Bigger, grander and action-packed, the India Game Developer Conference (IGDC) is back in its 16th annual edition. South Asia’s largest and oldest conference will come alive at HICC, Hyderabad from November 13 to 15, beckoning well over 5,000 attendees and 250+ speakers.
Diving deep into all things gaming, the Conference packs a punch with over 150 sessions. Marquee speakers of the likes of industry veteran Jordan Weisman have already confirmed to add depth to this much-awaited event. Jordan was the brain behind BattleTech, MechWarrior and Shadowrun, some of the RPG industry’s longest lasting franchises.
Other speakers include Industry veteran, Tim Morten, the man behind some of the most legendary real-time strategy games such as StarCraft II and the recently released Stormgate at Frost Giant Studios; Bryce Johnson, the co-inventor behind the Xbox Adaptive Controller and creator of Microsoft’s Inclusive Tech Lab; Willem Delventhal, the force behind ‘Indie Game Academy’- a community which works to improve the lives of game devs across the World amongst others. Speakers from Major gaming companies and investment funds have also confirmed their presence at iGDC 2024
In its amplified new avatar, IGDC will feature over a hundred booths spread across a large expo area. Lined up to keep the event riveted to core gaming, the Conference has the IGDC Awards Night, Indie Initiative, Policy Round Tables, Workshops and much more.
IGDC has always stood out for its hugely sought-after exclusive ‘Investor-Publisher Connect’ session. This year, the invite-only platform could attract over 100 investors and publishers. One the agenda are potential deals with studios and developers on the look-out for investment or publishing deals. Last year, the event had over 1,800 curated meetings with more than 70 investors and publishers.
Billed as India’s biggest game development Expo, the IGDC exhibition space will host Indie Developers, board games, booths for gaming and allied companies. Also at the Expo will be sponsor booths, country pavilions, tables for award nominees, finalists of Build Your Own Game (BYOG) and winners of a school-level design challenge.
The Expo’s Indie Zone will see 40 Indie developers showcase their skills and products, with 20 lucky ones getting free tables courtesy Microsoft Xbox. Indies are bound to grab this platform to impress with their games, access mentor café, connect and pitch to investors and publishers.
This year’s IGDC Awards takes it a notch higher with a newly instituted ‘International Game Award.’ Ten award categories and two special jury awards are on offer as usual. Nominees, announced on October 28, 2024, could watch out for the grand awards ceremony scheduled for November 14, 2024 in Hyderabad. 
To help game / vertical slice creators who are currently unemployed, IGDC has proposed the Young Indie Scholarship Program. The plan is to eventually support at least 100 young developers every year with a starting batch of 25 this year. Selected applicants are assured an IGDC ticket, accommodation, travel expenses and a mentor. They will have to volunteer for a day at IGDC 2024.
This initiative is in sync with India’s emergence as the world’s largest gaming market with an estimated user base exceeding 568 million gamers. A recent report has placed the gaming app downloads in India at a whopping 9.5 billion, which accounts for about 20% of the world total.
Mr. Sridhar Muppidi, President, GDAI notes, “With over 442 million gamers and an industry growing at a staggering 30% annually, India’s vibrant youth, widespread smartphone adoption, and a booming digital ecosystem have made it one of the world’s fastest-emerging gaming markets. The world is now turning its gaze to India as the next big player in the global gaming arena.. Accelerating this growth further is the integration of VR, AR and metaverse into console and computer games besides governmental promotions. The India Game Developer Conference (IGDC) serves as the perfect platform for this thriving ecosystem, where industry leaders, developers, and innovators come together to collaborate, share insights, and shape the future of gaming in India and beyond.”
Unlike the United States and China, he says India’s gaming market is driven primarily by smartphones, which contribute to almost 90%. In the US, this share is only 37%. “The shift to multi-player gaming in the domestic market has only amplified the trend. The prospects for continued growth in the future has brightened with the spread of gaming through the hitherto unexplored vernacular languages and Indian themes,” says Mr Sridhar.
Besides, the multiplicity of enabling apps is propelling this growth, even as the internet penetration spreads across the rural hinterlands that prefer accessing content in the vernacular making localisation all the more important.
To buy tickets and register, kindly logon to https://indiagdc.com/
Industry Support:
To keep the IGDC fully fuelled up, the Game Developer Association of India (GDAI), the organisers of IGDC, has struck partnerships with a bevy of industry players: Epic Games – Unreal Engine as the powered-by sponsor, Nazara as the platinum sponsor, Krafton (diamond sponsor), AWS (gold sponsor), Xsolla (silver sponsor) and Xbox as the Indie sponsor. Lakshya Digital is the diversity and inclusion partner, Winzo is the Bronze Sponsor.
Various International Organisations have also partnered with GDAI & IGDC, namely International Game Developer association, European Game Developer Federation, Dutch Games Association. Devcom Conference, Tokyo Games Show, Gamesindustry.Biz and other organisations such as Prinknest, Student Tribe and Design Championship by ICT 360.
About GDAI (Game Developer Association of India):
Determined to build a globally recognised ecosystem for game developers, studios and industry professionals, GDAI is forging ahead with its mission to foster innovation, sustainability and excellence in digital game creation. Since its inception over a decade ago, GDAI has been continuously striving to promote excellence in this cutting-edge field and aiming to elevate India’s game development industry on the global stage. The Association offers the necessary resources, mentorship and skill development while stressing on innovation and inclusion as well as upholding ethical standards in the gaming industry.
About IGDC:
The conference prides itself as an “By the Industry, For the Industry” event. The event is organized by industry volunteers, with support from corporations and industry leaders. Now in its 16th year, IGDC is the biggest and most significant developer conference in India and South Asia. IGDC is a major catalyst in enabling the growth of the Indian gaming ecosystem and sees enthusiastic participation from game developers, publishers, and investors each year. Its goal is to support and empower game developers with insights, upskilling, and networking opportunities in the presence of industry leaders and investors.
For more information on IGDC, please visit www.indiagdc.com.
