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Babette N.

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Vancouver is one of Canada’s great media hubs; home to a majority of the animation and film industry, Vancouver also boasts a massive chunk of the games industry as well.

This weekend was the XP Biz & SIGNALS joint event in the heart of the city. In two different downtown venues, October 3rd and 4th featured a true celebration of games, XR/VR, and tech as a whole.

Once again, I was lucky enough to have been given an all access pass courtesy of Amir Satvat (wonderful human – go check him out!!). This time however, the event was a little further from home, and I took the 5 hour flight down to network and talk about my experiences in the industry.
There were a lot of familiar faces – Simply Sweet Games showcased Criss Cross Castle again at the event following their soft launch, INSERT COIN did several talks throughout the first day, and

Then there was all the excitement of the new faces and studios I got the chance to meet. I loved Buffalo Buffalo’s game FRESH TRACKS, a VR and non-VR friendly rhythm game where you ski alongside the tracks to help the gods. MONSTERHEARTS: Welcome to Drowned Lake scratched a narrative itch I had been having, and the unique artstyle captured me immediately.

Outside of games, there were also some awesome set-ups and interactive media projects on display. Binga! Brands had this super cool AR toy collectible that I loved interacting with, and the project came so much from the heart that it was awesome to see. There were movie-esque projects too, like the Lily Project setup which retold a more modern surveillance-heavy story from Iran with a focus on Lady Macbeth.

I think one of the bigger questions folks may have is “Is this worth attending”? As it’s known, a lot of events in the industry that are B2B have a bit of a steeper price point – one that’s not always accessible for those searching for or out of work.

All in all, I’d say within Canada XP Gaming’s events are not just top notch, but also extremely well known by the industry. Big names like Riot Games, Serenity Forge, and lots of veterans from groups like EA and Ubisoft come to these events, and especially as an entry level searcher, these events are critical in making connections within the industry. Even if you don’t land a contract at the event, you are sure to meet people who you will connect with along your gamedev journey.

Another important topic of this is that these tickets are more accessible than ever. Giveaways through Amir Satvat’s Community on LinkedIn are constant; it’s how I had all 4 of my attended events comped. Outside of that, schools often have discounts or are able to partial pay for tickets, allowing you to get them at a significant discount.

MIGS is the next big event; one I went to about a year ago (and my first ever game event in Canada)! I hope to continue seeing faces and admiring how everyone pushes this industry to be smarter, more inventive, and more accessible.