Game Developers Conference Europe 2011 Opens Today at the Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany

BERLIN, Aug. 15, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The 2011 Game Developers Conference™ Europe (GDC Europe) commences this morning at the Congress-Centrum Ost of the Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany.  Produced by UBM TechWeb Game Network, organizers of the leading Game Developers Conference® series, GDC Europe is the continent's most important game development event. GDC Europe runs in Cologne, Germany from August 15-17, 2011. For more information on GDC Europe, please visit www.gdceurope.com.

In its third year, GDC Europe features more than 120 forward-looking keynotes, lectures and panels on game development across five tracks and four summits. The event boasts more than 150 national and international speakers, over 60 exhibitors and sponsors and more than 200 media representatives, and brings to the continent a 360-degree view of the business and artistry of making games.  This year, the conference introduces four summits—the Social Games Summit, the Smartphone & Tablet Games Summit, the Independent Games Summit, and the Community Management Summit—reflective of the growing importance of these topics to European developers.

GDC Europe opens Cologne's Games Week, which continues with gamescom, Europe's leading games trade event for consumers and publishers, also at the Koelnmesse, running August 17-21.  A Business Trends press conference to kick off Games Week, and featuring speakers from GDC Europe and gamescom, as well as representatives from the German Trade Association of Interactive Entertainment Software, the UK Trade and Investment Department and Cologne's Koelnmesse, will take place today at GDC Europe, within the Congress Saal on the fourth floor of the Koelnmesse's Congress-Centrum Ost beginning at 12:00pm.

GDC Europe 2011 will feature keynote addresses by Dr. Michael Capps, president of Unreal and Gears of War developer Epic Games; Jens Begemann, founder and CEO of Europe's leading social game development company wooga; Richard Garriott, legendary creator of the genre-defining Ultima series and founder of social media games developer and publisher Portalarium; Cevat Yerli, President and CEO of Crytek and creator of the CryENGINE and the multi-award winning Crysis game franchise; and Enric Alvarez, founder of Mercury Steam, and director and co-author of Castlevania: Lords of Shadow.

"Since its inception in 2009, the significance of what GDC Europe brings to both the European and international game development community has continued to expand, as evidenced by the great recent contributions to the industry by European developers," said Frank Sliwka, Vice President European Business Development of UBM TechWeb. "GDC Europe 2011 will again offer attendees the opportunity to gain crucial knowledge and inform themselves of the challenges and opportunities facing European and international developers to help them evolve."

In addition to the sessions, summit and keynote content, GDC Europe provides opportunities for creative exchange and business development, with venues including the GDC Europe Expo Floor, VIP Lounge, and the GDC Europe Business Lounge at gamescom, plus a host of industry parties and events.  More than 60 exhibitors and sponsors from a host of regions across Europe and worldwide across Europe and worldwide are present on the GDC Europe Expo Floor.

For up to the moment news on GDC Europe visit: www.gdceurope.com.

About the UBM TechWeb Game Network 

A core provider of essential information to the professional game industry, the  UBM TechWeb Game Network – formerly known as the Think Services Game Group - offers market-defining content, and drives community through its award winning lineup of print, online, event and research products and services. These include the Game Developers Conference®, the Webby Award-winning Gamasutra.com and network of sites, the Game Advertising Online ad network, the Game Developers Conference® Online, the Game Developers Conference™ Europe, the Game Developers Conference™ China, Game Developer Magazine, Game Developer Research, the Game Career Seminars and GameCareerGuide.com, the Independent Games Festival and Summit, and the Game Developers Choice Awards.  Visit www.jointhegamenetwork.com

About UBM TechWeb

UBM TechWeb, the global leader in technology media and professional information, enables people and organizations to harness the transformative power of technology. Through its three core businesses – media solutions, marketing services and paid content – UBM TechWeb produces the most respected and consumed brands and media applications in the technology market. More than 14.5 million business and technology professionals (CIOs and IT managers, Web & Digital professionals, Software Developers, Government decision makers, and Telecom providers) actively engage in UBM TechWeb's communities and information resources monthly. UBM TechWeb brands includes: global face-to-face events such as Interop, Web 2.0, Black Hat and Enterprise Connect; award-winning online resources such as InformationWeek, Light Reading, and Network Computing; and market-leading magazines InformationWeek, Wall Street & Technology, and Advanced Trading. UBM TechWeb is a UBM plc company, a global provider of news distribution and specialist information services with a market capitalization of more than $2.5 billion. Visit: www.ubmtechweb.com

SOURCE UBM TechWeb Game Network