GDC 2025 wraps up with nearly 30,000 attendees

The 2025 Game Developers Conference (GDC) concluded with nearly 30,000 registered attendees. 

The conference featured over 1,000 speakers across 750 sessions, workshops, and roundtables, along with networking opportunities. 

GDC 2025 also launched the first annual GDC Nights, an after-hours event featuring TV, movies, comedy, and video games activities, with 6,000 attendees engaging in screenings, discussions, and live performances. 

At the Game Developers Choice Awards, Balatro won Game of the Year along with Best Debut, Best Design, and the Innovation Award. 

New dates

GDC 2026 will take place at the Moscone Center from March 9th to 13th, 2026, with speaker submissions opening in July 2025.

“The past few years have seen increasing challenges for game developers the world over, but we’re proud to see GDC continue to serve as a beacon," said GDC event director Stephenie Hawkins. 

“We look forward to seeing our friends here again, and hope that the connections and insights they gained will carry through to their next amazing game projects.”  

PocketGamer.biz was in attendance and we've put together five takeaways from GDC 2025 to highlight the trends that came out of the event. 

Elsewhere, GDC 2025 coincided with the 50th global edition of our very own Pocket Gamer Connects (PGC) San Francisco 2025, which wrapped up on a high with over 1,000 industry professionals from 600+ companies and 59 countries.