inclusion.
Games Growth Summit
23rd | London, UK
An event for business leaders looking to scale, with inspirational talks and panels from industry leaders and CEOs. From finance and accounts to marketing and PR.
March
2024 events and dates TBC
DevGAMM Gdansk
1st – 2nd |Gdansk, Poland
DevGAMM conference is aimed at developers, publishers, game designers, programmers, artists, business development managers, recruiters, journalists and everyone involved in the game industry in any way.
Game Developers Conference
20th – 24th | San Fransisco, USA
Not a European event, but GDC is one of the biggest Game Dev events in the world, connecting the global games community. The conference is five days jam-packed full of education, inspiration, and networking.
London Developer Conference
30th | London, UK
London Developer Conference is part of a collection of activities and events that make up the London Games Festival. It acts as a part of W.A.S.D. but is worth a mention in its own right for value of information.
Reality Check Festival
30th-31st | Enschede, Netherlands
The first day of Reality Check Festival allows for networking with other industry professionals. This is an opportunity to connect with leaders and gain a lot of inspiration and motivation from talks and panels. The second day is workshop focused, with portfolio checks and advice for students.
WASD
30th – 1st April | London, UK
An event for anyone who plays games, makes games or studies games: W.A.S.D. covers all basis but a careers area, Ukie Student Conference and ‘Tranfuzers’ all give support ideal for those looking to enter the games industry.
April
2024 events and dates TBC
Slovenia Games Conference
1st | Ljubljana, Slovenia
Slovenia’s largest games conference, with lectures and panels from acclaimed industry professionals. The event also features an indie expo, allowing indie developers to showcase their games and compete for ‘best indie game’ and ‘audience choice’ awards as well as plenty of networking and meeting spaces.
THU Career Camp
18th – 20th | Online
Trojan Horse was a Unicorn host a 72-hour online event with no timezone restrictions for a global audience. Mentoring and recruitment sessions cover designers, illustrators, UI/UX designers, riggers and technical roles and more.
Applications for Spring are Closed, Autumn dates TBC.
The Art Department
20th – 21st | Eindhoven, The Netherlands
An international festival spanning two days, covering all things art related within the games, film and entertainment industries. From concept art to animation to craftsmanship. With live sketching sessions, artist talks and panels – this is the event to go to for all aspiring or working artists in the games industry.
Reboot Develop Blue
24th – 26th | Dubrovnik, Croatia
A boutique Game Developers conference in a beautiful coastal setting. Reboot Develop Blue is considered high-end and one of the largest games industry conferences in the world. This year it features 150+ speakers across 8 stages with some surprises thrown in for attendees.
Dev Pub Quiz – Leamington Spa
26th | Leamington Spa, UK
The Dev Pub Quiz is a casual evening event bringing together the quiz loving members of the games industry. Teams typically represent a studio/company. With prizes for the winners, food and drink provided and time to get to know the other teams after the quiz, it promises to be a fun evening. This event makes a nice change of pace from the busier B2B heavy conferences.
Game Republic: Game Talent
26th | York, UK
Game Talent focuses on helping companies attract and retain talent within their teams. This event features talks from GamesIndustry.biz Chris Lang, ex-sony strategic head Shahid Ahmad and Safe in our Worlds Rosie Taylor.
Find out more.
Game Republic ltd runs the two largest games industry networks in the North of England and runs several events throughout the year. If you’re interested in attending these events as a professional in the games industry, you can look into becoming a member to receive free tickets to events and more.
Hyper Games Conference Turkey
27th – 28th | Istanbul, Turkey
A business event for mobile game and web3 game industry leaders, connecting game developers with publishers and game services around the world. The Conference hosts an expo area with a few networking and pitching focused activities as well as 80+ speakers across 2 stages.
May
2024 dates TBC
London Unreal Meetup
9th | London, UK
A meetup for Unreal Engine users to learn and show off projects. With talks, discussions and time to socialise, these events are hugely popular. Both experienced users and newcomers looking to get started with the Unreal Engine are welcome.
Game Republic: GameDevDay
10th | Leeds, UK
Two events in one! Game Republic will host a business networking event with presentations from some leading figures in the industry. This is followed by a GaMaYo networking event into the evening for Game Developers, including new games on-show.
Game Republic ltd runs the two largest games industry networks in the North of England and runs several events throughout the year. If you’re interested in attending these events as a professional in the games industry, you can look into becoming a member to receive free tickets to events and more.
A MAZE
10th – 13th | Berlin, Germany
A ‘Games and Playful Media Festival’ focusing on arthouse games. Featuring a global and diverse variety of experimental game and VR creators, digital artists and musicians/audio experts. The event offers, talks, workshops, and more.
The Art Department
13th – 14th | Berlin, Germany
An international festival spanning two days, covering all things art within the games industry as well as film and enteratinment. From concept art to animation to craftsmanship. With live sketching sessions, artist talks and panels, this is the event to go to for all aspiring or working artists in the games industry.
Digital Dragons
15th – 16th | Krakow, Poland
Digital Dragons is an ever-growing event featuring an impressive array of speakers, an indie showcase and awards ceremony with plenty of networking and meeting opportunities. 2022 saw attendees from 613 companies spread out over 42 countries. This year’s speakers lineup looks to be full of valuable information for game developers.
Games Republic: Valve Webinar
23rd | Online
This live business webinar is hosted by Valves Alden Kroll, covering all the latest news and opportunities regarding Steam and Steam Deck.
Game Republic Ltd runs the two largest games industry networks in the North of England and runs several events throughout the year. If you’re interested in attending these events as a professional in the games industry, you can look into becoming a member to receive free tickets to events and more.
Format
25th | Manchester, UK
‘The Ultimate Gaming Social’, Format offers gamers, game developers and community leaders the space to come together for a night of gaming nightlife fun, with 23+ game studio headliners across three floors.
June
Game Access Conference
2nd – 3rd | Brno, Czech Republic
This English-speaking event brings together a rich program of games industry speakers from across Europe and is acclaimed for the design of the event itself, Game Access is rapidly becoming of the most beloved Game Dev events in the region. Game Access Conference also offers a 50% student discount on tickets.
Game Camp
19th – 20th | Lille, France
An anual gathering of the French games industry, intended for professionals and aspiring developers. This games industry event follows 5 well-planned tracks of worshops for attendees to choose from: Biz/Marketing, Game Design, image/sound, prod/ HR and technology and 40+ speakers from all over the world.
Dev GAMM Vilnius
20th – 21st | Vilnius, Lithuania
DevGAMM conferences are for everyone involved in the Games Industry in any way, with round tables, job boards, game showcases and pitching opportunities followed by vibrant parties.
July
Hyper Games Summit Poland
6th – 7th | Warsaw, Poland
A business event for mobile game and web3 game industry leaders, connecting game developers with publishers and game services around the world. Hyper Games Summit is primarily targeted at people within the industry at a C-level.
Develop: Brighton
11th – 13th | Brighton, UK
This three-day conference in the bustling seaside town of Brighton is one of the most popular in the UK, with 1,500+ companies being represented in 2022. There are also numerous satellite events going on around the area to dip in and out of to get the best value out of you time.
THU Creators Circle
13th – 15th | Barcelona, Spain
The unique events company, Trojan Horse is a Unicorn bring something different to the table. This immersive three day learning retreat is designed to bring the worlds of art and business together. This retreat is a great opportunity for both creatives who want to get a handle on setting up their own businesses or those who are already managers and business leaders wanting to take part in the more creative digital entertainment industry.
August
Devcom
20th – 22nd | Cologne, Germany
Devcom is the largest game developer community-led conference for the industry in Europe. It’s also the official developer event of Gamescom. On top of the core conference, Devcom also serves as a hub for global games industry networking. And if you can’t make it to Germany, there is also an additional standalone event being held online: The Call For Change Summit.
Gamescom
23rd – 27th | Cologne, Germany
The worlds largest event for computer and video games and an extensive business platform for the industry. Gamescom has something for everyone who loves games and serves as a great event for those who play and those who create games.
September
Promised Land Art Festival
3rd – 6th | Lodz, Poland
Organised by CD Projekt Red, Promised Land Art Festival crosses the divide between digital and traditional arts and allows for network and the exchange of knowledge for the industry. With a variety of artistic activities and workshops to get involved in and lecture, panels and Meet the Artists Sessions.
WASD x IGN
12th – 14th | London, UK
Following it’s success in March, WASD returns! This year with an expanded and WASD Careers area due to popular demand. Supported by Into Games, this is looking to be an excellent event for students and those looking to break into the games industry, with portfolio reviews and talks. There will also be the opportunity to speak to universities about games courses for those thinking about higher eductation.
Dev Pub Quiz
14th | Liverpool, UK
The brilliant Dev Pub Quiz from Analog Events continues its increasingly popular tour of the UK with Liverpool in September. The perfect place for developers, publishers and vendors in the games industry to send their brightest quizzers to go toe to toe against eachother. It’s a great night with a relaxed atmosphere and prizes (and bragging rights) to the winning team!
Hyper Games Summit India
15th | Bangalore, India
A business event for mobile game and web3 game industry leaders, connecting game developers with publishers and game services around the world. Not a European event but given the inclusion of the rest of the Hyper Games event lineup, we thought it’d be worth adding in.
D.I.C.E Reykavik
25th-27th | Reykavik, Iceland
While D.I.C.E is a more exclusive event for decision makers and industry experts itself, the event runners record and post the insightful roundtable talks online, so its worth keeping an eye out for even if you’re more of an average Joe.
Industry.biz HR Summit
27th | London, UK
Now this event is all about HR and targeted at the internal HR professionals within the games industry. The speakers are covering topics like education and training, hybrid work and mental health in the workplace. Four day working weeks and gender pay-gaps are also said to be points of discussion that should create some dialogue.
October
HUB Seminar
5th | London, UK
Community and social mangers, content creators and streamers in the games industry now have their own event for knowledge sharing, discussing best practices trends and challenges in their careers. The organisers of this event have taken special care to ensure it is an inclusive, safe and accessible environment.
Playgrounds: Blend
5th – 6th | Rotterdam, The Netherlands
An international festival for all creative industries, with an aim to inspire and share the latest in cutting edge creativity and insights into global trends in motion design. One to inspire animation enthusiasts.
Women in Games Annual Conference
10th | Online
Women in Games is an organisation working towards gender equality within the games industry. The focus is on investing in women and creating new pathways to support them in their careers in the gaming sector. Tickets and registrations don’t appear to available at the time of posting, but the ‘Save the Date’ has been posted!
EGX
12th – 15th EGX | London, UK
Formerly Euro Gamer, EGX is a consumer event featuring industry panels, indie showcases, cosplay competitions, merch stall and the change to play games! The GI Academy is great for meeting potential employers, hearing careers talk and networking, as well as get an all-important portfolio review.
Dev Pub Quiz
14th | Cambridge, UK
The brilliant Dev Pub Quiz by Analog Events continues its increasingly popular tour of the UK with Cambridge in October. The perfect place for developers, publishers and vendors in the games industry to send their brightest quizzers to go toe to toe against eachother. It’s a great night with a relaxed atmosphere and prizes (and bragging rights) to the winning team!
Sweden Game Conference
25th – 26th | Skövde, Sweden
Also known as Sweden Game Arena. With Swedens Game Industry seeing such a rapid growth over the last few years, with calls to focus on growing the talent pool to meet demand, this conference looks to have the backing of the University of Skövde, and therefore we would expect it to serve graduates and those looking to get into the industry well.
Scottish Games Week
30th- Nov 3rd | Scotland
The first Scottish Games week in 2022 was a great success, so Scottish Devs (current and future) can enjoy the event again this year! The event is spread out over the week, focusing on different cities and venues on different days (specifically Edinburgh, Dundee and Glasgow). The main event is the Conference in Edinburgh on the 30th-31st.
November
Scottish Games Week
Sept 30th-Nov 3rd | Scotland
The first Scottish Games week in 2022 was a great success, so Scottish Devs (current and future) can enjoy the event again this year! The event is spread out over the week, focusing on different cities and venues on different days (specifically Edinburgh, Dundee and Glasgow). The main event is the Conference in Edinburgh on the 30th-31st of September.
Games Growth Summit
2nd | Manchester, UK
Not all business happens in London! Games Growth Summit moves up to the north of England this November. An event for business leaders looking to scale, with inspirational talks and panels from industry leaders and CEOs. From finance and accounts to marketing and PR.
MCV/Develop: IRL
TBC | London, UK
A favourite of the team here at One Player Mission for its casual but upbeat atmosphere. IRL is an informal MCV/Develop event where everyone working in or with the Games Industry is welcome. It is also the home of the MCV/Develop 30 under 30 awards, celebrating the best and the brightest young talent in the industry.
Game Connection EU
2nd-3rd | Paris, France
Game Connection is an international business event with deal-making in mind. Perfect for developers looking to find publishers and distribution partners, service providers to find clients and visa versa.
Find out more.
AdventureX
4th – 5th | London, UK
AdventureX bring together developers and gamers with a passion for storytelling. The Narrative Games Convention features a range of narrative driven indie games on exibition as well as a variety of speakers.
Hyper Games Summit Germany
9th – 10th | Berlin, Germany
A games industry business event for mobile game and web3 industry leaders, connecting game developers with publishers and game services around the world.
DevGAMM Lisbon
TBC | Lisbon, Portugal
An event aimed at anyone working in the games industry, from artists and programmers to game publishers, recruitment and journalists. Typically jam-packed with talks and workshops by industry experts and showcases of new projects. DevGAMM events across Europe are definitely worth watching out for.
Dev Pub Quiz
14th | Cambridge, UK
The brilliant Dev Pub Quiz by Analog Events continues its increasingly popular tour of the UK with a return to London to finish of November! The perfect place for developers, publishers and vendors in the games industry to send their brightest quizzers to go toe to toe against eachother. It’s a great night with a relaxed atmosphere and prizes (and bragging rights) to the winning team!
December
Hyper Games Conference Global
14th – 15th | Online
A business event for mobile game and web3 games industry leaders, connecting game developers with publishers and game services around the world. This version of the conference is fully online and designed with a global audience in mind.
