Welsh companies show their wares at Gamescom

Last week, five of Wales’s leading games companies headed out to Gamescom in Cologne to connect and develop business opportunities with peers from right around the world.

Held annually, Gamescom is the leading European trade fair for digital gaming culture, and it brings together professionals for product launches, business development and knowledge sharing.

This year, to reflect the great strides made by Wales’s digital media sector and its potential economic impact, the Welsh Government showcased five local developers in the UK Pavilion.

They were Quantum Soup Studios; Talespinners; Toxic Games; Wales Interactive; and West Coast Software. Wales Interactive, which has attended the event before, promoted its latest VR Horror game Don’t Knock Twice, 

David Banner, managing director of the company, said: “Gamescom has been crucial in helping achieve 1.5 million downloads of our games and being nominated for 65 awards.

“As we’ve also evolved into an Indie publishing label we’re looking for titles to sign with the aim of publishing them multi-platform worldwide.”

Ian Thomas, director of Talespinners, said: “We’re heading to Gamescom for the second year to meet companies who need help with stories for their game.

“Last year was excellent for us and as a result we’re now working with a number of European partners on projects, including writing for the game Raid: World War II, which features John Cleese.

Chris Payne, of Quantum Soup Studios, had a very specific aim for the company’s first trip to Gamescom. “We were looking for a publishing partnership and finishing funds for our debut project launching early next year, written by Talespinners, and voiced in Welsh and English by some well-known actors,” he said. 

“Talesinger: Voice of the Dragon is a non-violent role playing game, casting the player as trainee bard Gwen, and using songs and stories to inspire, persuade or shame Celtic chieftains into standing up to the invading Romans. It’s a game where story is your weapon.”

Ken Bird, CEO of the West Coast Group, added: “We are looking to expand our group of Independent Developers, build relationships and offer our skills to convert good games to platforms such as XBox1, PS4, and Switch that are usually out of reach of many small independent companies.”