[Event news] gamescom dev announces opening keynote by Amir Satvat and first program highlights

This is a press release posted in addition to our usual editorial content.

gamescom dev has announced the first major program highlights for its 2026 edition, including an opening keynote by Amir Satvat, new curated content tracks, and the first wave of speakers.

 

Taking place August 23-25 at the Confex Center in Cologne, gamescom dev brings together developers, executives, creatives, and business leaders from across the global games industry.

 

gamescom dev continues to grow as one of the industry’s leading professional events. In 2025, the conference welcomed more than 5,400 attendees from 89 countries, featuring 390 speakers across 220 sessions.

 

Opening Keynote: Amir Satvat on the Games Industry Reset

Business Development Director at Tencent Games and founder of the industry’s largest free career support network ASGC (Always Supporting (the) Games Community).

 

His keynote, “The Games Industry Reset: What Happened and What Comes Next?”, will provide a data-driven analysis of the industry’s transformation since 2022. Drawing on extensive community data and insights gathered through ASGC, Satvat will examine labor market disruption, funding trends, changing player demand, hiring realities, regional developments, and the opportunities emerging from one of the most challenging periods in the industry’s recent history.

 

 

Program highlights across development, leadership, and production

Among the first announced program highlights is a session from Seth Rosen (Short for a Knight; formerly Game Director and Lead Designer of Pacific Drive).

 

In “‘Pacific Drive’ Under the Hood: Survival Fundamentals, Systems Design, and Speeding Past Tropes,” Rosen will explore the design philosophy and development process behind one of the most acclaimed survival titles of recent years.

 

Additional speakers include Fleur Marty (Gearbox), Kim Belair (Sweet Baby Inc.), Fiona Cherbak (Rocket Game Talent), Nikky Armstrong (Perfect Garbage), and Riot Games representatives Mia Ginaé Watkins, Noor Amin, and Emi Nguyen, with many more speakers and sessions to be announced in the coming weeks.

 

Specialized tracks offer deep-dives into key development disciplines

Alongside its multi-disciplinary conference program, gamescom dev will feature several co-curated topic tracks designed to provide focused learning and discussion around specific areas of game development. Created in collaboration with experienced industry professionals, these tracks combine expert-led sessions, case studies, and practical insights.

 

Level Design Track

For the first time, gamescom dev will present a dedicated Level Design Track, co-curated by Blake Rebouche (Guerrilla Games), Miles Tost (CD PROJEKT RED), and Seth Marinello (Double Fine).

 

The track focuses on world-building, player guidance, environmental storytelling, and modern level design practices, featuring speakers including Konstantinos Dimopoulos (Zero Parades: For Dead Spies), Magnus Brauckhoff (KING Art Games), Alexandre Zenga (Rogue Factor), Donald Barrett (Insomniac Games), and representatives from Pearl Abyss (Crimson Desert), and Infold Games (Infinity Nikki).

 

Animation Track

Co-curated in collaboration with Mike Jungbluth (Animation Director at Compulsion Games), the Animation Track brings together leading animation specialists to explore character performance, animation pipelines, technical workflows, and production challenges.

 

Featured speakers include Mike Jungbluth, representatives from Fumi Games (MOUSE: P.I. For Hire), Julius Gierbig (CD PROJEKT RED), Gethin Aldous, Kevin Boyer (Rogue Factor), Ramin Safarpour (Ubisoft Mainz), and additional speakers to be announced.

 

AI in gameplay & AI in production Track

Spanning both conference days, the AI Track will explore one of the industry’s fastest-evolving topics through two major lenses: AI in Gameplay and AI in Production.

 

Co-curated with the team behind AI and Games, the track is led by Tommy Thompson, Shraddha Gupta, Duygu Cakmak, Dr. Gabriel Robert, and Matthias Siemonsmeier. Sessions will feature perspectives from companies including Tencent Games, Electronic Arts, Wargaming, JetBrains, Room 8 Group, Katapult Ridge, and additional contributors to be announced.

 

Networking and Community Events throughout gamescom dev

Alongside the conference program, gamescom dev offers an extensive schedule of side events designed with attendees’ needs in mind.

 

Included as part of the gamescom dev experience, these events range from executive and business-focused gatherings to speaker receptions and community celebrations, creating opportunities to connect, exchange ideas, and continue conversations beyond the conference stages.

 

This year’s side event schedule includes:

Sunday, August 23

·        gamescom dev speaker & VIP beer garden

·        gamescom dev speaker & VIP experiences

·        gamescom dev speaker & VIP reception

Monday, August 24

·        gamescom dev leadership summit

·        gamescom dev speaker & VIP mixer

·        gamescom dev leadership dinner

·        gamescom dev awards

·        gamescom dev sunset mixer

Tuesday, August 25

·        gamescom dev CTO lunch

·        gamescom dev VIP & business mixer

·        gamescom dev pitch it! mixer

·        gamescom dev community night

 

Additional speakers, sessions, and event updates will be revealed in the coming weeks.

 

gamescom dev direct links:

·        gamescom dev website
https://dev.gamescom.global

·        gamescom dev conference site
https://dev.gamescom.global/conference/

·        gamescom ticket shop
https://tickets.gamescom.global