Valve, Wada and Maxis headline Montreal show

A selection of industry luminaries are set to attend the sixth annual Montreal International Game Summit.

Set to commence from November 16-17, the event will see speaker sessions from the likes of Square Enix CEO Yoichi Wada, Media Molecule’s Paul Holden, Valve’s Jason Holtman and Maxis’ Chris Hecker.

Wada’s speaker session will reveal his vision for the future of game development, but also will look at how Square Enix is trying to stretch its presence across the globe with its acquired businesses.

Holden, a lead architect at Media Molecule, will speak on the developer’s strategy to utilise user-generated content to its fullest.

Chris Hecker of Maxis will be returning to the event to discuss whether games can be considered as cultural products in the same way as literature or theatre.

Joining the list of speakers is Heather Chaplin, the author of ‘Smartbomb: The Question for Art Entertainment & Big Bucks in the Videogame Revolution.’

Chaplin is a part-term professor of journalism at New York-based university The New School, and has also collaborated as a video game specialist.

Some 1,500 attendees are expected for the event. Those booking in advance get a discount.

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