IGDA Finland End of the Year Highlight

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This year we hosted over 250+  meetups from all over Finland!

These events involved regular meetups, tabletop game nights, game jams, game dev lunches, picnics, hub visits, collaborations between hubs and other organizations, and much more!

Grant

The first-ever IGDA Finland Grant was announced, and it went to the talented team at End-all Entertainment and their game Paradigm Island!

Finnish Game Awards 2024

At the Finnish Game Awards 2024, this year’s IGDA Volunteer of the Year 2023 went to  Nova Salmivaara.

#LastOnline

This year we were honored to take part in the Blood Donation Campaign #LastOnline, which have been shared at our hubs, and highlighted on our posts!

The Campaign will run until the end of the year so there is still time to save lives:

More things that happened this year:

  • We got a new hub: Ostrobothnia, a vibrant community led by Benjamin Vehling in the regions of Jakobstad and Kokkola. 

  • Leadership Day by IGDA Finland was part of Finnish Games Week together with PGC Helsinki and W <3 Games.

  • Kajaani Hub celebrated its first Kajaani Game Awards.

  • Lahti Hub celebrated its 5th anniversary

  • Peliosuuskunta Expa / Jyväskylä Hub, became the northmost Unreal Authorized Training Center.

  • Continue to support the art event Theme Park Finland.

  • This year you could find popular chat corner at events like PGC and W Love Games.

Find out when our next year’s events are by checking out the calendar or by following our hubs directly from our Linktree: https://linktr.ee/igdafinland 

We have also worked on improving things inside IGDA Finland, such as spicing up hubs leads meetings with useful workshops, improving our anti-harassment work, general communication, collaboration and onboarding. We will continue working on these next year as well.

Thank you to the current board members. Kristo Juurinen, Vesna Grau, Jami Andersson, Niko Pyrhönen and of course our beloved chairperson JJ Häll.

We will continue the work with IGDA Finland together with a new board that is filled with folk of high talent!

With the lead of our new chairperson Kim Kupiainen, we will also have Karoliina Kuutti, Jonne Taivassalo, Emma Varjo, Joeli Niva, Vesa Raudasoja, Aleksi Kariniemi and Emma Von Munthe Af Morgenstierne Vantaa.

As our advisors we will have, Christopher Hamilton, Natasha Skult, Teemu Haila, Jay Ranki, JJ Häll, Niko Pyrhönen and Jami Andersson. They will ensure that whatever we do, provides the highest value to the community.

This year has been challenging for many in our community, with significant hardships affecting individuals and companies across the game industry. We acknowledge the struggles that many of you have faced and emphasize that IGDA Finland remains committed to being a support network for you. Our hubs, events, and special interest programs will continue to be available to help connect, uplift, and inspire our community as we navigate these uncertain times together.

If you or your company want to support our work, please explore our JOIN US page or consider volunteering with one of our amazing HUBS

IGDA Future Invites You to Contribute to "Should Games Be Fun" Survey

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Fellow gamedevs - IGDA Future team invites you to help researchers from University of Turku and University of Jyväskylä in their study of finding what defines “fun” in games!

Survey is completely anonymous and welcomes both gamers and game developers to give their input on what is fun in games, it takes 10-25min to fill and we thank you in advance!

https://form.jotform.com/243111190156344

Last Call for Speakers

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Games Gathering is a hybrid conference that will take place in Kyiv and online from December 5-8, 2024.

Want to share your experience, then don’t miss the November 8th deadline for speakers. This is a perfect opportunity for anyone looking to get more speaking experience but has a challenging time with travel. To apply fill in the application form.

The conference will bring together talented developers, investors, and enthusiasts from all over the world to share the latest ideas and experiences. Expect interesting lectures from top experts, the Indie Blast exhibition, as well as special networking areas such as Beer Point and Business Lounge, as well as networking parties.

Join the event from anywhere in the world! Games Gathering 2024 Kyiv invites everyone who is passionate about gaming.

IGDA Finland members can get a 10% discount by using promo code GGKYIVPARTNERS24 when buying their ticket.

Visit the conference website for more information.

#XmasJKL – The Finnish Game Industry Business Seminar, Fri 15.11.2024) + Day Zero 14th Nov 2024

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#XmasJKL – The Finnish Game Industry Business Seminar 2024 (Fri 15.11.2024)


#XmasJKL is the most relaxed business seminar in the finnish game industry. The seminar is held on, Ilokivi, Jyväskylä, Finland.

#XmasJKL is also a networking event where you can listen and learn from the best in the business and meet the great game industry people.

Put your Christmas hat on and join us!

#XmasJKL 2023 Aftermovie:
https://youtu.be/z6GJGZZhvuM?si=9IXTHUUynkhVBphC


SPEAKERS (slots 35 min + QA 10 min)

  • Juha Vainio, Head of the Control Franchise, Executive Producer of Control 2, Remedy Entertainment Plc

  • Richard Salo, Senior Business Development Manager, Epic Games

  • Yumi Oishi, Head of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Rovio Entertainment Corporation

  • Adrian Weber, Virtual Production Supervisor, FireFrame

  • Speaker TBA

  • Speaker TBA


Discount code:
IGDA LOVE #XmasJKL CODE and get -15% off USE CODE: XMASLOVESIGDA

Check the Event and Tickets details!

Read more: https://www.xmasjkl.com/

The language of the event is English!

There is also Free for everyone Day Zero at 14th Nov 2024, Digi & Game Center
- please register via eventbrite for it too


Be there - socialize - get Expa!

Join the Autumn Games Job Fair and Find Opportunities in the Industry

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The Autumn Games Job Fair is returning on November 7-8, 2024, offering multiple opportunities for game developers and creative professionals to connect with top studios from across Europe. Organized by Games Factory Talents, this hybrid event will take place both virtually and onsite, providing a platform for job seekers to advance their careers in the games industry.

Two Days, Two Formats
The event kicks off on November 7 with a LinkedIn Live session, featuring insightful talks and industry updates. This virtual format enables global participation, allowing talents from around the world to join the conversation, gain industry insights, and showcase their portfolios to participating studios. 

A highlight of this online day will be the Creative Portfolio Review, where art leads will provide feedback to artists and designers, helping them refine their work to better attract future employers.

On November 8, the event transitions onsite to the Innovation House in Helsinki, Finland. This in-person day offers participants the chance to engage directly with studio representatives, participate in face-to-face CV/Portfolio reviews, hear insightful talks and network with recruiters and peers in a more intimate setting. 

Registration to attend onsite day is required! Please register to secure your spot. Doors open 10:30 on the 8th of November, talks start at 11.00 and CV/Portfolio reviews at 12.00. 

Event Highlights
🎮 Top industry speakers
💬 Networking with hiring companies
💼 New job opportunities
💻 Creative Portfolio Review
📔 Onsite CV/Portfolio Reviews by studio recruiters

Creative Portfolio Review is Back! 
The Creative Portfolio Review panel brings together Creative Leads, such as Alexander Preuss (Art Director at Magic Media),  Kshiraj Telang (Art Director at Moon Active) and  Olga Netsvetnaia (Character Artist/Art Lead at Magic Media) who will review and discuss participant portfolios for education and career-boosting.

As a participating talent, you have a chance to get valuable expert insights and advice tailored to one art piece in your portfolio. The panel aims to help attending talents increase their chances of getting noticed and selected when applying for art roles. If you want to get shortlisted for review please use the following form to submit your portfolio. 

CV and Portfolio Reviews at Innovation Home, Helsinki
On November 8th from 12:00 - 16:00, onsite participants joining the day in Helsinki will get to have their CVs reviewed by participating industry recruiters.  

The art portfolio reviews will be done by Ivan Lugovoy, Senior Game Artist at Rovio and Salla Hiiskoski, Visual Development Art Lead from Metacore. 

The queue for the reviews will work on a first come, first served basis, so don’t be late and risk missing out and come on time to secure your spot. 

November 7th - Online on LinkedIn Live + Discord
The online LinkedIn Live Broadcast will take place on the Games Factory Talents LinkedIn page and will include a chat with studio representatives and speakers on the GFT Discord server, so join and verify your account there to access the studio chat channels. . 

Be sure to also hit Attend on the LinkedIn event page and add the event to your calendars so you don’t miss out. 

For more information, check out GamesJobFair.com.