Victorian game developers will have the chance to pitch their ideas to the world when Play Now returns to Melbourne International Games Week in October.
Backed by the Allan Labor Government, Play Now has become Australia's pre-eminent digital games marketplace - connecting game developers with Australian and international publishers, platform holders and investors.
Presented by VicScreen, Play Now Melbourne is a vital launch pad for locally made games to take on the world. Last year's event saw local companies pitch more than 40 new games, with the 2024 event shaping up to be even bigger.
The October event has already attracted global publishers and studios such as Devolver Digital, Raw Fury, Oculus Publishing from Meta, Team17, Massive Monster, Fellow Traveller, Akupara Games, Landfall, ASTRA Logical, UltraPlayers and PlaySide Studios.
Victoria leads Australia's games industry with the most studios and largest games workforce in the country - and those creators have made some of the most popular and innovative games in the world.
Play Now Melbourne will be a highlight of the action-packed Melbourne International Games Week (MIGW), attracting industry leaders from around the globe and positioning Melbourne alongside major international gaming events like GamesCom in Cologne and the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco.
This year marks the 10th edition of MIGW which is now the leading games industry event in the Asia Pacific region. Last year's event broke record numbers with more than 110,000 people attending in person and a million more online.
Through the Victorian Budget 2024/25, the Labor Government continues to support the growth of MIGW and other events to back Victoria's games sector, with up to $2 million over the next four years.
Applications are now open for Australian developers to attend Play Now Melbourne. For more information visit vicscreen.vic.gov.au/playnow.
As stated by Minister for Creative Industries Colin Brooks
"Games are big business around the globe and Victoria has a growing reputation as a hub for game development and innovation."
"Through Melbourne International Games Week and events like Play Now Melbourne, we're backing our local industry, creating more opportunities for local talent to connect with industry leaders and compete on the world stage."
As stated by VicScreen CEO Caroline Pitcher:
"Over $25 million worth of projects were presented at VicScreen's Play Now Melbourne in 2023, connecting local developers with international publishers and platform holders."
"This year Play Now has grown with more publishers taking part and over 150 meetings slated, creating more opportunities for local developers to sell their games to the world."
