All this week we’re in Cologne, the historic German city, at one of the world's biggest gaming events - Devcom 2023.
Devcom is an industry show that brings together game makers and allied industries from across the world, on all platforms, in one place. It is, of course, followed by Gamescom, the consumer show that shows off all the big games and usually lands all the big coverage. But don’t underestimate Devcom itself for the wealth of insight and behind-the-scenes knowhow that lurks around every corner at Congress-Centrum Ost Koelnmesse.
What’s the atmosphere?
It’s inevitable that things are a little muted on the second day as overeager attendees recover from numerous fringe events and parties the night before. Highlights included the Xsolla Game Night, where board games and free non-alcoholic drinks were on offer, and the Sunset Mixer which followed where Devcom attendees could tuck into bratwurst and local Cologne Kolsch beer on the building’s raised piazza.
But despite the late night, things are even busier today, as early attendees and late arrivals eager to make up for lost time begin walking the floor and checking out the booths and companies available to meet.
Where can I watch?
As before, you can catch up with many of the talks that have already happened via online attendance. Highlights from yesterday we managed to attend include the keynote speaker Anna Brandberg from Funcom and The Outsiders and the panel discussing the potency and potential of Cologne’s gaming industry to be a leader in Germany.
What’s on the floor?
Of course, being an industry show the main focus is on allied trades and business-to-business presentation. The crowd here is overwhelmingly developers or business staff from countless rival game makers.
Xsolla’s show presence is very clear, given they’re a prime sponsor, and we’ve also seen companies such as Anything World proudly showing off their 3D asset system to attendees.
In yesterday’s opening speech, the show’s managing director of Devcom Stephan Reichart was eager to point out the strides that have been made in ensuring attendee safety. This includes the availability of awareness consultants keeping an eye on the comfort of attendees, anti-spiking kits (as sadly, this has become a concern for events across the spectrum) and online reporting forms of incidents.
But so far so good. The show’s measures and management have created an atmosphere that feels fun, calm and professional. From our spot in the bustling press-room we can see coverage continues to increase year-on-year, a sign of Devcom’s continued health and growing prestige. And outside on the show’s floor and meeting rooms deals are already getting done and business is thriving.
What’ve we got so far?
If you haven’t already, check out our coverage from Day One giving an overview of the event and the various attractions on offer. We’ve also got two key highlights of the day, including the aforementioned keynote and panel on Cologne as a centre of the German games industry.
What’s next?
Well we’ll be pacing the floor and continuing to bring you coverage as and when the big news breaks.
Tonight is the Gamescom Opening Night Live event - already tipped to be PC and console heavy with ‘updates’ rather than ‘reveals’ - but if you need something to put in your diary for after that, try the PocketGamer.biz Top 50 Mobile Game Makers of 2023 reveal… Keep your eyes open for our winners!
