GDC Europe debuts sponsored sessions and a full Amazon dev day

Passes for the Game Developers Conference Europe 2014 are still available, and as the event draws closer we're announcing even more sessions for the show that you'll want to check out. Today we're highlighting a number of informative sponsored sessions from Microsoft, Facebook, Epic Games, Google and other influential companies. If you're looking for an opportunity to hear about how next-gen technology works from the people who made it, these are the talks you want to keep on your radar. Amazon will also be sponsoring its own developer day at the conference on Tuesday, August 12. The day's programming will encompass a variety of sessions aimed at helping game makers better utilize Amazon technology in their games. Key Amazon personnel will be on-hand to answer developer questions and lead talks on topics like building better games for the Fire TV and the Fire smartphone, designing immersive experiences using the Fire smartphone's unique Dynamic Perspective technology, tips and tricks for using Amazon Web Services to build scalable online games, and more. Organized by UBM Tech Game Network, GDC Europe, now in its sixth year in Germany, will run Monday through Wednesday, August 11-13 at the Congress-Centrum Ost in Cologne, Germany, co-located with Europe's biggest video game trade and public show gamescom.

Build your games for all Microsoft platforms with this single toolset

In his talk, "So Many Games -- One Microsoft Game Development Platform," Microsoft's Lee Scott will advocate for his company's game development technology and share tips on getting your game up and running on Microsoft's hardware. To hear the company tell it, games are by far the fastest growing category on all Microsoft's platforms -- but building great games that attract players and keep them engaged can be tricky. Now that the Windows phones, tablets and PCs run the same software, it's easier to develop compelling, interactive experiences that span all form-factors including the Xbox with Microsoft's game development platform, services and tools. This session will provide an overview and show you how easy it is to get started with your game today.

Unreal Engine 4 Pointers for Programmers

Now that Epic Games has released Unreal Engine 4 under accessible terms that include community access to the engine's entire source code, enterprising programmers might benefit from catching Epic senior programmer Gerke Preussner's talk "Unreal Engine 4: Pointers for Programmers." During his talk, Preussner plans to offer a look behind the scenes at the efforts toward making the engine ready for a wider audience and walk you through significant learnings since launch. How Epic is improving specific UE4 systems now and in the future is also on the list of things to share with attendees, though the company recommends that those who do attend have some technical knowledge to get the most out of the talk.

Using Google To Optimize Your Monetization

Google believes its ecosystem of technologies, products and services are better than ever at enabling game developers to build and scale their game, distribute their game to as many users as possible, engage with their players, build player communities and receive the value they deserve from their users. At GDC Europe 2014, Google's Bruce Broadbent will be giving a talk, helpfully titled "Monetize Your Game With Google," about how you can capitalize on those systems. If you have games on Google's platforms -- or are planning to -- Broadbent will be providing a wealth of information on how the company helps game developers with their game monetization strategy, increasing the lifetime value of users and highlighting where advertising complements their monetization strategy to maximize the revenue from users. Of course, these are just some of the many exciting sessions that will be announced for GDC Europe 2014 in the coming weeks, and a full list of announced talks is now available. In addition, this year marks the GDC Europe debut of the Student Pass, a more affordable alternative to the All Access Pass created specifically for qualified students interested in learning and networking at GDC Europe 2014 - as well as the return of the Indie Games Summit pass. All GDC Europe passes also allow visitors to attend Gamescom from Wednesday to Friday. For more information, please visit the GDC Europe website. Gamasutra and GDC are sibling organizations under parent UBM Tech