Swiss startups take the stage at GDC San Francisco

The GDC is the largest event for game developers. More than 28,000 attendees gather to share experiences, learn and network with likeminded people. The event also features 750 lectures, panels, tutorials and roundtables taught by leading industry experts.

During the upcoming GDC conference from 18 – 22 March, 19 Swiss startups will once again showcase their inventions at the Swiss Pavillion. This year however, Swiss startups will not only exhibit or participate in competitions their games; two game developers will present to the audience.

Philomena Schwab the cofounder and game designer of Stray Fawn Studio will present the tutorial Game Discoverability Day: Why Forums Can Be Great for Indie Community and Discoverability, on Tuesday 19 March. This topic addresses how forums can be a great opportunity for community building and managing.

Attila Szanter, the co-founder of MMOS (Massively Multiplayer Online Science), developed a citizen science platform connecting scientific research and video games. At the GDC conference, Szanter will participate in the session Keeping It Real: Authenticity, Anthropology and Artistry in Interactive Narrative, on Tuesday 19 March together with other Serious Games experts. Serious games are designed for a primary purpose other than pure entertainment and can be used by industries like defense, education, scientific exploration, health care, emergency management, city planning, engineering, and politics.

Game awards and pitch competitions

The awarding ceremony of the best games is one of the highlights of the GDC. Three Swiss developers in the SwissGames delegation received a "GDC Bes in Play Honoroble Mention". These are:

• 5 am Games «Letters – a written adventure

• Cosmoscope «Morphies Law

• Hidden Fields «Mundaun

• Blindflug Studios (First Strike Armageddon

• Cosmoscope (Morphies Law)

• Sensoryx (VRFree glove controller

• 5am Games (Letters)