GDC Festival of Gaming

🚨 We're extending our submission deadline to October 31! 🚨 One more week to submit your innovative, weird and experimental games to the 2027 Experimental Games Showcase at @officialgdc.bsky.social! Find the submission form and more info here: www.experimentalgamesshowcase.com

⚠️ Spoilers ahead! Split Fiction's final level was Hazelight Studios' biggest co-op design challenge yet. Designer Hannes Gille breaks down the dual-world concept, the puzzle-building process & why simpler design = bigger "wow" moments. Watch now 👇 https://bit.ly/3WHVDQ1

Excited to be part of the GDC awards jury in the innovation category. I'm both honored and thrilled to play so many new games on the category I'm always more excited about. Good luck everyone! Submissions are open through November 1st gamechoiceawards.com

Designing fixed wing flight in Keeper certainly had some roadblocks, watch today's #GDCRewind to find out what the team did to solve one of them. Want to experience sessions like this? GDC 2027 passes are available now! 🔗 https://bit.ly/4fVtFHZ #GDC2027

Whether you're writing your first NPC, need your portfolio reviewed, or workshopping your script, the Narrative track at GDC 2027 is filled with sessions that you won't want to miss! Check out a preview today. Lock in your early rate for passes. 🔗 bit.ly/4fVtFHZ #GDC2027

📣 Just a few more days until the deadline for the 2027 Experimental Games Showcase at GDC! 📣 Unusual ideas? Unexpected mechanics? Unclassifiable games? We want them! Submit by October 23rd! More info and apply here: www.experimentalgamesshowcase.com

How do you craft POIs with a player that's evolving? Check out today's #GDCRewind with Dan Qiao (Staff Area Designer, Obsidian Entertainment) for a bit of insight. Ready to learn more in sessions like this? Passes to #GDC2027 are available! 🔗 https://bit.ly/4fVtFHZ

We'd like to imagine this is Sam Maggs letting you know that the GDCA submissions are still open. "What!? Submissions??" You might be asking. In case you missed it, we've updated the GDCA process, and you still have until November 1 at 11:59 PM PST to submit your game! https://bit.ly/4x4NuT5

What was one way the team behind Phasmophobia targeted players for the game's launch on console? Watch today's #GDCRewind to find out and experience sessions like this, live at GDC 2027! Get your pass today! https://bit.ly/4fVtFHZ

Reminder that applications to the Experimental Games Showcase at GDC are still open until October 23! If you're working on something interesting, submit it! We want to see games that surprise, delight, and inspire. fr, one of my rubrics for curation is: "Makes me go 'woooooah' when I look at it."

Our passes this year give you so many ways to find your GDC. What will yours be? Super Early rate ends today (October 9) at 11:59 PM PT, don't miss your chance to lock in the best rate! Passes🔗https://gdc.informafestivals.com/2027/registrations/Attendee #GDC2027

How did the team designing Ghost of Yotei teach faction behavior in the during the early moments of the game? Watch today's #GDCRewind to find out! Then find the whole session only on GDC Vault! Meaningful Reasons to Wander: Creating Open World Engagement in 'Ghost of Yōtei' https://gdcvault.com/

Explore a Festival Hall filled with possibilities this year at GDC Festival of Gaming 2027. Find your people and discover what's next. Super early rate for passes ends October 9 at 11:59 PM PT, lock in at the best rate right now! Passes 🔗 gdc.informafestivals.com/2027/registr... #GDC2027

The bug you've been stuck on for three weeks? Someone at GDC already solved it and will show you how. ~20,000 attendees. 300+ sessions. Super early rate ends Oct 9. Explore passes: gdc.informafestivals.com/2027/registr... #GDC2027

How did the team behind KCD2 handle things like crime perception at far LOD vs middle LOD? Check out #GDCRewind to find out. Watch the full session only on GDC Vault. Session | Supporting Thousands of NPCs in 'Kingdom Come: Deliverance' & 'Kingdom Come: Deliverance II' https://gdcvault.com/

Planning a showcase, meetup, gathering, or gaming-adjacent event for GDC week? Partner with us! Applications for the GDC 2027 Affiliate program are now open! You have until February 10, 2027 to apply. Learn More 🔗 https://bit.ly/4hyA2QW Apply Here 🔗 https://bit.ly/4hstH9K

25 million dollars across 5 years was the assumption that Outersloth made about their budget at the beginning of their investment strategy but what happened in practice? Watch the clip to find out more and watch the full session only on GDC Vault. https://gdcvault.com/

🎉 25 years of experimental games at GDC! 🎉 Next year marks the 25th anniversary of the Experimental Games Showcase (formerly Experimental Gameplay Workshop). Got something unique or unusual? Send us your game by October 23 and join this historic session: www.experimentalgamesshowcase.com

What is the difference between outsourcing and co-development? Sam Carlisle (co-founder of XDS Spark) breaks it down for us in this clip from the new episode of GDC Side Quest and it's live on our YouTube right now! https://youtu.be/4DCIZ2DNQ0k

Applications are now OPEN for Jam @ GDC, the official GDC Festival of Gaming game jam from Global Game Jam & @officialgdc.bsky.social! Join devs from around the world in San Francisco and aim with us for a world record. 🌟 📅 Get all the details and apply now: buff.ly/uAL8ZnC #GameDev

What were some of the key takeaways that the audio team had from working on Clair Obscur? One was keeping the audio pipeline simple, watch the clip and find out the others. Watch the full session on GDC Vault! Session | 'Clair Obscur: Expedition 33': An Audio Postmortem https://gdcvault.com/

🎮 Want to attend @officialgdc.bsky.social 2027? Your ticket could be covered! Applications for the GGJ–GDC Scholarship are now open! 🌟 Don’t miss your chance to join us at the GDC Festival of Gaming 2027 in San Francisco. 👉 Find out more & apply now: buff.ly/QwTJqYV #GDC2027 #GameDev #IndieDev

How did the team working on flight for Keeper manage their memory budget? Find out in today's #GDCrewind then watch the full session only on GDC Vault! Session | Fixed Wing Flight in 'Keeper': Pathfinding, Locomotion, and Animation of a Bird Companion https://gdcvault.com/

📣 Applications are now OPEN for the 2027 Experimental Games Showcase at GDC! 📣 You have until October 23rd to send us all the weird, innovative and unique things you are working on. More info and apply here: www.experimentalgamesshowcase.com

Why do large platforms need indie games? Rebekah Saltsman has some insight into the answer. Check out this clip from GDC Festival of Gaming 2026 and then watch the full session on our YouTube channel! https://youtu.be/qD5a8kPi0Dc

The Bezi Mega Jam is officially underway on @itch.io The theme: GENRE MASHUP. Take two genres. Smash them together. Make something unexpected. Feeling ambitious? Add a third. 🏆 $34K+ in prizes Join the jam: itch.io/jam/bezi-meg... Join the community: discord.gg/rAs6ZHFgKQ #gamedev #indiedev

Today is the final day to apply to be a community partner for GDC Festival of Gaming 2027! Still working on that activation idea? Need space for a community meetup? Or looking to provide a scholarship for your community? Don't miss your chance to apply🔗https://bit.ly/4y2oNHH

We'd like to welcome the newest advisory board members to the GDC Family! Welcome Amir Satvat, Alexa Ray Corriea, Lucien Parsons, and Perrin Kaplan! We're thrilled with the wealth of experience and knowledge all our new members bring to share with GDC. https://bit.ly/3TdPTfI

Rachel Kowert has some tips on how to network at your next GDC Festival of Gaming. Do you have a favorite question to ask to break the ice while networking at the event? Ready to buy your pass for 2027? https://bit.ly/4fVtFHZ

Why did an open world game like The Outer Worlds 2 start with a highly curated, linear level? Watch today's #GDCrewind with Dan Qiao to find out, then watch the whole session only on GDC Vault! Session | Designing POIs (Points of Interest) for 'The Outer Worlds 2' https://gdcvault.com/

The Bezi Mega Jam is live on @itch.io $34,000+ in prizes September 14–28 Any engine Solo or teams up to 3 Theme: GENRE COLLISION Combine two or more genres and make them work. The riskier the combination, the more impressive it is if you pull it off. itch.io/jam/bezi-meg... #gamedev #indiedev

It's time, alt.ctrl.GDC rerturns to celebrate another year of the wildest alternative controllers! Submissions are open, you have until October 30th to send it in. You don't want to miss your chance. https://bit.ly/3VtKq4Z

How did the team behind Phasmophobia activate their existing community when preparing for the console launch of the game? Watch today's #GDCrewind then catch the whole session only on GDC Vault! Session | Launching 'Phasmophobia' on Consoles (and Somehow Not F**king It Up) https://gdcvault.com/

There's never been a better time to get your passes for GDC Festival of Gaming 2027. Only one month left! Register by October 9 at 11:59pm PT to lock in our Super Early Rate. https://bit.ly/4fVtFHZ #GDC2027

Sept 14 is just around the corner! Sign up to be notified when the theme drops: itch.io/jam/bezi-meg...

What would you make if you had two weeks to build a game to win a prize pool worth $34,000? Calling all game creators: the Bezi Mega Jam is a game jam with prizes designed to boost talented game devs forward in the industry. Get ready to build by September 14. Signup link below.

Steam reviews are important to developers and players. What happens when they're influenced by a small group of vocal players? Find out in this clip and then watch the full session right now on our YouTube channel for more insights for developers into Steam in 2026. https://bit.ly/4A3iR2g

What did Ghost of Yotei need in it's first hour to really make the game stick? Watch today's #GDCrewind and then catch the entire session only on GDC Vault. Meaningful Reasons to Wander: Creating Open World Engagement in 'Ghost of Yōtei'. https://gdcvault.com/

NPCs in KCD2 have their own paths & lives they follow whether or not the player interacts with them. Watch today's #GDCRewind to learn more, watch the whole session only on GDC Vault! Supporting Thousands of NPCs in 'Kingdom Come Deliverance' & 'Kingdom Come Deliverance II' https://gdcvault.com/

Lucien Parsons has been watching the reinvention of the games industry reflect itself in GDC since 2004 and while the technology changes, the people and their love of making games stay the same. What will you take away from GDC 2027? Passes are on sale now! https://bit.ly/4fVtFHZ

How are player expectations like eating at McDonalds? In today's #GDCrewind, Al Yang explains in this clip from "'SILENT HILL f': The Challenges of Creating a Melee-Only Horror Game" check out the full session only on GDC Vault! https://gdcvault.com/

alt.ctrl.GDC is gearing up to celebrate another year of the alternative controllers. We're currently getting everything ready but mark your calendars for September 14 when we open submissions for GDC 2027! https://gdconf.com/alt-ctrl-gdc/

It's time to pick up a new side quest! Check out this clip from GDC Side Quest interview with Grammy award winning composer @awintory.bsky.social sharing a behind the scenes look at the GDC Developer's Concert, then watch the full interview on the GDC YouTube Channel! https://youtu.be/edxEPWtwBRc

It's time for today's #GDCrewind! What do your submission odds look like when submitting your game to Outersloth? @victoriatran.bsky.social breaks down the numbers! Watch the full session on GDC Vault - "Game Funding - Lessons from Outersloth". https://gdcvault.com/ #GDC2026 #Outersloth

For @ashleypoprik.bsky.social how she sees herself at GDC has changed over the years. From feeling like just a small guy to being part of the community. How will GDC 2027 change your perception? Register today! 🔗 https://bit.ly/4fVtFHZ

In today's #gdcrewind Dan Qiao (Staff Area Designer, Obsidian Entertainment) walks us through some of the process behind designing POIs in The Outer Worlds 2. Check out the whole session, Designing POIs (Points of Interest) for 'The Outer Worlds 2' only on GDC Vault! https://gdcvault.com/

Looking for more information on some of the changes we've made this year, including the new Business Hall? Check out this interview with GIBiz! #GDC2027

Buffs in Expedition 33 altered the gameplay in numerous ways. Do you have a favorite? Check out this clip from "Clair Obscur Expedition 33: Small Team, Massive Game | Technical Secrets Behind Making Hit RPG" and watch the whole session on the GDC YouTube channel! https://youtu.be/BLUbu8he0og