Last week, the capital of Belarus hosted the gaming developers and publishers conference "Gaming Industry". We share what occurred there and, of course, provide its metrics.
Feedback
The "Gaming Industry" conference in Minsk, supported by one of the key sponsors, Salary.cab, was held for the second time. It received positive feedback from attendees.
I did not expect the conference in Minsk to be so strong in every aspect. It was evident that the team did a tremendous job: everything was organized very clearly, without unnecessary fuss and overlaps. The atmosphere and the participants' lineup were particularly noteworthy. The right mix was genuinely achieved here—developers, publishers, marketing, investors—which made networking extremely beneficial.
Head of Sales, Salary.cab
Participating for the first time in the "Gaming Industry" conference in Minsk, I didn't expect the event to be so grand and strong. The organization was at the highest level: precise timing, excellent technical preparation, no overlaps, and the feeling that everything was in its place. This is one of the most brilliantly organized conferences I've ever attended. Additionally, the precise combination of speakers, guests, venues, and parallel activities was remarkable—here, both developers, publishers, and investors could find something truly important. One such event in Minsk is enough for a year's fruitful development of the industry in the city and country.
Co-founder, Multifora Digital
For the second year in a row, the conference leaves only positive impressions. Minsk is always open to knowledge, communication, and great networking. Warm atmosphere, packed auditoriums for speakers' talks, interesting presentation topics. We eagerly await the next event.
Product Manager and Strategic Partner, Kitchen941 (former Swag Masha)
As always, the conference is excellently organized, with a great congress center, a convenient hub for meetings. But most valuable are the new useful contacts for collaborations! Thank you for the invitation as a speaker. I've long wanted to give a lecture on mobile games licensing. The audience was very engaged and appreciative. I look forward to meeting everyone in Moscow in July!
Head of Digital Department, "STS Media", "Three Cats"
The Minsk conference was a success! Due to regular attendance at KII events, we were very pleasantly surprised to meet so many new faces and acquaintances for future collaborations. As always, a bunch of current market insights that work right now, not yesterday.
Marketing Director, Take Top Entertainment
It should be noted that in total, the event was attended by 448 people from 191 companies. An interesting point is that the companies participating in the conference were from 21 countries, making the "Gaming Industry" truly international.
Program
By established tradition, the "Gaming Industry" in Minsk ran for one day across three streams. This time, over 30 speakers shared their expertise in 19 lectures, two panel discussions, two dialogue sessions, a workshop, and a round table.
The discussions at the conference covered a wide range of topics—from working on game trailers and early access nuances to quick hypothesis testing for game viability, choosing a niche in game development, and creating an MVP.
Among the speakers were representatives of:
- domestic publishers — Astrum Entertainment, Mirra Games, HeroCraft, Multifora Digital;
- developer studios — Ninsar.Games, Game Art Pioneers, Book Burner Games, Contrast Games;
- gaming platforms — "Yandex Games", VK Play;
- media platforms — IXBT Games, "STS Media";
- support structures — RVI, Indie GO Fund;
- and many others.
The conference also featured other activities. For instance, there was a closed investment breakfast with GameXCap and an indie game exhibition and pitch. We will dwell on the latter two in slightly more detail.
Showcase
The developer exhibition—showcase—included 55 teams. You could meet and speak with them, and try most of the projects they presented.
Notably, a significant portion of the games at the showcase was developed exclusively for mobile platforms (Android and iOS)—37% of such projects. Pure PC games accounted for 28%. The remaining games are being developed either for other devices or with a focus on multiple platforms simultaneously.
The most popular development tool remains Unity—with 67% of showcase games made on it. Unreal Engine holds second place with a significant share of 11%, mainly among graphically complex and PC-oriented projects.
During the conference, showcase participants competed for the audience choice award. The atmospheric psychological horror You see me? by zeneki won the contest.
Additionally, the showcase featured a gaming marathon—conference guests were required to play the games presented at the exhibition and collect tokens. The winners were Boris Filin and Alexey Kurzov.
Indie Pitch
To recap, the indie pitch is a separate presentation during which independent developers showcase their games to experts. Jury members provide detailed feedback on each project and share valuable advice.
Five projects were analyzed during the indie pitch in Minsk.
Akatori by Contrast Games
A pixel art metroidvania with action-platformer elements in which you play as a young girl traveling through different worlds to save them from destruction.
Tales of Tiolis by Omne Lab
A mystical detective story in post-Soviet futurism. The protagonist is an inventor whose fiancée has disappeared. He ventures to a city in the Altai, where residents' thoughts become reality, in search of her.
SteamPanic: Last Shift by JDF GAMES
An engineer simulator set in a steampunk factory. The protagonist must quickly repair constantly malfunctioning mechanisms in the production line.
Condition A by Project A
A tactical strategy with a horror theme, inspired by Howard Lovecraft's "At the Mountains of Madness" and John Carpenter's "The Thing". The story unfolds in the icy wastelands of Antarctica. After an accident at the research base, a second sun rises, affecting people's minds and transforming them beyond recognition.
Dark Trip by iWorlds
A psychedelic escape-room game with a detective protagonist. While investigating the disappearance of a businessman's daughter, he takes medication that blurs the line between reality and hallucinations to solve puzzles.
The expert jury, comprising representatives from VK Play, Mirra Games, Indie GO Fund, and RULER Productions, designated Akatori as the best project of the indie pitch. The other games also received recognition:
- Tales of Tiolis — choice of Mirra Games;
- SteamPanic: Last Shift — choice of RULER Productions;
- Condition A and Dark Trip — choice of VK Play.
If after the conference you find yourself wanting to move forward—systematically developing your game and preparing it for market: then on May 18, the educational project WN Academy will launch the course STARTUP: BUILD, PITCH, RAISE. During six practical online sessions, you'll be able to turn an idea or MVP into a structured product: with clear business logic, metrics, and a strong pitch deck. For our readers, there's a 10% discount on the course with the promo code App2Top
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The next "Gaming Industry" conference will take place very soon—on July 9, in Moscow.
Below are some photos from the past event (all photos can be viewed here).
