Triangle Game Conference Gets New Name, Calls For Speakers

Raleigh-Durham's annual Triangle Game Conference wants to reflect a broader focus beyond North Carolina's technology epicenter, and announces it's re-branding to the East Coast Game Conference, as it opens this year's call for submissions. "At the conference's inception, our mission was to provide a platform for the Raleigh-Durham region's growing community of interactive entertainment companies and professionals," explains conference chair John Austin. "Following the inaugural two years of the conference, it became clear there was serious investment being made in the future of our state's game development and digital media industry, which broadened our perspective - reaching far beyond the Triangle region of North Carolina," he adds. Of particular note is new economic incentives for North Carolina's digital media firms that were introduced this year. Wayne Watkins of Wake County Economic Development says that changing the event's name also "reflects the conference's commitment to the state's growing interactive entertainment industry and the professionals that enable it to flourish." The third annual event will run April 13-14, 2011, and speaker hopefuls should submit by Friday, January 21. This year's theme is "Engage and Connect," and the event will offer three tracks: First, a Game Development track for developers, artists, producers and designers, and second an Advanced Learning and Visual Simulation track for developers of serious games. Third, a Business of Games and Media Convergence track will focus on the "gamification" topic along with new trends and business models in the industry. Interested parties can find further information at the event's official website.