Where to Find Partners and Ideas: Best Gaming Events of 2025

Date: 17-21 March 2025

The biggest event for independent game developers of the year 2025 comes to Moscone Center, USA. Over 28 000 visitors are expected to attend.

Both professional and aspiring game developers are welcome. GDC provides a great opportunity to build new connections and widen the network, bringing together professionals of various fields: artists, programmers, producers, designers, and many more.

Game Developers Conference holds Game Developers Choice Awards and Independent Games Festival.

Other notable events include GDC Expo, GDC Play, career seminars and evening events.

Visit the GDC website:

gdconf.com

Date: 12-13 April 2025

The local festival for gamedev industry professionals and enthusiasts will be hosted at PHIVE, Parramatta Square in Sydney, Australia. It is expected to attract more than 1000 visitors.

ALT: Games Festival came to be in the cooperation of Powerhouse (the largest museum group in Australia), City of Parramatta, Screen Australia and Screen New South Wales.

It is a gathering place for the local game development scene, where industry leaders meet emerging developers to share their knowledge and experience.

At the ALT: Games Festival 2025, visitors will have an opportunity to attend workshops organized by renowned industry professionals, such as Daniel Mullins, Richard Garfield, Steph Panecasio, Guck, Jojo Zhou, Daniel Koppen and Tomo Kihara.

Visit the ALT: Games Festival website:           https://powerhouse.com.au/program/alt-games-2025#media-partner

Date: 17-19 June 2025

The most significant annual conference of IGaming industry will be held at Metro Toronto Convention Centre in Toronto, Canada. 

The 28th edition of the event is a joint effort of SBC and the Canadian Gaming Association (CGA). Gaming and Sports Betting senior executives, together with over 3000 industry professionals, will meet for 3 days. 

The Canadian Gaming Summit provides great opportunities for networking and professional growth. This is a must-attend for any industry professional or a business keen to enter the gambling market.

Ticket price is heavily discounted for early orders. Full price, without the discount, would be a CA$250 for an Expo plus pass and a CA$995 for a Full event pass.

Visit the Canadian Gaming Summit cite:

https://sbcevents.com/canadian-gaming-summit/

Date: 20-23 May

Nordic Game returns in 2025, taking place at Slagthuset in Malmö, Sweden. Thousands of attendees each year come to celebrate the Nordic games industry. This year, Nordic Game turns 21.

Nordic Game 2025 provides a wide variety of exciting events for every festival day, including Devs show, Exec Summit, Expo and Happy Hour.

In 2025, attendees have an opportunity to meet the best speakers of the global gaming industry, such as Fawzi Mesmar,

Creative Director of Ubisoft, Ion Hazzikostas

Game Director of Blizzard Entertainment, Martin Halldin, Audio Lead of Wrong Organ, and other notable figures.

Nordic Game hosts the Nordic Game Awards, which is streamed to over 50 000 viewers from the main theater.

Visitors can attend the festival online or in person.

Tickets are now on sale. The prices range from 49 euro for the Masterclass Friday pass to 599 euro for the Business pass.

Visit the Nordic Game cite: nordicgame.com

Date: 27-28 February 2025

The third edition of DevGAMM takes place at AmberExpo in Gdańsk, Poland. More than 500 visitors from 40+ countries are expected.

DevGAMM is a professional event, but it is packed with exciting and fun activities, just like the Game Roast. It is a comedy event where gamedev experts roast games, wear crazy costumes and drink the weirdest cocktails.

The Public Pitch session gives upcoming developers a chance to take the stage and pitch their games to a panel of judges and a live audience.

This year, many notable speakers are giving lectures, including Vladimir Gaidenko of Larian Studios, Sho Stilo of Riot Games and Łukasz Łukasik of Techland.

The Digital Vikings Awards celebrates the achievements of indie game developers from the 9 countries around the Baltic Sea.

Ticket prices range from $180 to $900.

Visit the DevGAMM Gdańsk cite: 

devgamm.com/gdansk2025

Date: 8-10 July 2025

Develop: Brighton is the largest games industry event in the United Kingdom, hosting more than 2000 guests every year. 

Industry leaders and up-and-coming indie developers have a chance to meet, exchange ideas and connect with each other in a friendly and inclusive environment.

The festival venue is accessible via ramps and lifts. Other accessibility features include the accessible parking spaces in the hotel car park, visual alarms, and accessible routes with lowered buttons, braille and audible alerts.

Develop: Brighton festival includes an Expo, Develop Networking Lounge, Indie Showcase, and a rich variety of lectures on gamedev related topics: art, coding, design, etc.

Develop: Star Awards celebrates the most significant achievements of the gaming industry every year.

Ticket prices range from £490 to £915.

Visit the Develop: Brighton cite: developconference.com

Date: 14-16 April 2025

This year, Croatian games industry festival Reboot Develop Blue celebrates its 10th anniversary. It takes place at Sheraton Dubrovnik Riviera Hotel, and is expected to host more than 2700 guests.

Games industry professionals will gather in the breathtaking seaside city of Dubrovnik for 3 days of meetings, events, and expo.

Guests can engage in networking events and do business or join a football tournament.

2025 conference features speakers from renowned game and big tech companies, such as Meta, Amber, Google and Playstack.

Visitors will be able to attend three award ceremonies: Indie Awards, Pitching Session Awards and Hero Awards.

Visit the Reboot Develop Blue cite: 

rebootdevelopblue.com

Date: 13 April 2025

A unique, fully online indie game festival will be broadcast on 13 April 2025 on YouTube, Twitch and X (Twitter).

It accumulated well over 100 million views in total for all years of the event. 

INDIE Live Expo shines the spotlight on the numerous indie games submitted by developers around the world.

The show is broadcast in Japanese, English, Chinese, and Korean. The English hosts are Kaori Horiuchi, J-mon and HighGai.

The festival program includes “INDIE Waves”, “INDIE Spotlight”, and “Streamer Show!” where various Japanese streamers will be present.

INDIE Live Expo doesn’t require tickets, it can be watched for free. Game developers who want to participate don’t have to pay any submission fees.

Visit the INDIE Live Expo cite: indie.live-expo.games

Date: 20-23 November 2025

Lisboa Games Week returns in 2025, taking place at FIL Exhibition Centre, Lisbon, Portugal.

The festival can bring educational and networking opportunities for game industry professionals, or fun activities for the whole family. Attendees get to experience 4 days of conferences, esports, presentations, cosplay, music, and so much more.

Lisboa Games Week Educational Service encourages students to study game development and digital technologies.

The festival features Loading Zone – a space for independent developers and studios to publicize and test their projects.

The tickets cost €10 per person.

Visit the Lisboa Games Week cite:

lisboagamesweek.pt

Date: 4-7 November 2025

The world’s largest tech conference, Web Summit, is taking place in Lisbon, Portugal, at Altice Arena & FIL.

More than 70 000 visitors are expected to attend.

The biggest tech companies representatives are going to attend, giving lectures and setting up their exhibits. 

Web Summit’s Women in Tech initiative aims to balance the gender ratio at their events by building mentorship programs and selling discounted tickets to their female attendees.

Last year, many famous lecturers visited the Web Summit, most notably Brad Smith, Jessica Sibley and Kuo Zhang. The lecturers for 2025 Web Summit are TBA.

However, Web Summit is not just about conferences and presentations. Visitors can have fun and widen their network at the Night Summit – a selection of small-scale, curated personal meetups at Lisbon’s best bars and restaurants.

Visit the Web Summit cite: websummit.com

Date: 18-20 May 2025

Digital Dragons is the primary B2B event for the European gamedev industry. It takes place at ICE Kraków Congress Centre, Kraków, Poland. More than 2500 participants are expected.

Digital Dragons 2025 includes the Game Design Summit, Legal Summit, Digital Dragons Arena, VIP Party and Indie Zone.

This year’s summit features speakers from renowned gamedev companies, such as 11 bit games, Blizzard Entertainment and Ubisoft.

Digital Dragons Awards celebrates the best Polish games of the year. In 2025, the award’s gala will be powered by Activision.

Ticket prices range from $360 to $729.

Visit the Digital Dragons website: conference.digitaldragons.pl

Date: 2-5 September 2025

The prime external development event is coming back to Vancouver, Canada on 2 of September. It is hosted at Parq Vancouver, the 5 star, Green Key certified venue.

XDS is a professional only event for specialists in external game development, co-development, QA, and localization.

The main reason to visit XDS is to gain industry insights and make powerful connections.

This year’s edition of the event features XDS Spark – a B2B platform connecting customers and service providers. With the help of a global database, visitors might be able to meet their business goals during various networking events.

The general registration costs $1,195 USD, which covers all four event days and complementary snacks.

Visit the XDS cite: xdsummit.com

Date: 25-27 July 2025

PGDX – Philippine GameDev Expo is held at SMX Convention Center, Manila, Philippines.

It boasts various events for both gamers and industry professionals. 

This event aims to develop the local game industry and uplift independent developers.

PGDX game panels and workshops provide an opportunity for creators to develop their skills and gain insights.

Gamedev professionals would be interested in Game Showcase, Community Gathering, B2B, B2C opportunities, workshops, and conferences. Gamers can enjoy cosplay shows, esports and take part in raffles to win prizes.

Ticket prices range from, ₱550 to ₱1,350.

Visit the PGDX cite: pgdx.ph

Date: 10-12 June 2025

AWE, the only expo dedicated to augmented reality technologies, comes back in 2025. It will be held at the Long Beach Convention Center, California, USA.

Starting as a humble small-scale gathering of 300 people, AWE have grown by leaps and bounds, now attracting more than 6000 attendees in 2025.

AWE, the most immersive expo of the year, invites the visitors to try out the latest spatial tech from the numerous exhibitors, learn from AR industry leaders and network with peers.

The visitors can attend AWE Auggie Awards, which are the most recognized AR & VR industry awards in the USA and overseas. AWE USA 2025 is hosting a Start-up Pitch Competition at the event, where select AR and VR startups will be selected to present their projects in front of experienced XR investors.

Ticket prices range from US$99 to US$1,495.00.

Visit the Augmented World Expo cite: awexr.com/usa-2025

8-11 May 2025

PAX East, the festival dedicated to gaming culture, comes to Boston, USA. It is hosted at Boston Convention & Exhibition Center.

PAX provides a space for gamers to celebrate the gaming culture, and reaches out to various demographics via the Diversity Lounge.

It features a wide variety of entertaining events, such as Arcade freeplay, concerts, PAX Rising Showcase, Tabletop gaming, and many more. 

Visitors can join the gaming tournaments to compete with other players or to relax and have fun.

This year’s PAX East invited many famous guests: voice actors, developers, musicians, artists and content creators.

Ticket prices range from $72 to $261

Visit the PAX East cite: east.paxsite.com

PAX West returns to Seattle, Washington, at the end of August. It is held at Seattle Convention Center.

PAX West includes various engaging gaming-related events, offering a community experience unlike any other.

It includes panels, new game demos, musical performances and esports tournaments.

The festival’s expo hall is packed with exhibits of all kinds of publishers and gamedev companies, ranging from AAA to indie.

PAX Arena hosts esports tournaments annually, pitting the most competitive gamers against each other and awarding cash prizes to the winners.

PAX West 2025 features many famous guests, including Phil Spencer, Chris Perkins Dan Olson, and many others.

Visit The PAX West cite: west.paxsite.com

Date: 6-7 June 2025

Game Access Conference comes to Brno, Czech Republic, in 2025. It takes place at BVV, Hall P.

Game Access is a thematic game conference with a truly unique concept and atmosphere. It unites thousands of creatives from all over the world.

The conference includes the Future Tech Summit, Temple of Law, Mobile GameDev Forum and Indie Showcase.

Game Access hosts an annual Indie Awards ceremony, where 100 teams of developers compete for a grand cash prize. The nominations are as follows: Best Art, Best Game, Best Gameplay.

Ticket prices range from €171 to €394. Students can buy Lite and Developer Passes with a 50% discount.

Visit the Game Access Conference, cite: game-access.com

Date: March 6, 2025

Women-led Games Showcase is an online-only event that aims to bring recognition to women in the games industry and female-led or majority female gamedev companies.

The event access is free.

Visit the Women-led Games Showcase cite: womenledgames.com

Date: 5-6 December 2025

One of the oldest game development conferences, GDS, returns to Prague in 2025. It will gather more than 160 studios and 3000 visitors. The venue, Prague Congress Centre, offers accommodation in the immediate vicinity and excellent transport accessibility.

This year’s edition of GDS offers a rich variety of events, such as Festival of Indie Developers, Průša 3D Print Labs, and many others.

Ai In Games Summit and Law In Games summit provide great opportunity to keep up with the new industry developments.

Industry professionals can plan meetings ahead via Matchmaking with Eventee or build their network at Epic Parties.

Visit the GDS cite: gdsession.com

Date: 27-30 November 2025

Despite the Russian invasion still raging on, the most significant game industry conference in Ukraine returns. It is taking place at Premier Hotel Rus in Kyiv, and more than 1,500 participants are expected. Approximately 1000 people will attend the online version of the event.

Both offline and online attendees have access to lectures and the Job Board – the prime opportunity to find a job in the game industry.

Indie Blast provides exhibition stands for independent developers free of charge.

Most events and guests lecturers are TBA.

Ticket prices range from €9 to €159.

Visit the Games Gathering site to keep up with the updates:

https://www.ggconference.com/conference/games-gathering-2025-kyiv/

Date: 25-28 September 2025

Tokyo Game Show might be the biggest game festival in the world, receiving more than 200 000 visitors every year and gaining up to 16 000 000 views online. It takes place at Makuhari Messe, Chiba, Japan.

The festival has separate dates for public and business events.

TGS is a place for developers, gamers and creators to come together and connect. It is an all-ages event, where both children and adults can enjoy themselves.

TGS includes a special area for families with small children, Family Park, where parents and children can engage in fun activities together.

The detailed program for business and public festival days is TBA.

Visit the Tokyo Game Show cite: https://events.nikkeibp.co.jp/tgs/2025/en/exhibitor/

Date: 30 April–4 May 2025

Gamescom latam takes place at Anhembi District Convention Center, São Paulo, Brazil. It attracts more than 100,000 visitors every year.

Gamescom latam is the largest gaming event in Latin America, including exhibitions, conferences, e-sports tournaments, meetings with developers and more.

Since 2012, it has been the ultimate business hub for the Latin American game industry.

Gamescom latam hosts the BIG Festival Awards – the largest indie games competition in the world. Every year, BIG Festival Awards selects the 100 best games and promotes them to the public.

Tickets cost R$ 179,80 for visitors.

Visit the Gamescom latam cite: latam.gamescom.global

Date & Location:

MARCH 14 – Istambul, TÜRKIYE.

APRIL 24-25 – Berlin, GERMANY.

JUNE 19-20 – Barcelona, SPAIN.

SEPTEMBER 5 – France, PARIS.

OCTOBER 10 — Hanoi, VIETNAM.

NOVEMBER 27-28 – Abu Dhabi, UAE

Hit Games Conference goes on a world tour, visiting 6 countries around the globe. It was originally founded in Ukraine and grew into an international gaming conference arena just in four years.

HIT Games Conference is dedicated to development, publishing, and monetization. It centers mobile games, Web3 sphere, PC&Console.

This year’s Hit Games features speakers from big tech and game development companies such as Google, Voodoo, Retro Style Games, and many others.

Ticket prices range from €150 to €250.

Visit the Hit Games Conference cite: https://hgconf.com

Date: 23-26 October 2025

The Polish game industry conference, GIC comes to Poznan in 2025. It is held at Poznań Congress Center, and more than 79 000 visitors are expected.

The event runs parallel to the Poznań Game Arena (PGA), the largest gaming exhibition in Central and Eastern Europe.

GIC provides employment opportunities with their Geek Careers initiative, which has been an important part of the conference since 2016. It connects gamedev companies with jobseekers, a unique opportunity to find employment in the game industry.

GIC is the best place to meet the most prominent figures of the Polish game industry. Every year, GIC holds business meetings and teaching events with advanced talks.

The event hosts CEEGA (Central & Eastern European Game Awards) which are promoting the best games of the year.

Ticket prices range from €130 to €820.

Visit the GIC cite: https://www.gic.gd