- The first ‘Game Days 2026’ to be held on November 9–10 in collaboration with KOCCA, the gaming industry, and media outlets
- – Sharing global expansion strategies and achievements in AI transition… Discussing the future direction of the game industry
- – Held the 30th Anniversary of ‘Game of the Year’ and the Indie Game Contest Awards Ceremony
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (Minister Choi Hwi-young) and the Korea Content Agency (President Kim Yun-ji, hereinafter KOCCA) held ‘GAMEDAYS 2026’ together with game industry associations, organizations, and media outlets at the SKY31 Convention Center in Lotte World Tower, Seoul, from November 9 to 10 .
‘Game Days,’ held for the first time this year, is an integrated event that combines major game events that were previously held individually. It was organized through the cooperation of KOCCA, four associations and organizations related to the game industry, and two media outlets. Over two days, key achievements and future directions were shared through five programs : the 2026 Console Game Developers Conference, the 2026 Game of the Year Awards, the 2026 Global Indie Game Production Contest Awards, the AI Transition to Game Production Environment Achievement Sharing Session, and the 2026 Functional Game Forum .
◆ Participation of global game developers… Sharing experience in console game production and global expansion
On November 9, the first day of the event, the ‘2026 Console Game Developers Conference’ was held. Marking its second year, this conference was attended by leading domestic and international game developers, including Pavel Sasko of The Witcher and Cyberpunk, Kazutaka Kodaka of Danganronpa, Tynan Sylvester of Rimworld, Lee Dong-ki of Stellar Blade, and Katsuhiro Harada of Tekken.
Participants shared insights on game narrative structure, development strategies, and experiences in intellectual property (IP) management. Following this, Shuhei Yoshida, former President of Sony Interactive Entertainment Worldwide Studios, chaired a discussion on global expansion strategies for domestic console game developers.
In particular, working-level staff from global console platform providers Sony Interactive Entertainment Korea (SIEK) and Xbox participated for the first time, providing practical information necessary for entering the global market, such as game launch processes, technical requirements, and platform entry procedures.
The conference continued to attract high interest from the domestic game industry, with pre-registrations reaching double the enrollment capacity. A developer who attended the conference commented, “With a game launch coming up soon, it was meaningful to be able to obtain practical information necessary for preparing for a console game release and entering the global market.”
◆ Awards presented to 16 Outstanding Games of the Year and 23 works from the Global Indie Game Production Contest
On November 10, the awards ceremony for the ‘2026 Game of the Year’ and the ‘2026 Global Indie Game Development Contest (GIGDC)’ will be held.
At the ‘2026 Game of the Year’ awards ceremony, marking its 30th anniversary this year, a total of 16 titles will receive awards, including 4 functional games such as Diving Studio’s *The Newspaper of the Day*, 6 indie games such as Arca’s *Color Sweeper*, and 6 general games (Blockbuster, Frontier) such as Netmarble Monster’s *Monster Gil: STAR DIVE*. Winners will receive benefits such as the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Award and automatic nomination for the Korea Game Awards.
Subsequently, at the ‘2026 Global Indie Game Production Contest (GIGDC)’ awards ceremony, a total of 23 works will be awarded, including 8 in the planning category and 15 in the production category. In the planning category, the Grand Prize for Middle/High School ▲ Ikki’s and the Grand Prize for University ▲ Seo-neodal’s are scheduled to receive awards, while in the production category, the Grand Prize for Middle /High School ▲ 1mcs’ , the Grand Prize for University ▲ MyTrix’s , and the Grand Prize for General ▲ Project Revenant’s are scheduled to receive awards.
Following the awards ceremony, past winners of the Global Indie Game Production Contest—Lee Jung-hoon, CEO of 1HP STUDIO; Choi Da-yeon, CEO of Geomgyuldan; and Shim Eun-seop, CEO of Lizard Smoothie—will share their practical experiences in indie game production, publishing, and promotion through special lectures.
◆ Sharing achievements in the transition to AI in game production and exploring directions for the development of functional games
The ‘2026 AI Transformation of Game Production Environments Achievement Sharing Meeting,’ held on the same day, introduces key achievements and best practices of projects that supported the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) technology throughout the entire game production process. This initiative is being jointly promoted by KOCCA, the Korea Mobile Game Association (Chairman Hwang Sung-ik), the Korea Game Developers Association (Chairman Shin Yong-hoon), the Korea Artificial Intelligence Game Association (Chairman Song Chang-ho), and the Korea Game Industry Association (Chairman Cho Young-ki).
The ‘2026 Functional Game Forum’ addresses directions for utilizing artificial intelligence to enhance the sustained use and immersion of functional games, as well as user experiences and application challenges in the industry. Following this, a comprehensive discussion involving stakeholders from academia and industry will explore directions for the development, verification, and dissemination of functional games.
KOCCA President Kim Yun-ji stated, “This Game Days is significant in that it brought together major game events that were previously held individually to share the industry’s achievements and experiences,” adding, “We will continue to strengthen cooperation with the game industry and provide support to enhance the global competitiveness of the domestic game industry.”
