Wristbands for SXSW Sydney Gaming expo go on sale this coming Friday, but up to now, it hasn’t been clear what punters were going to get for their rather expensive branded bangles. This morning, organisers have unveiled quite a bit of what the gaming arm of the show will offer, including a 150-studio-strong indie game showcase.
The press release, which went out earlier this morning, details several gaming stages and events happening during SXSW Sydney. The headline event (beyond IEM Sydney, which is happening close to Darling Harbour) is the Games Festival Showcase, a “curated collection of brand new and upcoming indie games from over 150 developers from around the world.” The showcase will be held at Eddy Multispace and Mercure Sydney, and there’s also planned takeovers from local studios and publishers like PlaySide Studios and League of Geeks.
Among the games already announced: Nine Sols by Red Candle Games, Kinder World by Lumi Interactive, Mike and the Witch’s Mountain by Chibig, The Dungeon Experience by Bone Assembly, Mortal Sin by Doronik Games Inc, and Toroa by Atawhai Interactive, among many others.
There’s a Tabletop Expo, which will be held at the International Convention Centre over three days (and seemingly takes a leaf out of PAX Aus’ book). The Tabletop Expo is exactly what it sounds like — a place for fans of board, card, and roleplaying games to get to grips with new games and demos, make new friends at freeplay tables, and do a bit of shopping.
The Festival Stage will run throughout each day of SXSW Sydney Gaming with a variety of programming. Live gameplay, performances and special screenings are all planned, according to show organisers. Themed feature nights are also planned, with events like the Midnighters Horror Games collection and Queer Creator Showcase to take place here.
There’s an awards evening celebrating the best games at the show, which will be hosted by internet musician and comedian Tom Cardy.
Finally, a charity marathon stream, which the organisers describe as part talent show, part stage show, part live stream, and features a large roster of local content creators raising money for SXSW Sydney’s charity partners.
So, a little bit of PAX in your SXSW, then. All of this is ultimately a good thing and will go some way to enticing your average punter into considering a wristband purchase. SXSW is a giant and very interesting show, but it has always leaned toward being an entertainment industry event rather than anything accessible (or affordable) to the public.
Speaking of wristbands: if you’re heading to the show, please make sure you know what you’re buying! There is a significant difference in what you get and what you have access to with a SXSW Sydney Gaming wristband vs a badge. Everything we’ve outlined above is accessible with a wristband, early bird pricing for which will run you $165. A badge, which gets you access to quite a bit more than this, will set you back a cool $895.
You see what I mean about the division between SXSW as a consumer event and SXSW as an industry event, right? Different worlds.
SXSW Sydney will take place between October 15-22, 2023. The SXSW Gaming Festival happens, as part of that show, from October 18-22, 2023.
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