Pop culture and uniting Southern European studios: The future of Paris Games Week
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The 2023 edition of Paris Games Week was announced last week, with the event returning to the French capital this November.
The event has been running since 2010, although the 2020 and 2021 editions were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Paris Games Week made a comeback last year with an edition dubbed 'Restart'. But this year, the team behind the event is keen to go back to pre-pandemic heights, with the 2023 edition given the name 'Next level'.
"This 'Next level' edition will be the occasion for us to extend a little bit [on] the experience you can live at Paris Games Week," explains Nicolas Vignolles, general delegate at organiser SELL, one of the key games trade associations in France.
"We will try to make the experience bigger [with] this huge local showcase. We are trying to be more engaged in the gaming culture and all the related media or sectors connected to video games."
Beyond the obvious publishers, platform holders, and development studios, Vignolles says Paris Games Week is keen to reach streaming platforms, anime and manga specialists, esports and cosplay companies, as well as pop culture more generally, to make the event a "richer experience."
But more than anything, SELL wants the event to be a place where players can go hands-on with yet-to-be-released games, and is keen to have a well attended show floor to make the most of its strategic spot in the calendar: right in the middle of busy Q4.
"Paris Games Week is always in a very special position," Vignolles says. "We want to have a physical experience, a very hands-on experience, we want to always give the occasion to play to our [audience], to test the games
Read more on gamesindustry.biz
