Always Playable: The Production Mindset That Survives Reality
Most game projects fail quietly while “on track.” This talk reframes production around a single, unforgiving truth: a playable build tells you more than any
More to be announced!
Most game projects fail quietly while “on track.” This talk reframes production around a single, unforgiving truth: a playable build tells you more than any
Applying just a few best practices for code and design to a game during development, regardless of project budget, can make a huge difference in
How do you build and maintain a community for games in indefinite development? Alexandra Orlando of Kitfox Games will give a peek behind the curtain
Capacity forecasting across multiple studios and titles is one of the hardest operational problems in modern game development, and one of the least consistently solved.
Learn how to pitch at the right stage, what deal terms to expect in 2026, and how to target the right partners. This session unpacks
2025 was a year of unprecedented growth for D2C, with rulings like Epic v. Apple and Epic v. Google unlocking new growth vectors for web
When getting stuck on designing Cauldrons (Horizon’s dungeons) on ‘Horizon Forbidden West’, Dennis Micka’s entire approach to level design changed when he started designing the
Whether it is two people or fifty, knowing how to communicate clearly, resolve conflicts, and align goals can make or break a game’s development. Come
I’ve worked across North America, Europe, and Asia on live-service games like Monopoly GO! and Apex Legends Mobile. From that experience, I’ve learned that successful
How Soft Rains leans on our breath of skills and interests to weather changes. Kaitlin Tremblay and Trang Nguyen of Soft Rains will discuss ways
In October of 2025 Koolhaus celebrated its 20th year anniversary. With over 95% of new companies closing within 2 years of their start, keeping any
The game industry is now past the “wow” factor of generative AI; we’ve all seen the demos. Now comes the hard part, integration at scale.
Connecting player-centric thinking and profitability. Beginning with the simple philosophy that “UX is the relationship between creator vision and player expectation”, Ruwan shares his hard-earned
The video game industry is going through a long‑overdue reset. After years of ballooning budgets, risk‑averse design, and ever‑bigger teams, AAA development has become slower,
Everyone wants to make games that are easy to learn, yet also inventive and original. These goals are inevitably in tension: the more you innovate,
What is the most obvious and direct path to success for game developers today? There is always too much work to do, too many demands
This talk is a candid look at where game growth actually comes from today. The talk challenges the idea that success is driven by bigger
In 2025, headlines consistently touted the success of indie games sold on Steam – titles like PEAK, Hollow Knight: Silksong, R.E.P.O and Clair Obscur: Expedition
Frame by frame hand-drawn animation is as strong as ever, and today it’s having a major impact across the video game industry. From gameplay to
Our Constantinople-inspired city in Streets of Fortuna is populated by literally thousands of fully simulated citizens, generated on the fly and then living their lives,