GDC Europe 2012 details Expo Floor, sponsored session highlights

GDC Europe is just a few short weeks away, and this year's show is certainly shaping up to be the biggest and most robust thus far. Show organizers have already revealed a slew of exciting sessions, lectures, and panels, and today they've debuted new details for the show's Expo Floor and its numerous sponsored presentations. As in years past, GDC Europe will offer a full exhibition hall, where attendees can talk directly to some of the industry's leading developers and game companies, making it a great opportunity to network and reach out to some of the biggest names in the game business. This year's Expo Floor will host major game companies including CCP (EVE Online), Crytek, EA, and Wooga, as well as notable software firms like Perforce and Havok. For a full list of exhibitors, check out the official GDC Europe website or download the show's floor plan [PDF]. In addition to the packed Expo Floor, GDC Europe will also feature a number of informative sponsored sessions from these and other influential companies. Here are just a few of the numerous sponsored sessions at this month's show: - Major middleware provider Autodesk will showcase its Gameware technology, detailing how the studio's software promises to improve production pipelines and streamline common snags in the game development process. - Elsewhere, Intel will discuss the importance of developing games than can run smoothly on mainstream PC hardware. Attendees will learn a handful of useful techniques to optimize their games and create products that can reach a larger consumer base. - Management software firm Perforce will host its own session to discuss how its software versioning solution can help small teams better manage their production cycles and chart the development of their current projects -- all at no cost to their studio. - In a mobile-focused session, Blackberry developer Research in Motion will show off its new Blackberry10 platform, arguing why it could help mobile studios monetize their games and focus on cross-platform development. - In addition, middleware firm Havok will outline how developers can use the company's Vision Engine and other game development tools to create detailed and dynamic games that can exist across multiple platforms. Other sponsored talks listed on the show's schedule include sessions from notable companies such as Conduit, Simplygon, Apsalar, Xsens, a full Facebook developer day, EdgeCast, and two talks from major engine company Unity, including 'Unity For Artists' and an introduction to Unity 4. Of course, these and other sponsored sessions join the myriad Main Conference and Summit sessions already announced for GDC Europe, which include a classic postmortem of GoldenEye 007, a look back at CD Projekt RED's The Witcher 2, and a retrospective on the popular Battlefield franchise. For a full list of all GDC Europe sessions announced thus far, check out the show's nearly completed Schedule Builder. Those interested in attending GDC Europe have roughly a week to secure their standard-cost pass for the Gamescom co-located event via the show's online registration page. The show itself will take place Monday through Wednesday, August 13-15, 2012 at the Congress-Centrum Ost Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany. For more information on GDC Europe, visit the show's official website, or subscribe to regular updates via Facebook, Twitter, or RSS.