The first ever IGDA Finland Grant goes to the talented End-all Entertainment and their game Paradigm Island!

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Paradigm Island is a narrative RPG where everyday surrealism meets dry wit. In this game, you'll discover what kind of person you want to be, unravel a complex mystery by getting to know the people you meet along the way using your chosen skills, all while trying not to get lost in your own mind. 

All in all, we received a total of 24 game submissions, and Paradigm Island stood out as the perfect match for this Grant. Thank you to everyone who applied and shared their feedback! This is our first Grant event and all the feedback has been noted and helps us to improve.

 
 
 

EU Sustainability Disclosure Workshop

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The Sustainable Games Alliance (SGA) is organizing a webinar on July 11th at 11:00 to review the new EU sustainability disclosures and what is required from the games industry?

In this webinar, the Sustainable Games Alliance will survey the legislative landscape in Europe, and make sense of the alphabet soup of interlinked EU acts: the CSRD, the CSDDD, the ESRS and the Green Claims Directive. Each separate legislative act imposes new obligations on companies to either disclose sustainability strategy, metrics, risks and impacts (CSRD), ensure that entire supply chains are free from human rights violations and environmental harms (CSDDD), to providing the extremely complex and detailed framework for ESG data disclosures (ESRS), and regulating the types of sustainability claims that companies can make and the evidence required for each (Green Claims Directive).

The session is for game business decision-makers, and staff in the industry with sustainability or compliance responsibilities. The session will show how the SGA will simplify members’ compliance with EU legislation, and accelerate action across the games industry.

The Sustainable Games Alliance is a non-profit founded by the world’s leading game entrepreneurs and environmental researchers with one goal: to make the games industry the leader in sustainability by setting ambitious and achievable standards for environmental and social responsibility.

Visit the SGA website for more information: https://sustainablegamesalliance.org/

Sign up for the webinar here:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJAsfuusrzkiHNKDrwvEvmeAn7eUhKuFq1yc#/registration

IGDA Finland Summer Meetups part 2

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Are you still wondering what to do this Summer? The IGDA Finland hubs are holding events all around Finland; from mini golfing to grilling and summer parties.

Kajaani

When: Tuesday, 25th of June at 18:00
What: Join us at Rantapuisto (or in case of bad weather, Rock House Kulma) for a get-together where we'll catch up with fellow community members and unwind after a long day. We'll bring our summer pal BBQ, you bring the snack to sizzle!
Where: Rantapuisto
More info: Event Page

Kymenlaakso (Kotka)

When: Thursday, 27th of June at 18:00
What: BBQ meetup at beautiful Jokipuisto in Kotka. Sausages and condiments are sponsored by the Finnish Game Jam and some non-alcoholic drinks are also provided! Feel free to also bring your own grillables as well! The afterparty is hosted by Kuura!
Where: Jokipuisto
More info: Event Page

Porvoo

When: Thursday, 18th of July at 18:00
What: Minigolf and Grilling! The event will be held as a private event in the Porvoo Minigolfkeskus. At the venue there will be minigolf, billiard, darts and a grill!
Access to minigolf, billiard and darts will be free of charge and for grilling there will be some sausages available, but please bring your own if you desire! The afterparty will be held at the Porvoo Game Club / IGDA Porvoo Club house!
Where: Porvoo Minigolfkeskus
More info: Event Page

Oulu

When: Friday, 19th of July
What: Teekkaritalo Summer Party
Where: Teekkaritalo
More info: Coming up on IGDA Finland Discord with the role “?Oulu”:
Discord

Lahti

When: Friday, 19th of July at 17:30
What: IGDA Lahti grill party, IGDA Lahti will provide grilled sausages to the event. You are also welcome to bring your own foods to grill.
Where: Pikku-Vesijärvi
More info: Link to event sign up

Helsinki

When: Tuesday, 13th of August at 17:00
What: Rovio Summer Party
Where: Maxine
More info: Coming soon

IGDA Finland has now a Linktree, find all our hubs in one place and special events like Leadership Day 2024!

IGDA Finland Summer Meetups Around Finland ☀️

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Many hubs will be having events during the summer, if you’re itching to meet new people or just curious to see what other hubs have to offer, now is a great time to do so!

 

Turku Hub

When: Tuesday, June 4 at 18.00
What: Fakefish is turning 10 years old this year and Turku gamedev community is organizing a “surprise” party (to which it is not much of a surprise now, is it? But FF team promised to be totally surprised as they arrive) with appreciation and celebration of their incredible journey!
Where: Aura riverside Saaristobaarin Kesäterassi (in case of rain the party will be moved to Saaristobaari at Aurakatu 14)
More info: Link

Kymenlaakso Hub in Kouvola

When: Thursday, June 6th at 18.00
What: Picnic
Where: Urheilupuisto in Kouvola
More info: Link

On the 27.6 Kotka will have a BBQ at 18:00 in Jokipuisto with afterparty at Kuura.

Lahti Hub

When: Friday, June 7th at 17.30
What: Picnic with a twist: Liha/Vihispiirakka Grill Party
Where: Pikku Vesijärvi
More info: Link

Oulu hub

When: Friday, 19.07.2024
What: Summer party
Where: Teekkaritalo
More info: Coming up on IGDA Finland Discord with the role “?Oulu”:
Discord

Kajaani Hub

Will be having events, which are most likely going to be a lot of outdoor activities.
Join their Discord Channel to know when the next upcoming event is:
Kajaani Discord



Free Monetization Workshop from Multiscription

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Multiscription is thrilled to announce its Indie Game Monetization Accelerator.

Led by industry experts, this program offers five comprehensive workshops to support participants with essential business knowledge and valuable industry connections.

The program begins on Thursday, May 30th, and is entirely free with no obligations. Participants who complete the program and integrate Unleashd can receive a €1000 "Go-To-Market" grant to support user acquisition and ensure a strong game launch.

“Indie developers are the driving force of innovation in the industry. Transforming a game idea into a successful business venture is an inspiring journey, and I am thrilled to announce the launch of our new program dedicated to supporting developers on this path.” - Teis Mikkelsen, CEO & Co-Founder of Multiscription

The program includes:

  • Expert-led Business Success Sessions: Strategies for sustainable profitability and diverse monetization.

  • Community Engagement and Peer Support: Open discussions and feedback sessions.

  • Guidance Towards Publisher Readiness: Finding the right publisher and effective monetization layering.

Multiscription is committed to helping game developers focus on creating their dream games by supporting their monetization efforts. The Accelerator is a significant step in this mission.

Schedule:

  • May 30, Thursday @ 15:00-16:00 CET - Crafting Your Business Strategy (Panel)
    Moderator: Teis Anker Mikkelsen
    Panelists: Sune Thorsen, Bhavin Sagar, Aysu Yildiz

    June 6, Thursday @ 15:00-16:00 CET - Monetization Mastery
    Teis Anker Mikkelsen

    June 13, Thursday @ 15:00-16:00 CET - Analytics for Indie Success
    Katla Hrund Björnsdóttir

    June 20, Thursday @ 15:00-16:00 CET - Marketing & Network Effect (Panel)
    Moderator: Teis Anker Mikkelsen
    Panelists: Sissel Morell Dargis & Ömer Yakabagi

    June 27, Thursday @ 15:00-16:00 CET - Publisher Partnerships 101
    Søren Lass & Markus Windelen

    July 4, Thursday @ 15:00-16:00 CET - Interactive Round Table
    Teis Anker Mikkelsen & TBD

For more information and to apply, visit the Multiscription Indie Accelerator Sign-Up page. The application deadline is 12:00 noon CET on Thursday, May 30, 2024.

Leadership Day: Call for Speakers

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Leadership Day by IGDA Finland explores how we build companies, teams and working cultures to make the best games. Offering often overlooked insights to game development, this event kicks of Finnish Games Week in Helsinki on September 30, 2024.

We invited you to share your expertise on leadership topics that define success in the industry. Whether it's building resilient companies, navigating team dynamics, embracing change, fostering accessibility, shaping corporate culture, guiding mentorship programs, managing stakeholders, optimizing remote work, nurturing communities, mediating conflicts, cultivating investor and publisher relations, strategizing outsourcing needs, championing corporate social responsibility, promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion, or any other leadership topic that you are passionate about, we welcome your contribution.

Submissions should be made using this form by June 7, 2024.

For more information visit: https://www.igda.fi/leadership-day

Free Virtual Tickets to the GameExpo Summit in Dubai

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Interested in learning more about the MENA game market but can’t go to Dubai GamoExpo Summit powered by Pocket Gamer Connects. No worries. IGDA Finland will send you there virtually. We have 20 free online tickets. The conference is taking place this week May 1-2, 2024

The first 20 members who sign up using promo code VIRTMEDIA24 using the registration link will get free virtual tickets.

IGDA Finland Grant Intro

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It has been a bit over a month since we announced the IGDA Finland Grant. Lots of questions have been asked and a lot of them have been answered, we have also clarified some things.

If you have been unsure if you are eligible for the grant, then have a second look at it or ask us directly.

Thank you to everyone who sent us questions, we want to make this something that can help you in the last steps before release.

Got interested? Click here to find out more!

Retro Game Jam 2024

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Retro Game Jam 2024
Dates: May 17-19th, 2024
Location: Espoo Game LAB (A Grid, Otakaari 5, Espoo, Finland)

Retro Game Jam is for everyone interested in developing new games for older hardware. No prior experience on retro development is required, but we encourage to do some research of the platform of your choice before the jam.

There will be a selection of retro consoles with development tools available and of course you are welcome to bring your own. Mentoring help for getting started is available.

The jam will have a theme revealed on the spot. You can come alone or as a team. There will be short brainstorming and team forming session at the beginning. Espoo Game Hub is open for jamming around the clock. You are welcome to sleep on premises, but note that there are no sofas or anything provided by the location.

Please tell us if you have any special needs regarding movability, allergies etc. Please do not hesitate to ask anything from us! Everyone has access to the following:

  • Working space (table, chair, internet etc.)

  • Selection of retro consoles & televisions

  • Workshop / introduction to development hardware

  • Mentoring help for getting started

Discord server: https://discord.gg/FEgkQUJ8kV

List of hardware available for jammers by organizers:

  • Nintendo Game Boy / Game Boy Color with SD card reader

  • Nintendo Entertainment System with Mapper30 flash cart (NesMaker)

  • Nintendo Famicom with SD card reader

  • Nintendo Super Famicom with SD card reader

  • Nintendo 64 with SD card reader

  • Sega Mega Drive / Master System with SD card reader

  • Sega Saturn with SD card reader

  • Sega Dreamcast with SSD

  • Sony Playstation 1 with SD card reader

  • Sony PocketStation

  • NEC PC-Engine with SD card reader

  • Neo Geo Pocket with SD card reader

  • WonderSwan with SD card reader

  • Vectrex with SD card reader

  • MSX with CF card reader

  • Oscilloscope with PC connectors

  • CRT televisions

    This is primarily on-site game jam.     You are welcome to jam via Discord too, but we do not stream opening ceremony or organize team building in Discord. Submissions are open for everyone in Itch.io page. Register to the jam below!

JOIN THE JAM

Leadership Day: Call for Speakers

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Save the date for Leadership Day by IGDA Finland: September 30, 2024! This international event explores the company structures, team dynamics, and working cultures that make the best games, offering insights to vital but often overlook aspects of game development.

The call for speakers is open. Share your expertise on leadership topics such as team building, change management, DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion), accessibility, corporate culture, mentoring, CSR (corporate social responsibility), stakeholder management, remote team/company management, community management, conflict resolution, investor/publisher relations, outsourcing, or any leadership topic that you are passionate about. The deadline for applications is June 7, 2024.

Got an idea for a talk, a series of lightning talks, or a panel discussion that needs some fleshing out? Contact us at leadership (at) igda (dot) fi for support.

For more information visit: https://www.igda.fi/leadership-day

IGDA Finland Hub Highlight: Kajaani

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Burning straw goats and the booming games industry are some of the things Kajaani is known for, but how did this seemingly middle-of-nowhere hub become what it is today? Let’s find out!

In this first part of our hub highlight we dive into IGDA Kajaani, to find out who are they and why you should definitely visit their hub. We asked Kajaanis hub lead Tuomas Vartiainen to tell us a bit about their hub.

How did your hub get started and how old is it?
The IGDA Kajaani hub was founded in 2015, and it originally replaced an event called Industry Beer, where locals from the gamedev community gathered in Rock House Kulma, but now has grown into a much larger portion of the Kajaani gamedev culture.

What makes your hub special?
Our location comes with a fairly unique ecosystem with game companies and study opportunities. Kajaani is also just located very out of the way, despite that numerous people gather here to develop games within a healthy and good community. We always come up with new things to make our events more interesting and allow everyone to get involved.

What are some of the events, achievements, or other causes your hub is proud of?
For one of our more recent game jams, we collaborated with our local library to hold a game jam where children can take part in the development process by drawing in-game characters for the jammers to use. Yle News also ended up writing a couple of articles about the game jam.

What have been some of the struggles your hub has faced? Or anything you would wish to have?
Covid was the toughest struggle. Our hub was among the first to move online only, and we offered online seminars and meet-ups but of course people missed face-to-face meet-ups.
Our team of volunteers started out very small (3-4 people), so when people could not volunteer it had a large impact. Thankfully our volunteer team has grown a lot after Covid.

It has also been difficult to create a permanent feeling culture as students often have to move away after graduation due to the limited work market.

Where can people follow or find your hub?
You can find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Discord, they are all updated actively with our upcoming events!

Currently, Kajaani has 19 volunteers, and game companies such as  Critical Force & Black Smoke Studios are located in Kajaani.

Join the IGDA Game Accessibility SIG's European Conference

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The IGDA Game Accessibility Special Interest Group volunteers have worked since 2003 to aid the game industry in making games accessible for all, regardless of impairments or other limitations. The European conference is a hybrid event taking place in London and online April 22-23. Tickets for the streamed content and networking in Discord are free, but you must register in order to get the link for the remote networking.

For more information visit the IGDA Game Accessibility SIG webpage or the conference registration page.

Stay Ahead of the Curve with Games Job Fair Spring 2024 LITE

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Games Job Fair Spring 2024 LITE is arriving on April 18-19, with a free entrance, great talks and challenges, new opportunities, and your chance to have your CV and portfolio reviewed by top Finnish games studio, and careers industry recruiters!

Event Highlights:
🎮 Top online presentations
💬 Networking with games studios
💼 New job opportunities
💻 Visibility-boosting Challenges
📔 Onsite CV/Portfolio Reviews by studio recruiters

Join the team in Kamppi, Helsinki for CV and portfolio reviews

Onsite participants joining the day in Helsinki on the 19th of April need only to register on Eventbrite and show up nice and early to have their CVs reviewed by recruiters from Noice, Housemarque, Nitro Games, Varjo, Redhill Games, Games Jobs Finland, and more.

The art portfolio reviews will be done by Ivan Lugovoy, Senior Game Artist at Rovio and Juho Salila, Art Manager at Redhill Games.

As the queue for this onsite career-boosting day will work on a first come, first served basis, please ensure you arrive at the venue on time.

Unity and Sloyd Challenges
The Unity Programming Challenge and Code Review are back! Thomas Winkley will once again be joining the event. After the success of their Sloyd-in-a-Ball snow globe challenge at Games Job Fair Autumn 2023, Sloyd are also joining with a brand new Sloyd challenge and prizes. Be sure to keep an eye on the GFT website and socials for more information.

LinkedIn Live + Discord Combo
The online LinkedIn Live broadcast on the Games Factory Talents LinkedIn page will include a chat with studio representatives and speakers on the GFT Discord server, so join up and get your bearings. Be sure to also hit Attend on the LinkedIn event page and add the event to your calendars so you don’t miss out.

For more on the event, check out GamesJobFair.com.

IGDA Finland Grant is here! 🎉

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We’ve been cooking this for a good while but it’s time to take it out and serve it while it’s hot! 🔥🔥
By starting smaller but offering a well rounded opportunity for small and fresh dev teams we think we can help lessen the threshold for people to get that game of theirs out.

This is the first iteration which we hope will become an annual event and can grow with your feedback.

Yet by focusing on a proper package of feedback from industry experts, visibility, a chance to take your game on our stages as well as marketing help from us, it’s more than just about money.

It’s the whole deal and we’re sure you’ll like it!

Yeah, we want to help you to release that game of yours! 🚀
So what are you waiting for? Check out: www.igda.fi/grant

IGDA Finland Grant is coming!

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IGDA Finland’s first and foremost goal is to support the developers within the Finnish game industry. It’s kind of in our name (International Game Developers Association), after all. The second is to help foster a community where these devs can thrive.

We do this in many different ways

  • 📆Monthly Meetups across Finland

  • 🤝Collaborating with other orgs within the industry

  • 🧠Help share knowledge and experience among the community

And now with the IGDA Finland Grant!

The idea is to go to the source and help indie devs working on their first games.

That’s right, we want to help you to finish that game of yours!

Full details will come out on www.igda.fi/grant in the beginning of March!


March Helsinki Meetup: Call for sponsor and speakers

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Hey IGDA Helsinki fam!

Due to a last-minute cancellation, there's a golden opportunity up for grabs for our March Helsinki Meetup! 🌟 One sponsor slot and a seminar slot are now available.

If you've been waiting for the perfect chance to shine or share your knowledge, this is it! Reach out to Iida Toimela, iida.toimela (at) igda.fi to seize the moment and be part of something unforgettable! ✨

Psst, speakers! This would be a great opportunity to practice your upcoming GDC (or other conference) talk.

Let's turn March into a month to remember!

PGC Returns to San Francisco March 18-19

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Pocket Gamer Connects, returns to San Francisco for the first time since 2018, taking place at the The Hibernia March 18-19.

The PGC crew will be running a whole host of side activities and curated matchmaking events to cater to everyone’s networking needs, like:

Investor Connector (application deadline: March 1)
Publisher SpeedMatch (application deadline: March 1)
The Global Connects Party
The Very Big Indie Pitch (Mobile Edition) (application deadline: March 8)
The Very Big Indie Pitch (PC + Console Edition) (application deadline: March 8)
The Big Indie Zone

Indie Developers can apply for a few complimentary Indie Expo Table in the Big Indie Zone by entering a competition.

They've partnered with MeetToMatch to ensure that a ticket to Pocket Gamer Connects San Francisco includes access to MeetToMatch: The San Francisco Edition beyond the conference. If you have a ticket to Pocket Gamer Connects, you can use the platform to make meetings all week at locations around the city. And with a Pocket Gamer Connects ticket, you will be able to use the Pocket Gamer Connects meeting zone at the lovely Hibernia Hotel to hold your meetings (even non-PGC users of MeetToMatch will be able to join you at our meeting tables).

The program has almost been finalized so if you’d like to submit a talk do it ASAP using the speaker submission form.

IGDA Finland members get 20% off their tickets when using promo code IGDAFinland20.

Get 15% Off Your Ticket to DevGAMM Gdansk

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On February 28-29 the heart of gaming will beat in Gdańsk as industry professionals gather for the next edition of DevGAMM.

DevGAMM is returning to Amber Expo in the magical city of Gdansk, Poland, for its second edition, after a great launch in March of last year with more than 550 professionals from 38 nations attending.

The full program, tickets and additional information is available on the conference website.

IGDA Members can use promo code DG_IGDA_15 for 15% off Business and Sessions tickets.

Catch the GDWC Awards in Tallinn

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The Game Development World Championship 2023 Winter Season has closed and the jury is deciding the winners across 18 categories. The winners will be announced on February 23rd, 2024 in an Awards Show in Tallinn, Estonia.

Join GDWC in celebrating the best indie games and the awesome developers behind the games! Event details and tickets here.

Categories and soon-to-be-announced Finalists can be found on the GDWC website.

The Awards Show will also be streamed in GDWC Youtube channel.