gumi Inc. Enters into Agreement of Equity and Allocation of New Shares in Blockchain Game Developer Double Jump.Tokyo
[G-Star 2018] Soft-World’s Sejin Lee and Wendy Hung, “Advance into Greater China with My Card from A to Z at Once!”
[G-Star 2018] Soft-World Set Itself up as a Helper of Korean Companies for Advancing into Great China
[G-Star 2018] Netmarble Games Targeted Global with Its Masterpiece Line up
[G-Star 2018] Kakao Games Succeeded in G-Star with Ryan & Battlegrounds
[G-Star 2018] Nexon Introduced 14 New Games Containing Past, Present & Future
PAX Aus 2018 Panel Schedule Announced
PAX Australia 2018 Indie Showcase Winners Announced
TGS Forum 2018 Outline Determined
The record 366 Exhibitors for TOKYO GAME SHOW 2018 (As of July 3rd) The outline of e-Sports X is released
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888 Holdings Deploys MaxBill from LogNet Billing for B2B and B2C Billing and Partner Management
LogNet Billing, the provider of Modern Billing solutions for service providers worldwide, today announced that the company has deployed its MaxBill solution to deliver B2B and B2C billing and partner management for 888 Holdings, one of the world’s most popular online gaming operators and solution providers. 888 Holdings maintains a B2C line of business that directly operates a number of prominent online gaming sites under its 888 brand and a B2B business unit through which the company provides turnkey solutions based on its proprietary gaming technology and associated platforms to other operators of online gaming sites. The MaxBill solution is being used by 888 Holdings for both its B2B and B2C business units to create a standardized framework to streamline and manage its business processes relating to customer and partner management, reconciliation and billing. MaxBill provides 888 Holdings with a unified platform and an essential set of tools to define and manage the unique business relationships the company maintains with its online gaming operator customers and the complex revenue sharing schemes it has with third party content providers. By supporting any business model with automated processes, MaxBill improves the business agility, security and capacity of 888 Holdings by allowing the company to enter into multilayered business agreements and tiered revenue sharing schemes with its customers and partners. MaxBill also significantly expands the business parameters available and reduce the resources required to support these agreements. “LogNet Billing and MaxBill have proven experience in the gaming space and we have strong expectations,” stated Andrew Anthony, Director of Finance Project Delivery at 888 Holdings. “By consolidating and streamlining business processes on the MaxBill solution, we are improving the efficiency and security protection of our operation and the way we work with our customers and partners.” “We are pleased to be expanding in the gaming industry and welcome 888 Holdings as a MaxBill customer” said Kirill Rechter, CEO at LogNet Billing. “888 Holdings has a strong and globally recognized brand for which we are proud to provide our modern and multi-play billing solution.”
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InstaVR Inc Raises $5 Million Series B to Further Rapid Growth in Enterprise VR Authoring Platform Use
InstaVR Inc (http://www.instavr.co), a virtual reality (VR) authoring, publishing, and analysis company, announced today it has closed a Series B funding round, which will help further its mission of empowering enterprise businesses to create VR applications. The company received $5 million in additional capital, bringing its total funding to date to $7.2 million. New participants in the funding round are YJ Capital, ITOCHU Technology Ventures, and Mizuho Capital Partners, who join follow-on investors GREE Ventures, COLOPL NEXT, and The Venture Reality Fund (The VR Fund). The company’s technology enables businesses to quickly and easily author interactive 360-degree VR apps and publish them for all major VR headsets, as well as desktop and mobile devices with a single click. Since launching in early 2016, over 30,000 clients have used InstaVR to publish 200,000+ VR pieces of content. Clients include Toyota, Hilton, TUI Group, PwC, US Navy, and GOV.UK. Recent solution enhancements include streamlined publishing to the new Oculus Go, application access via background streaming/download, and the option for clients to add in-app purchases. The new funding round will be used to expand the InstaVR team and further invest in the company’s enterprise offering (“InstaVR Central”), which helps larger businesses to use VR as a primary means of employee training. Daniel H. Haga, Founder of InstaVR, said: “As VR has gained more widespread adoption, companies are seeing the value of utilizing the technology for creating impactful and memorable immersive experiences, such as new employee onboarding and ongoing training. This round of funding helps InstaVR accelerate our plans to empower major corporations and organizations to more fully realize the benefits of VR.” InstaVR provides a powerful solution set that doesn’t require coding, meaning multiple divisions within enterprises can benefit from easily authoring and distributing VR applications. Global organizations can use InstaVR to significantly increase employee performance by building immersive and interactive VR applications, while significantly reducing per employee spending on training. “The future of employee learning is immersive,” said Haga. “Being able to quickly build and distribute VR training modules is a huge competitive advantage for our clients. We’ve worked with thousands of clients to understand how we can give them better tools to make VR effectively. We’re proud to continue leading the way in making VR accessible to all businesses.”
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PAX Unplugged 2018 Dates Announced; Tickets on Sale Now
Tickets for PAX Unplugged 2018, the tabletop-centric entry in the international line-up of PAX events, taking place Nov. 30 – Dec. 2, 2018 at Philadelphia’s Pennsylvania Convention Center, are on sale now. Single-day badges for the event will be available for $30, while three-day badges will cost $65. Pre-sale merchandise, including branded blankets, socks, and dice will be available as well. Established in 2017, PAX Unplugged delivers the experience PAX attendees have enjoyed for more than a decade, but with a focus on celebrating card, board, and other tabletop games. Now in its second year, the show will build on the success from the inaugural PAX Unplugged, where tabletop fans had the opportunity to witness the reveal of new games, go hands-on with exciting upcoming titles, play in tournaments, and participate in panels with industry leaders. Produced by ReedPOP, in conjunction with Penny Arcade, PAX– West, East, South, Dev, Unplugged, and Australia – have become some of the world’s largest gaming conventions, each with tens of thousands of guests every year. Every show is a celebration of gaming culture, where prominent game creators connect directly with the gaming community via panels, demos, concerts, tournaments, and freeplay sessions. For more information on PAX Unplugged 2018, check out the official PAX Unplugged website.
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TGS 2018 “Indie Game Area” “SENSE OF WONDER NIGHT” now accepting applications
TOKYO GAME SHOW 2018, organized by the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association (CESA) and co-organized by Nikkei Business Publications, Inc. (Nikkei BP) decided to carry out two projects and started accepting applications for them to support the independent game developers: one is “Indie Game Area (type A),” the exhibition area of free-of-charge, and the other is “SENSE OF WONDER NIGHT 2018 (SOWN 2018),” the contest to determine the excellent game ideas from the exhibitors in the Indie Game Area (type A). Since it was established in 2013, Indie Game Area (type A) has offered to exhibit the titles which pass the screening and will have many visitors including the game industry professionals to gamer funs every year. In TGS2017, 64 developers from 18 countries/regions, screened from 332 applicants from 40 countries/regions, had exhibited in the Indie Game Area (type A). On the other hand, SOWN is established in 2008 as a project to showcase game ideas that will give the players “Sense of Wonder” － a feeling that something will change in players’ world. This had been originally held alone, but has changed to the project to give a chance to be the SOWN presenters selected from Indie Game Area (type A) exhibitors, to present their own game ideas from 2017. In the TGS2017, eight developers appeared on the stage as the presenters of SOWN. It is now confirmed that Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) decided to support indie game developers as a special sponsor for both projects. Developers whose titles selected by the TGS Management Office get to exhibit in the Indie Game Area (Type A) for free. Also, SIE co-sponsors SOWN2018. Both projects will be carried out with the cooperation of International Game Developers Association Japan Chapter (IGDA Japan). Through these projects, TGS will provide opportunities to disseminate new games created by independent game developers to the world.
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Black Desert's Global Costume Design Contest Voting Starts Today
Pearl Abyss opened up their main voting event for Black Desert Online’s Global Costume Design contest today. The submissions are now closed and the final voting stages have begun. Communities all around the world can vote ( https://www.pearlabyss.com )and decide which costume design is worthy of moving on to the final stage. After the vote, the global top 10 submissions will remain to compete for the grand prize. The grand prize winner will receive $10,000, a special in-game title and last but not least, their winning design will be recreated in-game. Global top 10 prizes are available including $3,000 for the best design per territory. The runner-up designs will also be considered to be implemented in-game. “We are very proud to be hosting our very first global event. We were surprised by the overwhelming number of participants that showed their love and support for the event,” said Seoyoon Kim, Head of the Black Desert Online Business Division at Pearl Abyss. “There were so many talented artists from all around the world, it will definitely be hard to choose just one winner. The competition is about to get even more interesting, we hope everyone will take part in the main event. I wish all of the remaining contestants the best of luck!” Voting for the global top 10 costume designs will start today, March 29th UTC 06:00 and ends on April 2nd UTC 14:59. The final round to decide the Global Grand Prize winner of this contest will begin on April 4th and end on April 9th.
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The International Future Computing Association Launches at GDC
At a special launch event during the Game Developers Conference sponsored by Intel, market leaders announced The International Future Computing Association (TIFCA) which is built from the merging of the Open Gaming Alliance and the Immersive Technology Alliance. TIFCA's mission is to lay the groundwork and enhance the viability of building what's next. TIFCA will do this through several key initiatives including: influential membership meetings, stakeholder education, international market-building events, special initiatives, and more. Future computing refers to turning dreams into reality with computer technology and media. This requires a balance of three pillars that include computer processing and peripherals, immersive technology, and innovative content and applications. Goals include finding new uses and audiences for computer horsepower, connecting bleeding edge vendors with revenue generating clients, and giving influential industry players and content makers the tools and skills needed to benefit from present and future innovations. TIFCA is divided into three specialized groups: The Computing Technologists Group (CTG) grows the computer horsepower and peripheral ecosystems and is the backbone of turning big dreams into fruitful realities. CTG is Chaired by Frank Soqui, Vice-President and General Manager of Virtual Reality for Intel Corp. Activities are geared towards technology makers and OEMs working with PC, cloud, console, and mobile devices. "The evolution of computing and its role in technology innovation requires a strong ecosystem and a vision for the future. Intel has been instrumental in driving nearly 50 years of computing innovation and we look forward to collaborating with TIFCA and our partners to define what's next," said Frank Soqui, Vice-President at Intel and Chair of the Computing Technologists Group within TIFCA. The Immersive Technology Alliance (ITA) enhances the adoption and viability of immersive technologies like virtual reality, augmented reality, mixed reality, stereoscopic 3D, and more. The ITA is chaired by Daryl Sartain, Director and Worldwide Head of VR, AI/ML, Displays, TV & Music Ecosystems at Advanced Micro Devices. Participants include device makers, IP makers, immersive content creators and toolsets, as well as academia. "AMD has been a member of TIFCA's base for three years. We support them because they give us the data we need to make informed decisions and everything they do is focused on improving the bottom line of their membership," said Daryl Sartain, Director of VR for AMD and Chair of the Immersive Technology Alliance within TIFCA. The Alliance of Content Creators (ACC) advances generations of innovative content & applications. The ACC is chaired by Wanda Meloni, CEO of M2 Insights. Types of content that are represented include video games, entertainment, enterprise, education, healthcare, and more. Participants include content creators and content creation toolmakers. "The Open Gaming Alliance has worked with the Immersive Technology Alliance for many years. Having the OGA and ITA join forces to create this new trade organization is extremely exciting given the market opportunities for inspired future computing applications and professionals. It is the natural progression, and the potential has been clear to us for some time, with this bringing it all now full circle," said Wanda Meloni, CEO of M2 Insights and Chair of the Alliance of Content Creators. "When groups of visionary companies and innovators get together like this, bright technological futures become impending realities. It's an honor to help build these realities," said Neil Schneider, Executive Director of TIFCA. Neil Schneider has served as Executive Director for The Immersive Technology Alliance since 2009, and is the Founder of the Meant to be Seen community where several leading innovations got their start. TIFCA membership meetings will begin in April, 2018. Media and prospective members who missed the launch can register on TIFCA's website for news about the organization and follow-up events. Learn more at www.tifca.com
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Busan Game Company Meets the World through 'Game Contents Global Launching Project Support Business’
One of the biggest worries for companies developing games is how many people are informed about the game. There are so many new games released around the world that it is hard to count, but there are not many games that enjoy popularity among users as well as being recognized for their value. In addition, as launching a global market is considered to be a natural step, there are more areas where game companies need to be careful, but there would be many difficulties to cope smoothly. In some cases, companies are pushed into global market entry although they did not know what to prepare, or missed a critical time, or did not know how. Opened by Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency in September 2015 with support from Busan Metropolitan City, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Korea Creative Content Agency, Busan Global Game Center (BGC) is helping local game companies achieve their global market entry through efficient methods at the most right time. In the second half of 2017, it launched 'Game Contents Global Launching Project Support Business', which helped companies in need of global market entry. Through the first support business, companies such as Park ESM, which developed the casual arcade game 'BugsBox m', Golden Pig Entertainment, which developed the tank shooting action games ‘Future Savior: Tank War’ based on web novel, and Thunder Games, which developed a clicker RPG ‘Rebirth King’, were selected as support companies and are getting ready for overseas entry with systematic support. ▲ Busan Global Game Center actively promoted 'Game Contents Global Launching Project Support Business'. So, how did 'Game Contents Global Launching Project Support Business' proceed and what kind of overseas entry strategies are established through the support business? 'Game Contents Global Launching Project Support Business' is a project to support the marketing of games with high potential for success, which was discovered through suggesting directions of global launching and operational know-hows. The business is largely divided into three phases; 'consulting', 'global launching', and ‘global service’. Participants also mentioned ‘information about global release' and 'analysis of market data' as reasons for participating in this support business. Kang Donghyeok, CEO of Golden Pig Entertainment, expressed about his participation motive. “I started to serve mid-core games while mainly serving casual games, and there was a lot of difficulty with a completely different atmosphere from casual games. In the meantime, ‘Game Contents Global Launching Project Support Business’ was going on, and I applied for it to get help for the shortages.” Lee Seungchan, CEO of Park ESM, said, “As we introduced games on PCs or consoles, the new game received a good response on other platforms, and despite the recommendation of mobile conversion, we lacked the ability to support other language for global services and overseas market analysis data. Therefore, I wanted to get help through this 'Game Contents Global Launching Project Support Business'.” ▲ Kang Donghyeok, CEO of Golden Pig Entertainment, talked about his participation motive. “I applied for this business while having difficulties for challenging to play a new genre of games.” In the first stage of 'Game Contents Global Launching Project Support Business', we designed business milestones, consulted on global launching and operation, and the reviews through testing games were provided. It also provided market information and conducted seminars, publishing and investment consultation. In the second stage, provided with guides about global launching and featured for companies who participated in the first stage and could launch within the business period. The localization work including translation was also supported. Finally, in the third stage, the business assisted in establishing and implementing global marketing strategies, and provided support for designing and analyzing indicators, including operation of target countries. Through this step-by-step support, participating companies were able to get help in various ways that were incomparable to their own advancement, and it gave them an opportunity to lay a foundation for self-reliance in the global market. Participants of this support business mentioned ‘'systematic support for practical assistance' and ‘friendly consultation about unknown areas' as the most important advantages. Park Wonbin, CEO of Thunder Games, said, “As well as global marketing support from consulting companies, we also received many consulting services on games, such as gameplay and interface. Through this, we were able to study how our games could become more fun and enjoyable games for a long time, so satisfaction was very high.” Kang Donghyeok, CEO of Golden Pig Entertainment also emphasized, “'The Future Savior، War of Tank' was a burden on the SMEs in terms of amount to translate because of the large amount of texts. Thanks to 'Game Contents Global Launching Project Support Business', I was able to get great help for English translation. It also provided an environment for testing mobile phones around the world, which solved hardware problems such as bugs.” ▲ Park Wonbin, CEO of Thunder Games, said, “We were able to study how our games could become more fun and enjoyable games for a long time.” Likewise, 'Game Contents Global Launching Project Support Business' was recognized for its value in helping game companies achieve their full potential to become self-reliant in the global market. In addition, it became a representative support business that brighter the name, ‘A Friend of the Game, Busan City’. During the interview, the representatives of the support companies also expressed their confidence. "I feel the effect of this support project" Lee Seungchan, CEO of Park ESM said, “Thanks to 'Game Contents Global Launching Project Support Business', we were able to complement our lack of confidence in the new platform and global market. As these opportunities continue to develop, I expect this business to become the most loved support business from local game companies.” As such, Busan Metropolitan City and Busan Global Game Center are making various efforts to promote local game contents to the global market, along with the revitalization of various game industries. The results are gradually emerging from all over the global market in this steady activity. Therefore, if the business such as 'Game Contents Global Launching Project Support Business' is continued, Busan Metropolitan City is expected to help strengthen its position as 'A Friend of the Game'. ▲ Lee SeungChan, CEO of Park ESM, said, “We were able to complement our lack of confidence in the new platform and global market.”
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TOKYO GAME SHOW 2018 Exhibition Outline Released
In cooperation with Nikkei Business Publications, Inc. (Nikkei BP, President: Suguru Niinomi), the Computer Entertainment Supplier’s Association (CESA, Chairman: Hideki Okamura) has announced that it will be holding TOKYO GAME SHOW 2018 (TGS2018) at Makuhari Messe (Mihama-ku, Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture) for four days from Thursday, September 20 to Sunday, September 23. Applications for exhibition are now being accepted. The theme for TGS2018 is “Welcome to the Next Stage.” Games continue to surprise and inspire people with new play and new technologies. Discover games which make you feel like you’re there, share emotion and excitement with people worldwide over the Internet as you compete and cheer e-Sports as with other sporting events. One of Asia’s largest fairs where everyone can experience such new ways to enjoy games is happening again this year. In the game industry, the Japan esports Union (JeSU) was announced in February, established with the support of industry associations including CESA and Japan Online Game Association (JOGA). As its activity starts in earnest, e-Sports is expected to flourish from the standpoint of creating a new market and business model. The e-Sports stage was upgraded to become the larger stage “e-Sports X (“cross”)” last year. JeSU will take part in organizing this stage for TGS2018, and venue expansion and a new preliminary tournament area are planned. TOKYO GAME SHOW will present the heated battles as an international event to support e-Sport competitors to go on to perform in Japan and around the world. As the other pillar to transmitting information, we will enhance our Internet video streaming system. In addition to niconico, Twitch, and Douyu, which we have been using, we will have a major expansion of our platform for Japan and elsewhere, centered on e-Sports, and aim for increased viewership on a global scale. The VR/AR Area, receiving attention for its collection of technologies which facilitate revolutionary gaming experiences never available before, now allows exhibition of products and services for amusement only, in addition to game software compatible with VR (virtual reality), AR (augmented reality), and MR (mixed reality).
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Hatsune Miku Returns to Brave Frontier to Celebrate Snow MIKU 2018 Festival
Prepare yourself for a musical extravaganza! The Vocaloid Goddess Hatsune Miku will once again grace us with her presence in Brave Frontier, bringing with her spectacular dungeons quests and other Vocaloid characters. In conjunction with Snow Miku 2018 Festival this February, starting from February 7 to March 19, gumi Inc. and Crypton Future Media will present Hatsune Miku’s Winter and Spring Collaboration in Brave Frontier! The highlights of this collaboration are as follows: - Winter Chapter COLLABORATION SUMMON: SNOW MIKU (Feb 7 - Mar 6) Coming this winter season, get a chance to summon Snow Miku 2018! Adding more to the festivities, Snow Miku 2017 will be available in the Collaboration Summon as well! Be charmed by their uplifting melodies and refreshing voices as they journey across Grand Gaia. The perfect companions for your favorite Squad! WINTER DUNGEON: MELODY OF WINTER (Feb 7 - Feb 28) While looking for her animal friends during a snowstorm, Snow Miku accidentally stumbled into Grand Gaia. Blessed with an ability to create soothing melodies to quiet storms and pacify the greatest of monsters, she bravely ventured into the unknown. Lost and unsure of the way back home, will you be her guide and help her return to her own world? Venture into the dungeon, collect “Yukine Tokens” and exchange them for the event exclusive Sphere, Kagura Suzu! And while you play, enjoy The Snow Miku 2018 Festival theme song Round Off The Square Earth by TOKOTOKO as the background music! - Spring Chapter COLLABORATION SUMMON: SAKURA MIKU (Feb 28 - Mar 19) Spring is coming with more Hatsune Miku! Celebrate the season of a thousand cherry blossoms with the phenomenal Senbonzakura Miku! But wait, there’s more! Back for a rerun, grab the chance to summon Mankai Sakura Miku from the Spring Themed Summon Gate during this period as well! * More events related to the Spring Chapter will be announced on the Brave Frontier official channel at a later time. - Returning Contents EVENT DUNGEON: SONGSTRESS OF LIGHT (Feb 7 - Mar 19) The Hatsune Miku dungeon from the first collaboration is back! Catch her famous performance deep in the ancient ruins during the event period. Don’t miss this chance to get yourself the one and only, the original, Hatsune Miku! COLLABORATION SUMMON: VIRTUAL SINGERS (Feb 7 - Mar 19) Furthermore, the 2014 Virtual Singers series returns for another round of fun! Seize the chance to summon all of the 2014 Virtual Singers - Meiko, Kaito, Rin, Len, and Luka at the Special Summon Gate! - Other Events COLLABORATION LOGIN & MILESTONE CAMPAIGN Log in daily and work together with other Summoners to achieve dungeon clear milestones and obtain valuable items such as Summon Tickets, Gems, Elementum Tomes, and Omni Frogs. Brave Frontier is available for download globally on iOS, Android, Amazon, and Windows Phone devices. Note: All dates mentioned are PST.
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Global Costume Design Contest 2018 Starts Today
Pearl Abyss and Kakao Games are excited to announce the first global Black Desert Online Costume Design Contest. Talented community artists from Europe and North America wanting to create their own costume now have the opportunity to express their creativity and contribute to the beautifully crafted world of Black Desert Online. Each region will produce a finalist, who will enter to compete against designers from South Korea, Japan, Russia, Taiwan, South America, Turkey, Thailand and South East Asia. The costume design of the global grand prize winner will be developed by Pearl Abyss and added to the game. The full prize package will include 10,000 USD (before regional taxes) or in-game Pearl currency of the same value. Regional winners will be awarded prizes worth 3,000 USD (before regional taxes) or the equivalent in Pearls. Every designer who invests their time and effort into entering the costume design contest will also receive a prize. The Global Costume Design Contest submission period starts, February 7th and ends on March 5th. The top 10 of each North American and European designs will be announced on March 14th and will be submitted for community voting up until March 19th, resulting in regional winners on March 20th. The Global Grand Prize Winner will be announced on the 11th of April. For a full overview of the prizes, submission rules and dates, please check the dedicated page https://www.blackdesertonline.com/news/view/749 A detailed overview of all finalist and winner announcement dates will be published on the same page.
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Games from Busan, Gets Wings to Advance Overseas in ‘G-Star 2017’
With participations of a total of 2,857 booths from 676 companies from 35 countries, the largest scale ever, international game exhibition 'G-Star 2017' came to an end in a fervent response from visitors and industries. 'G-Star 2017', hosted by Korea Game Industry Association (K-GAMES) and co-hosted by G-Star Organizing Committee and Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency, was held from for four days November 16 to 19. G-Star 2017, which celebrated its thirteenth anniversary this year, welcomed the visitors with various contents in a space of about 55,300m2 including BEXCO 1st exhibition hall, 2nd exhibition hall, convention hall, multipurpose hall, outdoor plaza and cinema center. At 'G-Star 2017', participating companies presented their pleasure through various games including platforms and genres such as online games, mobile games, and video games in BTC hall. In BTB hall, the companies in each field also progressed consultations. Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency of Busan Metropolitan City, which is 'City of G-Star' as well as 'City of Game', was supported by Korea Creative Content Agency, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Busan Metropolitan City to operate Busan Global Game Center, ‘BTB Busan Joint Pavilion’, at the 2nd exhibition hall of BEXCO for fostering local game industry. ▲ During three days of 'G-Star 2017', 'BTB Busan Joint Pavilion' was held at the 2nd Exhibition Hall of BEXCO. The number of game companies in Busan, which participate in G-Star Joint Pavilion, is increasing year after year with the participation of 20 companies in 2014, 31 companies in 2015, 38 companies last year and 40 companies this year. Among the 40 game companies participated in ‘G-Star 2017’, 33 participated in Busan Joint Pavilion, while the remaining 7 companies operated game booths at the BTC hall. The number of paid buyers visiting the 'G-Star 2017' BTB was 2006, which was 5.5% higher than last year. According to Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Seo Byeong-soo) and Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency (CEO Seo Tae-geon), business consultations conducted at the Busan Joint Pavilion of G-Star 2017 totaled 368 (155 on the first day, 141 on the second, 72 on the third). Among them, four deals were concluded with Chinese publishers, and a great contribution was made for Busan’s Game to advance into Chinese game market. First, Busan's small and medium game company Masangsoft (CEO Kang Sam-suk) signed a total of $1 million contract with three contents including its mobile MORPG 'AIIA' to two Chinese publishers. Based on online games of various genres such as MMORPG, Fishing, Racing, FPS, and Flight Shooting, the company continues to provide game services in domestic and overseas markets. ▲ 'Masangsoft' signed a total of $1 million contract. (Photo by Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency) ▲ Once more, ‘Masangsoft’ has accomplished a great achievement overseas since last year. At last year’s 'G-Star 2016', 'Masangsoft' also had meetings with many buyers, and it is famous for having achieved overseas advancement after business meetings with Thailand, North America and Europe publishers. In this year, ‘Masangsoft’ gained much positive response from foreign buyers by introducing ‘DK Online’ and ‘Gunz’ at Busan Joint Pavilion. Having achieved great success for the second consecutive year, Masangsoft CEO Kang Sam-suk said, “I am pleased to have achieved a good performance this year as well, and through G-Star I was able to meet famous developers, CEOs of global game companies and foreign buyers in Busan.” Magic Cube (CEO Ha Sang-seok), an indie game developer in Busan, signed a contract to supply mobile game 'Call of Commander' to Chinese publisher 'YK Games' and laid a foundation for overseas expansion. ▲ Magic Cube, an indie game developer in Busan, signed a contract to supply mobile game 'Call of Commander'. (Photo by Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency) ▲ Many foreign buyers and publishers visited the 'Magic Cube' booth in Busan Joint Pavilion. Magic Cube is a promising game company that is currently selling most of its sales in overseas market. It presented ‘Finger Monster,’ ‘Mirror Land,’ and ‘Knight Maker’, which are aimed to be released in the first quarter of 2018. It had once become a hot topic that its "Call of Snake" was selected as the only Korean game in Apple’s global ‘Best of 2012’ in 2012. Bluesom (CEO Song Ho-jin) signed a game development contract with Funple Works (CEO Kim Hyun) by utilizing intellectual property (IP) of Hong Kong SEMK Product Limited's "B.DUCK" character. Bluesom was established in 2005 as a representative game company in Busan. It has accumulated know-how by developing various games such as 'Guardian of the Sky' and 'The Shogun', and it has experience of offering game service in Korea and Japan. At ‘G-Star 2017’, Bluesom presented a game, ‘Oopats’. According to the contract, Bluesom and Funple Works will develop a three-match puzzle game "B.Duck Candy Sweet" (tentative name) and a Mahjong game “B.Duck Sachunsung” (tentative name), respectively, using IP of B.Duck. 'B.Duck' is a cute and friendly duck character that has become very popular worldwide in Hong Kong, China, Southeast Asia, Japan, Europe and South America. There are more than 2,100 offline stores around the world using B.Duck’s IP. In China, as well as more than 165 offline stores, it is loved to be sold 35 million yuan in Taobao, China when launching new goods. Song Ho-jin, CEO of Bluesom, said, “I am very glad to announce the first contract signing as a developer in Busan during G-Star 2017. Based on the know-how of game development in the meantime, I will make a game that is loved not only in China but also in the world.” By finalizing ‘G-Star 2017’ and ‘Busan Joint Pavilion’, Seo Tae-geon, director of Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency, said, “Busan’s game companies could accomplish this practical business achievement since they had competitiveness of creative game content. As in ‘WEGL 2017 final’, which is G-Star Global e-sports competition, three mobile games were all from Busan, we will greatly expand marketing support and support for overseas market entry.”
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Busan Indie Connect Festival - Growing as an Icon Representing Indie
Busan Indie Connect Festival 2017 (BIC Festival 2017), held at Busan Cinema Center from September 15th to September 17th, attracted a maximum of 12,273 people and finished the three-day event with great success. ▲ The 'BIC Festival 2017', which was held for three days, was completed successfully. BIC Festival 2017, the third event of the year, is a global game festival organized as a part of the promotion business of small and indie games and the game industry development in Busan. It is organized by Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency, Indiera!, which is a meeting of indie game developers, and Korea Mobile Game Association, hosted by Busan Indie Connect Festival Organizing Committee, sponsored by Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST), Busan Metropolitan City, and Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA). This year, more than 110 exhibits from 21 countries selected from 378 entries in 32 countries have been exhibited so that the event grew quantitatively over the past year. Though various platforms such as PC, Web, mobile and VR, most of the entries have shown excellent quality rivaling established games. Visitors were free to experience the exhibition during the three days of the event and had the opportunity to talk with the developers of the exhibition. During the event, the 18th typhoon "Tallim" came, and although the rainstorm ran strongly on the venue, there were not many game users on the 16th and 17th when ordinary visitors could participate. Developers who welcomed the visitors at booths of domestic and foreign game participating companies did not lose their laughter even in unpleasant environments. The 'BIC Festival 2017', which celebrates its third anniversary this year, has adopted a number of policies different from the previous events and showed its desire to move to a further developed event. First of all, it is most noticeable that the festival introduced fee-charging policy from this event. Until now, 'BIC Festival' was held as a free event mainly for amateur participants, but as the proportion of professional developers gradually increased, the organizing committee decided to introduce fee-charging policy for presenting greater indie games to audience interested in them. Tickets for 'BIC Festival 2017' were sold through advance on-line purchase and on-site purchase. The advance on-line selling price was 4,000 won for 1 day and 8,000 won for two days. The on-site selling price was 6,000 won for 1 day and 10,000 won for two days. Of course, the organizing committee has made a lot of efforts to expand the event and its interior facilities as it started fee-charging. In addition to expanding the size of the game booth at the main exhibition hall, various events such as MCN events, indie band performances, e-sports events and other events were held on the main stage. Developer conferences, networking events, and food truck zone are also parts that were more focused than last year. On the first day of 'BIC Festival 2017', the variety of conference topics created for developers has also been a driving force behind the success. At the conference, experts from various fields including Katie Stegs of Lumi Consulting, which specializes in game marketing consulting, Hidetaka "Swery" Suehiro, who is a producer of Spy Fiction, Deadly Premonition, D4: Dark Dreams Don’t Die, and etc., ‘Byulbram’ Kim Kwang-sam, who produced many popular works such as 'Her Knights: All for the Princess', and Ken Wong, who carried out the designs for 'Monument Valley' and 'Alice: Madness Returns', participated as speakers and told audiences a wide range of stories about the game with several topics including cloud systems, marketing, and design field. Especially, "Replica: a game as a political medium", a keynote lecture conducted by game developer Somi, has become a meaningful time to let people know that the game medium can have a big impact on artistry and human life beyond entertainment. ▲ The conference held at ‘BIC Festival 2017’ came with developers on various topics. Communication with audiences through the stage events was also a great pleasure for audiences and it showed great improvement of the event. During 'BIC Festival 2017', there was a game show and fan signing at the main stage with popular creators and BJ such as Lee Sang-ho, Lee Yoon-yeol, Dr. Lee and King Na-sung. Through the main stage event, BIC Festival 2017 was more easily explained to audiences and described as a participatory event to enjoy together. Particularly, fan signing after the program was a time to realize the popularity of BJ and creators since it had a long line, and interests in the games introduced by them were also confirmed at the event site. ▲ Programs for indie games held on the main stage of the venue gained a great response from audiences. The indie game e-sports event that took place together has become the most popular event of 'BIC Festival 2017'. The indie game e-sports event was held for the first time at 'BIC Festival 2016' by the creator 'Ulsan Big Whale’ and it was broadcasted on the big screen of the main stage after it was designated as a formal event of 'BIC Festival 2017'. The special exhibition of indie game e-sports of 'BIC Festival 2017' was held in a way to fight with Hut 90's action indie game 'Akuto: Mad World'. 'Akuto: Mad World' is a survival-type fighting game that takes place at a fast tempo. It is played in a way that players who killed more enemies win through various weapons and strategies in one space. A total of 7 sets of matches were held at 'BIC Festival 2017' on the day, and the one who has the highest kill points became a winner. The four winners of the preliminary contest before the final match, Ahn Kyeong-deok, Kim Sung-il, Choi Yoon-sung, and Choi Hee-do, did their best to become a final winner. While fierce competition was continued for every set until the final set of matches, Choi Hee-do (with 59 kills) achieved the highest kill points with a one-point difference between Kim Sung-il, who took the second place, and got three million won prize. After the final award ceremony, a special one-on-one match between the winner Choi Hee-do and the developer was held. In this match, Choi Hee-do won the championship 10-4 once again and showed off skills that suit for the winner. ▲ At 'BIC Festival 2017', final match of 'Akuto: Mad World' e-Sports was broadcasted live. Likewise, BIC Festival 2017, which was held for three days, was completed with great success along with advanced events. As an impression concluding the event at the closing ceremony, Seo Tae-geon, Chairman of Busan Indie Connect Festival Organizing Committee celebrated the success of ‘BIC Festival 2017’ by saying, "Even the typhoon could not break the heat of the BIC". Meanwhile, as this event is being held as an extension of 'Construction of Indie Game Ecosystem', which is one of the five strategies of ‘Busan Game Industry’s New Promotion Plan’ announced in Busan last July, ‘BIC Festival’ continues to grow year after year. As a result, the indie game industry will be focused according to the expansion of its popularity and Busan City is expected to continue systematical support and promotion to 'BIC Festival' with 'G-STAR' for realizing 'Busan City of Global Game'. The official from Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency that organized this event said, “We aim to expand the e-sports of indie games for next year's BIC festival and to strengthen business matching for the growth of small and medium indie game companies. In the long term, we plan to promote not only games but also indie-culture related exhibitions, events and markets at the same time to become the world's leading indie hub event.” ▲ 'BIC Festival' will lead to a festival like Busan through global branding.
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Announcing CheckPoint’s New Mental Health Community - GamerMates
Non-profit organisation CheckPoint has revamped its website to include heaps of new features that make it the perfect hub world to learn about mental health, level up your wellbeing and buff your resilience. Their new community, GamerMates, makes it super easy to find like-minded people (your gamermates!) with whom you can play your favourite video games. You can find local folk, or someone on the other side of the world. Play anything from Overwatch to Animal Crossing, it’s your choice. The introduced membership system (starting at the bargain discount price of absolutely free), gives users access to a pro-mental health gaming community, achievements and badges, online courses, giveaways, meet ups...and of course, all of the mental health education and resources you can rely on CheckPoint for. Meanwhile, CheckPoint is a non-profit organisation based in Australia and New Zealand that acts to connect mental health resources with video games and technology. The organisation is run by mental health and games industry professionals, and exists to provide consultancy, advocacy, recreational activities and free resources. The amalgamation of these knowledge-bases and professional networks enables CheckPoint's reach to span across both industries comprehensively, and ensure that the information and education that it provides is accurate, relevant and implementable.
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[G-STAR 2016] International Game Exhibition 'G-STAR 2016' Ended with Maximum Result
Hosted by Korea Internet & Digital Entertainment Association (K-iDEA) and co-managed by G-STAR Organizing Committee and Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency, four-day 'G-STAR 2016 (Game Show and Trade All Round 2016)' is ended on November 20th. With a slogan 'Play to the Next Step,' 'G-STAR 2016,' where total 653 companies from 35 countries participated, was held at the largest scale ever, and it suggested a number of possibilities to predict the future of game industry. This event prepared a variety of themes to enjoy and welcomed visitors at BEXCO Exhibition Center 1, 2, Convention Hall, Auditorium, Multipurpose Hall, and Outdoor Square. On the first day, the events were held to recall the meaning of 'G-STAR,' everyone becomes one in game. First, through G-STAR 2016 Scholarship Ceremony, which was held before the opening of the event, scholarship for disabled and multicultural families-related groups were given, and programs such as experiencing G-STAR in advance were progressed. In addition, the partnerships were established to technologically support Korea's games so that they could enjoy high popularity throughout the world. To be specific, Busan Virtual Augmented Reality Convergence Center Business Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding(MOU) Agreement Ceremony was proceeded by HTC, Busan Metropolitan City, and Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency, and business agreement for activation of Busan game industry was concluded between Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIEK) and Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency. ▲ Total 653 companies from 35 countries participated 'G-STAR,' and it was held at the largest scale ever. ▲ Before the opening, scholarships were given to three organizations. At the main exhibition of 'G-STAR 2016,' BTC hall, the games covering all the platforms like online, mobile, and even console, were presented. At the exhibition booths of famous game companies such as Longtu Korea, Nexon, SIEK, as well as the main sponsor of 'G-STAR 2016' Netmarble Games, the opportunities to experience new and popular games were given, and there was a steady stream of visitors to endless stage event. Moreover, at 'G-STAR VR Special Corner, co-organized by G-STAR Organizing Committee and SIEK, visitors can experience meeting of videogame and VR through recently released PlayStation VR. Also, an official media partner Twitch presented pleasure by introducing new games for each company as well as holding various types of e-sports. At the same time, mobile admission tickets used in this year is a system to allow visitors to enter only by checking the barcode at the entrance of the exhibition hall instead of lining up a long line to buy tickets. It greatly reduced waiting time due to purchasing tickets and enhanced the convenience. The number of visitors to BTC hall was 47,447 on the 18th, 76,946 on the 19th, and 57,359 on the last day, November 20th (at 17:00), starting from 37,515 on the 17th. Total number is estimated as 220,000 (November 20th at 17:00, currently 219,267). This is a 4.6 percent increase over last year (209.617). BTB hall, located on the first and third floors of BEXCO Exhibition Center 2, attracted a great deal of interest from game industry representatives in Korea and around the world. The number of paid buyers who visited BTB was 1,325 on the first day, 421 on the second day, and 156 on the third day. It is announced that the number of paid buyers recorded total 1,902, which is a 6.8 percent increase over last year. In particular, at 'Busan Game Pavilion,' which is organized with 38 game companies in Busan and 'Busan VR Cluster Pavilion,' where four VR content companies participated, it is possible to meet games on a variety of subjects in one place, as well as the latest games that follow the trends of the game, the existing popular franchise games, overseas cooperation games and VR contents. It has also become a place of particular interest to domestic and foreign game industry representatives who visited for cooperation. ▲ Many users experienced new games at BTC hall. ▲ 'Busan Game Pavilion' and 'Busan VR Cluster Pavilion' showed the power of 'City of Game' Busan Metropolitan City. Besides, various side events prepared with the exhibitions satisfied the visitors of 'G-STAR'. First, 'G-Con 2016,' an international conference organized with 11 sessions, attracted 1,651 people, twice the number of last year. In Game Investment Market, which supports investment attraction and publishing opportunities for domestic small and medium game developers, 57 companies participated and got total 126 investment counsels for two days. With 20 companies participating and 1,885 job seekers counseling, Game Companies' Job Fair was able to feel the enthusiasm. Thus, 'G-STAR 2016,' which has achieved the best results ever, came to an end with presenting pleasure and hope to visitors and the domestic and overseas game industry people. Now, the game industry will improve further with the new games presented at 'G-STAR 2016'. Among the games that attracted attention at G-STAR 2016, seeing what games will be loved by users around the world would be another pleasure of the game industry.
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[G-STAR 2016] Director of Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency, Seo Tae-geon, “G-STAR Will Reach Fruition in the City of Game, Busan”
The four-day international game exhibition ‘G-STAR 2016’ ended on November 20th. Since the first event named ‘G-STAR’ was held in 2005, it has been held in Busan Metropolitan City eight times during the 12-year history. Now, beyond its theme as game, ‘G-STAR’ became one of the events that represent Busan. When talking about G-STAR, Seo Tae-geon, a director of Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency, is the person to be mentioned. While working as the chief of Industry Promotion Department in Korea Game Industry Agency, he has been the chairman of the management committee since the first ‘G-STAR’ in 2005. Even after taking office as a director of Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency, his relation with ‘G-STAR’ has continued. Finishing the 12th event, what is he thinking about ‘G-STAR’, and what will be the next for Busan Metropolitan City, which is developing as ‘City of Game’? I heard the story of ‘G-STAR’ and ‘City of Game’ Busan City directly from Seo-Tae geon. ▲ Seo-Tae geon, a director of Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency, talked about ‘G-STAR’. “By looking at ‘G-STAR’ smoothly prepared and stably progressed compared to previous events, I thought that it has been mature in content. It can be said that it is now possible to be called a truly mature international game exhibition in terms of contents and operation as well as appearance. “ Compared to the images of ‘G-STAR’ that he has been experienced for a long time, he evaluated that there were many advances in this year’s ‘G-STAR’. In this regard, from the moment of completing ‘G-STAR 2015’ last year, he said that he shared many worries about how to organize the event in 2016 with Korea Internet & Digital Entertainment Association (K-iDEA) office as well as Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency, and, as a conclusion, they focused on the satisfaction of the exhibition environment and convenience. “In recent years, the shift to the mobile environment has been a main topic for us. We worried about how to apply mobile games to exhibition operations, not just for exhibiting them. I think the elements such as ‘mobile ticket,’ which was first introduced in this year, ‘establishing network environment,’ which has no problem with a number of people, and ‘internet broadcasting,’ which is widely used by each company, played big roles in the invisible places for minimizing the inconvenience during ‘G-STAR 2016’. Moreover, as another achievement of ‘G-STAR 2016,’ the next generation technologies like Virtual Reality (VR) have become well suited to the event to ensure that it does not lag behind the trend. It is judged that not only simply watching popular and new games, but also creating opportunities to experience new technologies, which had been felt inaccessible to us and seen only through the news, should be the way for ‘G-STAR’ to go. ▲ Seo Tae-geon said that, when preparing ‘G-STAR,’ he tried to improve the satisfaction of exhibition environment and convenience. On the strength of these various activities, he emphasized that ‘G-STAR’ has been expanded its scale to 330% within 8 years since it was held in Busan Metropolitan City. Thus, as befits its name ‘City of Game,’ through follow-up support business and connected business, it derived various movements from home and abroad. Also, he said that Busan Global Game Center, which has been busy with 22 companies to be popular game developers in the future, and business agreement, which was signed with HTC and Sony Interactive Entertainment Korea during ‘G-STAR 2016,’ would be strong supports for maintaining the title ‘City of Game’. “Busan Metropolitan City has continued to grow game-related movements started from e-sport’s ‘mythology of Gwangalli’ by putting down the roots and sprouting. I have successfully held ‘G-STAR’ for eight years, and helped to release Indie games by launching organizations that professionally foster game companies. Now, Busan became an important city throughout the world’s game industry, as Indie game event ‘Busan Indie Game Festival (BIC)’ is held, as well as the release event of Blizzard Entertainment’s new game ‘Overwatch’. Besides, it is mentioned medium-and long-term plan that Busan City and Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency progressed many businesses such as construction of Amazon Web Service (AWS) Cloud Innovation Center, which recently had groundbreaking ceremony, support for IoT-related projects, support for Webtoons and MCN creators, and progression of Music Lab project to become integrated support city, creating synergy with the connection of IT and game industry in the long term. "It has been a long time since I declared to make Busan 'City of Game,' and a variety of activities have been progressed. The long-term plan of Busan Metropolitan City and Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency is to make the sentence 'game? Busan!' natural without saying 'City of Game' ourselves by growing Busan to a city recognized both domestically and internationally. For the future of 'G-STAR,' as a number of people are expecting the game industry to be positioned as an entertainment that can be loved by the people, Seo Tae-geon predicted to reinforce the role for reducing inconvenience when using the game. It is mentioned that, not just 'G-STAR' that exists only for a few days of exhibition, making connections with all the game-related events held all over the country in one year such as competitions for students across the country, game competitions covering various platforms, more advanced conferences and symposiums, side events, and campaigns is the way for 'G-STAR' to go. On the other hand, to a reporter's question related to opening of 'G-STAR,' he expressed his mind that 'G-STAR' would be continuously held in Busan. Having been watched 'G-STAR' for 12 years, Seo Tae-geon talked about the reason that it would be difficult to find a place like Busan Metropolitan City when considering the related industries and support policies that have been going on so far, the development potential of the game industry, and the know-how of the game exhibition for smooth exhibition. "If you move the tree to another location, it will be difficult to stay strong and bear fruit. Since 'G-STAR' came down to Busan Metropolitan City, as its roots have been lowered and its stem has been rising well, there will soon be a time to bear fruit, and I hope that the world will be able to share the sweet fruits borne in Busan." ▲ He hoped that the world will be able to share the fruits that 'G-STAR' born in Busan."
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[G-STAR 2016] Busan Metropolitan City, Leading the Move of 'City of Game' in G-STAR 2016
From November 17 to 20, an International Game Exhibition 'G-STAR' will be held in BEXCO, Busan Metropolitan City. Held in every November, 'G-STAR' has been a festival place for many people related to games by arranging a year, expressing gratitude to fans, and introducing new games and technologies that will be presented later. The host city of 'G-STAR,' Busan is also trying to show the appearance reflecting its name 'the city of game' on the basis of know-hows accumulated by hosting 'G-STAR' for many years after 2009. It has been a little sluggish but it is showing a willingness to participate more actively in the game platform industry such as video games and arcade games, which is expected to develop further in the future as well as next generation game content industries such as VR and AR industry. Even in ‘G-STAR 2016,’ Busan is catching game industry officials’ eyes. This is because it took one step further while its importance in various supporting measures and game industry, which have been proceeded so far, is growing. Busan’s movement has continued busily from November 17, the opening date of ‘G-STAR 2016’. At 11:45, just before the opening, Busan City, HTC, and Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency signed a business agreement for supporting the VIVE-X program and development in the pressroom located on the second floor of BEXCO. At 12:55, Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIEK) and Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency concluded a business agreement for the establishment of console and VR game environment and activation of Busan game industry. This business agreement made us feel Busan's willingness to provide a platform for game companies in Busan to show their unique game contents through various platforms. HTC and SIEK also gave full support to this commitment and added strength to the will of Busan Metropolitan City. ▲ ‘G-STAR 2016’ began, and ‘City of Game’ Busan City showed more advanced than last year. ▲ It progressed Busan Virtual Augmented Reality Convergence Center Business Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding(MOU) agreement ceremony with HTC. ▲ It also concluded a business agreement with SIEK for establishing console and VR game environment. Moreover, for the period of ‘G-STAR 2016,’ ‘Busan Game Pavilion’ for supporting Busan game companies’ promotion activities and ‘Busan VR Cluster Pavilion’ for activating VR industry in Busan are prepared in BTB hall. In ‘Busan Game Pavilion,’ total 38 Busan game companies such as iPlay, BearDoor, GameDay, MasangSoft, Naki Entertainment participate and have a busy time introducing new games and building new partnerships. In particular, the strengths of 'Busan Game Pavilion' include the ability to meet games on a variety of subjects in one place, as well as the latest games that follow the trends of the game, the existing popular franchise games and overseas cooperation games. In 'Busan VR Cluster Pavilion,' four companies, including Skonec, Appnori, Youcanstar, and Handmade Game, set up the booths to showcase advanced VR content to visitors and progress business counseling at the same time. Especially, it is receiving great attention, as it is possible to see VR content of various platforms, not limited to certain platforms, in one place. In addition, 'HTC VIVE VR Special Experience Hall' was installed in the office building of the first floor of BEXCO, allowing visitors to experience VR related contents and hardware in advance. Here, through eight ‘HTC VIVE’ experience spaces, the visitors can play ‘Overturn’ of StudioHG, ‘Mortal Blitz VR’ of Skonec, ‘PingPongKings VR’ of Appnori, ‘Nexperience VR’ of Golfzon Yuwon Holdings, and etc. Besides, ‘VR & Webtoon Drawing Show’ event will be opened at BEXCO Convention Hall on 19th and 20th to present pleasure and show the possibility of non-game VR technology to visitors who visited ‘G-STAR 2016’. As such, Busan Metropolitan City is carrying out a variety of activities in order to pursue the name ‘City of Game’ through ‘G-STAR 2016’ event. In some ways, four-day exhibition period may be a short period to show Busan’s will, but there will not be any event as good as ‘G-STAR 2016’ to look back on one year and determine its development in the future. ▲ Through ‘Busan Game Pavilion,’ it is showing the power of the game companies in Busan. ▲ In ‘Busan VR Cluster Pavilion,’ you can meet VR content of various platforms in one place. ▲ Everyone can experience VR content through ‘HTC VIVE VR Special Experience Hall’.
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[G-STAR 2016] The Capacity of Busan Development Companies in One Place, Busan Game Pavilion & Busan VR Cluster Pavilion
From November 17 to 20, an International Game Exhibition 'G-STAR' will be held in BEXCO, Busan Metropolitan City. Held in every November, 'G-STAR' has been a festival place for many people related to games by arranging a year, expressing gratitude to fans, and introducing new games and technologies that will be presented later. The host city of 'G-STAR,' Busan is also trying to show the appearance reflecting its name 'the city of game' on the basis of know-hows accumulated by hosting 'G-STAR' for many years after 2009. It has been a little sluggish but it is showing a willingness to participate more actively in the game platform industry such as video games and arcade games, which is expected to develop further in the future as well as next generation game content industries such as VR and AR industry. To begin with, 'Busan Game Pavilion' located on the third floor of BTB hall in BEXCO, is an exhibition prepared for introducing Busan's game content industry to domestic and foreign. Total 38 Busan game companies such as iPlay, BearDoor, GameDay, MasangSoft, Naki Entertainment participate and have a busy time introducing new games to visitors and building new partnerships with domestic and foreign game industries. In particular, the strengths of 'Busan Game Pavilion' include the ability to meet games on a variety of subjects in one place, as well as the latest games that follow the trends of the game, the existing popular franchise games and overseas cooperation games. Of course, games that are produced on various platforms such as online games, mobile games, video games, and VR games are prepared, and the games born through active cooperation with foreign countries can be experienced and talked directly here. It is not an exaggeration to say that you can meet everything about game. ▲ 'Busan Game Pavilion' is located on the third floor of BTB in BEXCO. ▲ 38 Busan game companies participated the pavilion. ▲ The space for demonstrating physical VR games is prepared. ▲ The visitor is demonstrating a physical shooter game. ▲ VR horror game which used VIVE is also displayed. 'Busan VR Cluster Pavilion,' located on the third floor of BTB hall, made us feel the will of Busan Metropolitan City, which aims to become the center in VR industry. Here, four companies, including Skonec, Appnori, Youcanstar, and Handmade Game, set up the booths to showcase advanced VR content to visitors, and they are engaged in various business activities to seek for global market extension and promoting new markets. Here, including Skonec's 'Mortal Blitz VR' and 'The Road of Peer,' you can play Appnori's 'Baseball Kings VR,' 'PingPongKings VR,' Handmade Game's 'Cranga!: Harbor Frenzy,' Youcanstar's 'Cube VR,' 'Interior Blind VR,' and etc. The point that it is possible to directly experience the power of Busan's VR industry, which is entering into various platforms as Skonec's 'Mortal Blitz VR' and Handmade Game’s ‘Cranga!: Harbor Frenzy' are decided to be released into PlayStation VR, makes us hard to ignore 'Busan VR Cluster Pavilion.' ▲ 'Busan VR Cluster Pavilion' is prepared for VR industries in Busan. ▲ Four companies including Skonec prepared booths in 'Busan VR Cluster Pavilion'. ▲ The space for experiencing Skonec's 'The Road of Peer' is prepared. ▲ Appnori participated with sports games such as 'Baseball Kings VR'. ▲ The audience is demonstrating Youcanstar's 'Cube VR'. ▲ The demonstration space for PlayStation VR version of 'Mortal Blitz VR' is prepared. ▲ Handmade Game's 'Cranga!: Harbor Frenzy' received much interest.
