Melbourne will be once again be on display to the world with prestigious games conference and accelerator program Global Top Round headed to Victoria as part of the third instalment of Melbourne International Games Week.
Minister for Creative Industries Martin Foley joined local game developers today to launch the 2017 Games Week program and announce that the US based digital games start-up initiative has chosen Melbourne to host its 2017 program for the world’s most promising digital games developers.
Global Top Round is based in Silicon Valley and has partners in Europe, Korea and China. It brings together between 20-30 emerging games studios and heavyweights from around the world each year for an intensive conference that focuses on turning good games ideas into thriving businesses.
Hosting the event in Melbourne will mean that at least one Victorian company will be among the exclusive participants.
Once the program concludes, up to 10 studios will receive USD$50,000 each in seed funding to launch their games on the global market.
Melbourne International Games Week will run from 22–29 October and feature a range of conferences and business events across Melbourne that bring local, national and international games talent to the city. There will also be an education in games summit for teachers and activities for games enthusiasts of all ages.
Games Week will kick off with a day of free family activities at ACMI, and includes the Game Connect Asia Pacific conference, which will bring over 1,000 games industry representatives to Melbourne.
The program will also include the annual Women in Games lunch to champion gender diversity in the industry, and major games expo and convention PAX Aus.
Also new to the Games Week program is Parallels: The Freeplay 2017 Showcase – a public event where local designers and artists will demo their games live on stage and discuss their work.
Melbourne International Games Week was established by the Andrews Labor Government in 2015 and it has already grown to be the Asia Pacific’s biggest games celebration and industry event. Last year more than 60,000 people took part, ranging from industry insiders to fans.
For full program details, visit
Quotes attributable to Minister for Creative Industries Martin Foley
“Melbourne International Games Week is a chance to immerse yourself in the world of games, learn about how games are changing the world and see how Victoria is leading the way.”
“We created Games Week to showcase our games industry, businesses and talent and connect them with the world. It is wonderful to see how the world has taken notice.”
“No matter what your connection to games is, get ready to power up for an action-packed program this year.”
Reviewed 19 August 2020