The nine gaming companies from Serbia which are taking part for the first time in the largest world gaming fair in Cologne, GAMESCOM, between August 23 and 27, organized by the Serbian Games Association (SGA) and with the support of the Chamber of Commerce of Serbia (CCIS) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), have drawn a lot of attention from the international business community and visitors, it has been announced on the CCIS website.
Under the slogan “The New Frontier of European Game Dev”, at the national stand of Serbia, in the business zone of the fair, in addition to the Association, the following companies are presenting themselves: Two Desperados, Art Bully, GameBiz Consulting, Spring Onion Studio, Digital Asset Tailors, Onyx Studio, Fortuna Esports, as well as the independent studios Shosha Games and Phobos.
As said, these are companies which not only develop games, but are also active in e-sports, produce trailers, animations, characters and graphical elements for local and foreign clients and do consulting work in marketing, monetization and business development in the domain of gaming. Publishers, investors, media and gamers, who queued to test our games, are interested in Serbian gaming companies. In only two days, over 60 pre-agreed meetings were held at the stand.
Mihailo Vesovic, the director of the Sector for Strategic Analyses, Services and Internationalization at the CCIS, says that the gaming industry is specific, because it combines technology with creative industries, engaging artists, designers, producers, music and sound producers, and above all, programmers.
The Serbian gaming industry has an annual income of over EUR 150 million, and a 10% growth is expected this year as well.
– We are capable of the most complex and commercial projects, and Serbian companies are expected to independently develop a so-called gaming blockbuster this year. The joint presentation at the video games fair is a step forward in entering the global market and shows that Serbia can offer competitive technological, but also creative, solutions – Vesovic emphasized.
According to Marija Ilic, the president of the Managing Board of SGA, this presentation, on one hand, shows the great progress that the local gaming industry has achieved. Our games, services and employees in the industry place competitive digital products on the global market which are consumed by over 100 million players worldwide.
– On the other hand, this is just the beginning of our plans. We have seen for ourselves how other big industries in Europe do it and we are now certain that we are heading in the right direction – Ilic explains.
Nikola Soskic, the founder of the Belgrade-based gaming studio Shosha Games, the developer of the video game Water, Me and You, says that their aim at the fair is primarily to find a publisher.
– We need somebody who wants to work with us because they believe that the game is good, and not just to make money, because a good publisher is not just the link between the game developer and the consumer, but also enables the game to sell well and helps keep the developer in the market, to make more games – says Soskic.
According to him, the presentation in Cologne is very useful to them because this is their first time at such a big fair. He adds that they have met a large number of people from the gaming industries of America, Japan.
– I believe that, with this presentation, the Serbian gaming industry is making its first big step toward investments from the whole world – he added.
Over 300,000 visitors are expected this year, making GAMESCOM the biggest gaming fair in the world. In addition to Serbia, another 32 countries of the world have their national stands in the business zone of the fair.
