The Big One is Coming! Games Convention 2007 Bigger Than 06

This year's Games Convention in Leipzig Germany, is expected to be 28 per cent bigger at 115,000 square metres, than the previous year. With 183,000 visitors, 2,600 journalists and 368 exhibitors from 25 countries in 2006, the Games Convention rivals the Tokyo Game Show as the biggest games event in the world. By comparison, both the Leipzig and Tokyo shows, where gamers of all ages can visit the show floor, are three times the size of the trade-only 2006 E3 show in Los Angeles.

"The GC has grown steadily in recent years, both in its area and in exhibitor and visitor numbers. The current level of trade visitor and exhibitor registrations confirms our assumption that we will achieve considerable increases again at the next fair. We have responded to this with a change in our hall concept," says Josef Rahmen, managing director at Leipziger Messe.

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The conference takes place in a sprawling modern complex of exhibit halls in Leipzig, Germany, a city that for over 800 years was a center of trade and book publishing for northern Europe. After World War II the city was behind the Iron Curtain, but it has been dramatically transformed by 15 years of tremendous investment since the Reunification of Germany. The Renaissance-era center of the city survived the war largely intact and has been restored, and now features a wide variety of sidewalk cafes and hotels for conference visitors.

The exhibition halls are open on Thursday (23 August) and Sunday (26 August) from 9.00 to 18.00, and on the Friday and Saturday from 9.00 to 20.00. GC Games + Entertainment is on show in the exhibition halls 2, 3 and 4. Visitors can again try out and experience fantastic innovations and numerous German, European and world premieres from the world of interactive entertainment. Hall 5 is a little quieter with GC family and GC art.

This year, the Congress Centre Leipzig (CCL) and Hall 1 together with the GC Business Centre provide the meeting place for national and international exhibitors, retailers, developers and journalists. Businesses have ideal facilities and enough space to offer information on their own products and to make new business contacts.

To help protect younger visitors, colored bracelets are handed out to attendees, indicating their age: "12 years and older" (green), "16 years and older" (blue) and "18 years and older" (red). These colors correspond to the age indicators the USK, the German version of PEGI or ESRB, uses.

Fans of computer game music can look forward to 90 minutes non-stop game music this year, with a grand Symphonic Game Music Concert to be given at 20.00 on 22 August in the Leipzig Gewandhaus. Conducted by Maestro Andy Brick, the FilmHarmonic Orchestra Prague is this time including soundtracks from StarCraft, Final Fantasy IX, Ragnorak 2, Stranglehold, Metal Gear Solid 2: Snake Eater, Secret of Mana, The Abbey, Turrican 2, as well as popular classics in a Commodore 64 and Commodore Amiga medley.

The highlight will be appearances by the Japanese star opera singer Izumi Masuda and singer Conny Kollet from Germany. Also, well-known game music composers such as Nobuo Uematsu, Michiru Yamane, Akira Yamaoka, Jason Hayes, Rob Hubbard, Chris Huelsbeck and Yuzo Koshiro are among those who have attended. Tickets are available at gc-germany.com.

The Games Convention is facing a rising demand in Asia, and an Asian edition of the Games Convention has been announced for 2007. According to the Malaysia Star, it will be held in Singapore from September 6 to 9 2007 at the Suntec Singapore International Convention and Exhibition Centre. The current title of the expo is Games Convention Asia 2007. It is being organised by Conference and Exhibition Management Services Pte Ltd (Cems) in collaboration with Leipziger Messe International GmbH, organiser of the Games Convention event in Germany. The convention will serve as a platform for interactive game companies in Asia Pacific to promote their products and services to international publishers and distributors. According to Cems, this will help address the development needs and opportunities presented by Asia's rapidly growing digital interactive games industry.

It is said the global games industry is expected to reach the US$55.6bil (RM194.6bil) mark by 2008, while the online games market in Asia Pacific alone is projected to hit US$7.5bil (RM26.3bil) by then. [Source: Malaysia Star]

Cems also plans to host game competitions for its public convention segment to draw in gamers and other visitors. The public will be able to try out various games and give feedback to the exhibitors at the event. Cems is expecting about 50,000 public attendees.

"The show promises to be the biggest ever in the region with up to 200 companies from 20 countries, and over 10,000 media and trade visitors from Asia Pacific expected," said Aloysius Arlando, a spokesman for the Singapore Exhibition and Convention Bureau.

Read the full press release [here].

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