A series of industry panels and social events will take place in different locations across the city
Games industry event FORMAT GG is coming to Liverpool(Image: FORMAT)
A huge three-day festival will be coming to Liverpool later this month. FORMAT GG focuses on the latest developments in video games, with organisers saying around 1,000 to 1,500 will attend across all the events.
FORMAT started as a small meet-up for developers in Manchester before expanding its offering to Liverpool last year. This year, it will return to the city and will be split into three distinctive events. FORMAT Signature will see international delegates, exhibitors, partners, sponsors, industry business leaders and more come together for an evening of business networking, keynote presentations and panels.
This will take place at One Fine Day and Little on Old Hall Street on Wednesday, October 29 from 11am to 5.30pm. The Ultimate Gaming Social will take place the following evening at Camp and Furnace in the Baltic Triangle.
Billed as the main marquee event, consumers and delegates will travel from all over the UK, Europe, US, Asia, India, and more for an evening of trying out the latest video game and technology releases from AAA, AA, and indie game studios. There will also be live music and entertainment, as well as food and drinks provided.
The final event takes place the night after at ArCains, also in the Baltic Triangle. This will be the After Hours party, were organisers expect between 150 and 300 people to attend.
FORMAT Group’s founder and CEO, Simran Whitham, said: “Last year was a game changer for the UK games industry. We expanded Europe’s leading games industry nightlife festival into the beautiful city of Liverpool and will be returning once again with three days of our signature games industry events, where we’ll be welcoming consumers and international delegates from global brands and companies across the world to the city of Liverpool this Halloween for the UK’s best celebration of gaming culture.
“We’d like to thank all our amazing partners, studios, and friends in the industry who have made our return to the city of Liverpool possible, especially our loyal partners at Escape Technology, who have propelled FORMAT Group’s growth over the years.”
More information about the event is available here.
A number of video game developers have bases in Liverpool. Sony, which makes the PlayStation consoles, has been present in the city for three decades and moved into a new base on Old Hall Street in 2022. Other firms include Firespite, Milky Tea Studios, Lucid Games and Wushu Studios.
However Avalanche Studios, the team behind open world games such as Call of the Wild: The Angler, announced plans to close its Liverpool office this week.
Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram previously told the ECHO that he wanted Liverpool to be the “home of gaming” in the UK. Further support for the video game sector in the city region, as well as the TV and film industries, was announced on Monday.
The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority will receive £25m as part of the government’s Creative Places Growth Fund.