Posted by: Jennifer Tai at October 17, 2005 4:25:59 AM
No one believed it was possible but believe they did, when the inaugural Asian Game Developers Summit 2005, the first of its kind in the region, kicked off with gusto as over 100 members of the regional game development industry congregated at Cititel Hotel in Mid Valley City, Kuala Lumpur, October 11th and 12th 2005.
From independent game developers to world-renowned outfits to more-than-serious enthusiasts, attendees of this debut event met, learned and networked for two days.
“We are definitely overwhelmed by such a strong response from the regional community,” says Terence Tan, the event producer of the Summit.
“Now we face the task of organising an even better event next year. There are already requests as to when and where AGDS ’06 will be. We are already in the midst of discussing these details, and I hope that all the attendees and sponsors who supported this year’s event will return again next year,” he adds.
This Malaysian grassroots event attracted attendees from all over Southeast Asia and beyond, from countries such as Japan, Korea, the Philippines, the US, Singapore, Thailand and of course, Malaysia.
The conference started with keynote speakers such as Valve’s Mike Dunkle and Obsidian Entertainment’s Chris Avellone, who played to full halls with standing room only, giving attendees insightful (and entertaining) sessions on digital distribution of games, as well as the challenging vocation that is game design, respectively.
Their sessions were followed by 17 more, among which were speakers sponsored by ATI, IBM, Maya and Microsoft, touching on various topics including game design, programming, game storytelling, game art and more.
There was also a roundtable at the end of the first day where various representatives of the local game development scene, as well as the Vice President of Malaysia Debt Ventures, an industry financier, sat down to discuss the challenges faced in running a game development company in Malaysia and the region.
The speakers and attendees of AGDS had only good things to say.
"The AGDS formally puts Southeast Asia on the map as far as game development is concerned. The event is a great boon to all the developers around the region, who now know each other and can leverage their strengths into being a competitive force in the game industry,” said Gabby Dizon, President of Flipside Games in the Philippines, who was also a speaker at the event.
Saray Fay Krom, Director of Ideaforia Pte Ltd from Singapore, who spoke on the 'Auteur Theory' for interactive storytelling, says, “The summit offered an intriguing look at the challenges facing the region and, more importantly, an opportunity to ask questions, air our opinions and make suggestions for the future."
“The response to the AGDS has more than encouraged us; it has given the content development industry in Malaysia, particularly for those who want to create games, a much-needed boost,” says Kamil Othman, Vice President of Creative Multimedia Department, Industry Development Division, MDC, who is a co-organiser of the event together with Gameaxis Unwired Malaysia, a game publication from Write On Media Sdn. Bhd.
“Now, people from various parts of the world know that game development is happening in this region. For this, we want to thank all the sponsors that have extended their generous support, and we sincerely hope to see you all of you again next year,” adds Othman.
“What this event has taught us is that even though we are a small industry, we can be exciting,” says Jennifer Tai, editor of GameAxis Unwired Malaysia.
“As a game journalist, you can’t ask for more than to play a major role in an event such as the AGDS. I can only hope that we will do a better job next year,” she adds.
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