Why aren’t developer conferences a hit anymore? With the exception of very few major events such as this year’s G-Star Conference and Inven Conference, which featured world-renowned speakers, it is difficult to hear about the success of game developer seminars or conferences in Korea anymore.
What is the problem with organizing a game conference?
First of all, giving a lecture on stage is never easy for anyone. Even if you are the CEO of a successful company or a great developer, there is a clear difference between being good at development and being good at speaking in public, and in particular, most developers tend to get nervous or feel a lot of stress about standing on a public stage to the outside world.
Because of this, it is very difficult to recruit conference speakers. In the increasingly harsh reality of the gaming industry, it is difficult to find people to give lectures, let alone keynote speakers, and even if you try to contact and recruit them, they are in vain due to the time and stress of preparing for the lecture, and opposition from company executives who are reluctant to expose key personnel to the outside world. In most cases, this is the case. In other words, unless it is a very small number of cooperative organizations or major media in the game industry that can exert enormous influence, it is almost impossible to invite keynote-level celebrities or developers at a conference.
Are offline game seminars and conferences still necessary?
Starting with COVID-19, many face-to-face events have been converted to non-face-to-face events, and numerous webinars are still being held. There are already numerous lecture videos and materials on YouTube and the Internet. Therefore, the audience does not come to the event to learn, but to admire famous developers and meet them in person. In other words, lectures through one-way channels, where it is burdensome to find speakers and prepare lectures, should be avoided. Rather, a change to a more casual format in the form of a talk show that communicates with game users about developers and content is needed. do.
Game seminars and conferences So who needs them?
Technical seminars that deliver information and knowledge should be structured as webinars to increase sustainability, while offline seminars and conferences that should focus on exchange should be filled with dense content based on clear audience targeting. After forming an open audience targeting random people, it should not be a general and popular lecture, but rather a customized coaching program by experts targeting the target group. Or, conversely, it should be possible to share practical cases with each other within the group at the same level. . At the same time, we need to organize not only simple lectures but also network parties (+ events) so that we can grow based on mutual exchange.
Chungbuk Global Publishing Summit 2023, which drew a warm response from participants with a changed format
Through this ‘Chungbuk Global Publishing Summit 2023’ event, the Chungbuk Global Game Center invited executives and marketing experts from major publishers in countries where Korean games are exported and generated sales directly to Korea to introduce the center’s games and meet with developers. We have prepared an opportunity to receive direct coaching regarding localization for each country.
- Developers Meet-up
In the case of most indies, the size of the company is rather poor and it lacks competitiveness when simply directly compared with the games of mid-sized companies, so it is difficult to expect selection and benefits from overseas game show B2B programs, and even if you are lucky enough to be selected, you have to prepare promotional and materials. In most cases, the response is insufficient, and in most cases, due to the nature of overseas publishers who have no choice but to manage major games and companies first, they are pushed out of actual preferences and priorities. In other words, it is virtually difficult for indies to expect results from publishers through B2B events. However, it is clearly meaningful to meet users directly through B2C exhibitions at domestic or overseas exhibitions, observe users’ game play, and have field test experience, so game show support for indies is not B2B, but game testing and user experience by country. B2C support for understanding and market understanding is desirable.
These days, global launching is essential for indie developers, so meetings and direct advice from overseas publishing experts with local service experience are essential and helpful to indies.
2. Publishing Summit
At this event, direct and practical advice was given to Chungcheongbuk indie games for their global expansion by domestic and foreign publishing experts through an open publishing summit conference. This lack of understanding of global services and each country’s major markets is a common issue that is essential to most game companies, so it was a great help to most indie game developers who participated in the conference, and each session discussed the global advancement of indie developers in Chungcheongbuk-do. Active questions followed.
This event was organized by the Chungbuk Global Game Center and the Cheongju Cultural Industry Foundation to support new indie developers in North Chungcheong Province and to promote exchanges with global game center companies in Cheongju. It has become a venue for practical advice, and in particular, it has become a key event for discussing publishing contracts after meeting directly with major overseas publishers.
Professor Mu-sik Jeong of Gachon University’s Department of Game and Video, who planned and hosted this Global Summit event together with the Cheongju Global Game Center, said, “I am glad that it will be a great event for talented developers and passionate indies in North Chungcheong Province.” He added, ” Focusing on indies, “In the reorganizing Korean game industry, ineffective export consultations and B2B support that only serve advertisers should be avoided,” he said, such as B2C experience support that allows indies to gain practical experience or this year’s Cheongju Global Publishing Summit program. “It is necessary to organize a program that directly brings in major overseas publishers who can sign practical publishing contracts and allows them to communicate, exchange, and receive advice in detail with local global game center developers over a schedule of at least 2 days and 1 night,” said the event. He expressed his feelings about the progress.
