Without a hint of national bias, PocketGamer.biz can proclaim that the UK pavilion at Gamescom was the best regional stand at this year's shebang in Cologne.

Split between a 'chill out' area - set out like a typical British park, where people could sample coffee, cream teas and sausages - and a more secure zone reserved for meetings, the UK stand was the only one to be a little creative with its layout.

As a result, it was incredibly popular. As UKIE CEO Dr. Jo Twist reveals below, more than 3,500 people dropped in over Gamescom's three day run, giving UK businesses a vital  advantage over their international rivals.

So, what does UKIE - which organised and ran the pavilion - make of the UK's efforts at this year's Gamescom? We caught up with Twist for her take.Pocket Gamer: The UK stand was certainly the most inventive at this year's Gamescom. Do you think the decision not to mirror the typical approach adopted by other regions in favour of something more creative was an advantage?

Jo Twist: We run the official UK stands at Gamescom, GDC San Francisco and Game Connection Paris - we always want our stands to really reflect the amazing creativity that is coming out of UK games businesses.

We also try to bring a slice of the UK with us wherever we go, and always reflect this on our stand to make it like a home away from home for our exhibitors.

To us, all these events are a fantastic opportunity to shout about how great the UK industry is and what a fantastic place the UK is to make and sell games.

The stand at Gamescom was a good example of how we aim to demonstrate British skills, promote the UK business environment and show our rich heritage of creative games talent.

Likewise, the UK stand was positioned right by a major entrance. This must have had an impact footfall wise? It was certainly one of the consistently busiest areas we witnessed in the business area...

The stand had over 3,500 people visiting it over three days, and there was around £11 million worth of business done, showing the huge amount of value the stand has for our exhibitors.

Our positioning definitely had an impact on the effectiveness of the stand, as did the pre event promotion, British theme and the sheer number of high quality British business we had on site.

All of these combined to create a winning formula for our exhibitors.

What do you think the publishers, developers and other businesses who had tables at the UK stand got out of Gamescom that others didn't? What are the benefits of grouping together geographically?

Above all, the attraction of the stand is the pure convenience and being in one place, collectively.

By joining our UK industry stand, we make attending major international trade events, like Gamescom, much cheaper and more hassle free than going it alone.



We also do all the legwork, organising, promotion and maintenance allowing exhibitors to focus on what is most important to them, creating and generating business opportunities.

As a collective we can cultivate a community on the stand at the same time as facilitating meetings with overseas companies and investors.

Next year, the UK industry pavilion at Gamescom will be back bigger and better than ever and we’ll hopefully have tax breaks up and running to help make the UK an even better place to make world class games and interactive entertainment.

Finally, what message do you think the UK games industry as a whole put across at Gamescom?

Our goal was to show the UK as the best place in the world to make and sell games, so simply put our message is that Britain is well and truly open for business.
Thanks to Jo for her time.