For those of you who haven’t heard about Courage XL: it’s the best pre-GDC showcase event in San Francisco, organized by our Dutch friends and supported by our partners FIT and AWEX. Taking place on the eve of GDC23 (Sunday 19th of March), it’s a laid back way to get warmed up before the GDC madness breaks loose on Monday.
The concept is pretty simple: play a game, get a beer. You’ll receive some drink tickets via your registration that you’re able to hand out to people that have played your game. Before we throw the doors open for video game enthusiasts from the world over, there’s an exclusive VIP hour for press and publishers. Better warm up those elevator pitches!
Participating in CourageXL means
a spot to showcase at the best pre-mixer of GDC23
being part of a curated selection of about 30 game studios
a bar table and power socket all set upon your arrival
showcasing or play-testing your game for over 500 visitors from the industry
10 drink tickets to hand out
being included in a “Meet the Devs” mailing, targeting over 4000 contacts
all warmed up to pitch for the rest of the week
Only 6 spots available in the BelgianGames area so don’t wait too long
Returning to the awesome nightclub The Great Northern, CourageXL has been a sold-out event in recent years. We expect it to be no different this time, so securing your showcase spotwill be a valuable addition to your GDC experience. Don’t wait to sign up as places are limited. Deadline for registration: February 5th.
Our beloved #belgiangamesindustry is evolving at a fierce pace as are showing the 2021 figures of the latest #belgiangamesindustry report. Although still quite young, the Belgian game sector is gradually growing into a relevant player in the Belgian labour market. Most game companies predict that this upward trend will continue next year. With the tax shelter expansion in the offing, the forecast for the videogame sector is positive. Grab the main takeaways of the survey below or download the full report right here.
In 2021, the Belgian videogame sector had no less than 110 companies; a sharp increase compared to 2020 (when there were 84 companies active). These companies accounted for a turnover of €88 million and employed 935 people.
Compared to 2020, overall turnover went up 8% to €88 million
FTE count growing 13% to 935 up from 825 in 2020
East Flanders remains province with most game companies
Game sector in Brussels grows by 70%
PC is the most profitable platform for our local game studios
Entertainment games remain by far the largest category of developed games in Belgium
In terms of geographical spread, all regions grow but there’s a remarkable evolution in Brussels. The majority of Belgian videogame companies is still based in Flanders (69%). Both Wallonia and Brussels count for more companies than last year but Brussels accounts for the most vigorous grow of 70%. The boast of videogame startups working on their first titles is starting to show in the market data.
While it’s great that over half of companies have lived past the 5 year mark, it goes to show that our industry is still fragile, especially when you contemplate 84% of our companies still consist of max 10 people. The number of one (wo)man companies grew compared to 2020 which shows Belgium has a fertile breeding ground for videogame companies. Let’s see where this takes us in a few years.
In conclusion, there’s plenty to be happy about and there’s more good stuff ahead. There’s an evolution here that’s hard to ignore. This is a sector that’s hard to ignore.
We thought we’d offer our dear members a treat before moving into the darker days of the season #winteriscoming. Join us for the final FLEGA Café of the year; kindly hosted by our friends at Cybernetic Walrus. Time to catch up over a drink and reconnect with the FLEGA tribe. Access is free but registration is mandatory.
GDC might not yet be the first thing on your mind but if you’d like to join the largest gathering of game developers on the planet, now is the time to get moving. GDC will once again take place in San Francisco from March 20 to 24. Together with Flanders Investment & Trade, we’ve got plenty of incentives for you to cross the ocean and make this conference worthwhile.
Just like previous years, Belgium will have a united presence on the Expo floor with a BelgianGames booth. Exhibiting spaces are limited, so if you are a Flemish game company that wants to have the best shot at presenting your products or services during the biggest b2b games event in the world, this is by far the best offer you’ll get. Flanders Investment & Trade has the following options on offer for you:
Product Sample Booth: € 1000
Your own exhibiting space (approx. 4 m²) with a table and two chairs, screen, locker and personal branding.
All logistics are taken care of. You just have to show up to do your business.
With a shared welcome desk and several meeting rooms you can use, you’re all set for the day.
Essentials to beat that jetlag, such as (good) coffee and soft drinks, are provided for.
Exhibitor staff passes for you and your colleagues.
A one-time 25% discount on a conference ticket of your choice.
Access to Meet2Match to schedule meetings upfront.
Your company name and logo in GDC exhibitor database.
Basic Package: € 250
Use of meeting rooms on the BelgianGames booth (first come, first served).
1 Exhibitor staff pass to access the Expo floor.
Access to Meet2Match to schedule meetings upfront.
We’re well aware that the trip across the Atlantic is expensive and that San Francisco isn’t the cheapest place on earth to spend the night, but keep in mind that Flanders Investment & Trade can offer you a refund for 50% of your travel & accommodation costs. Please make sure to fill out the necessary paperwork (link in Dutch) in advance to do so.
On top of that, thanks to the wonderful peeps at United Airlines, we were able te secure a discount code of 10% for flights with United Airlines to (and from) GDC. The discount code only applies to members of FLEGA, WALGA or games.brussels. To get your hands on that code, drop us a line.
We’re crafting plans for a cool network/showcase event and will share more details at a later time. All that’s important now is securing your place on the booth as soon as possible and at the very latest before Nov 30.
The presence of the #BelgianGamesIndustry at GDC23 wouldn’t be possible without the joint effort of these organisations with a heart for games: thank you FIT & AWEX!
There’re some exciting new things happening with our funding friends over at VAF. Following their new managerial agreement with the government, the rules and regulations of the public funding for local video games have changed significantly. At least, significantly enough for us to capture the most important changes for studios that want to get cracking on a new application under the new system. Read on to know the details or scroll down to the recap below.
Extra Funding Measures
As you may already know, VAF|Game Fund offers funding support to video games at different phases of a video game’s development. There’s no less than four new ways your studio can apply for funding.
Prototype support (to create a proof of concept during ideation)
Vertical slice support (to create a small, but polished part of the complete experience, for instance one level)
Post release support (for porting, localization, extra content…)
Support for an educational version (to adapt an existing video game to be used in Flemish education)
These brand new funding measures join production and promotion support. Outside of significantly increased maximum amounts (see below), there’s relatively little change to these existing measures.
Yet, there are some interesting novelties when it comes to promotion support. First, it now becomes possible for projects that haven’t received prior support to apply for promotion support. In that case, the same committee will form an opinion about the video game (which needs to be as closed to finished as possible) as well as the proposed marketing approach.
Next, studios will also be able to use part of their vertical slice / production support for promotion. The amount you can use for this is cumulatively limited to max. €15.000. This gives you the chance to develop a community at an early stage and generate traction for your game.
Keen observers will have noticed that preproduction support in its current form disappears and will be split into prototype and vertical slice support.
VAF support is state aid, which is capped at a certain level. That’s what we call state aid intensity: the percentage of your total budget that is allowed to be financed by the government.
Increased State Aid Intensity
Before, the state intensity ceiling was only determined by the kind of video game you made: entertainment video games were always limited to 50%, artistic video games to 85%, serious and educational video games to 75%. The new regulation also considers the profile of the applicant. Especially vulnerable starters and more established studios that dare to innovate and continue to take risks will reap the benefits.
It works like this:
By default, support for prototype, vertical slice and production is max. 50% of the total budget. In the case of difficult works (read further below) this can be increased to max. 80% for prototype and vertical slice support and max. 70% for production support.
For promotion support and post release support state aid intensity amounts to max. 50%.
Educational games, which are funded by the Ministry of Education, can be funded for up to max. 75% of the total budget of prototype, vertical slice and production support.
Difficult works?
Making video games is hard and turning a profit is even harder. Difficult works isn’t about the complexity of development, but rather gauges the financial risk of the project. Following that description, VAF|Game Fund distinguishes between the following categories of difficult works:
The first and second project of a new applicant. The increased state aid intensity allows them to focus more on their own IP instead of splitting their resources over several projects, which provides an extra safety net / push for studios who still need to figure it all out;
Projects that extend the portfolio of an existing studio in new and exciting ways (e.g., switch from B2B to B2C projects);
Projects that are extremely innovative in order to stimulate implementation of new, groundbreaking ideas or technology;
Projects with a market risk that’s remarkably above average (e.g., non-profit projects or projects that have primarily cultural value);
Socially relevant projects that can have a big impact on people’s lives and society (serious games);
Educational projects that aren’t geared towards Flemish education.
Higher Maximum Amount
Next to state aid intensity, VAF support is also limited by maximum amounts and the good news is those have increased as well.
Where the amount for a project that received funding for every stage (so preproduction – production – promotion) used to be maxed out at €300.000, this can now be as high as €500.000 per project. The maximum amounts are determined as follows:
Prototype support: max. €25.000
Development support (vertical slice, production and post release support): max. €400.000 (potential prototype support included)
Promotion support: max. €75.000 (used to be €50.000)
Support for an educational version: max. €25.000
As you can see developers are free to distribute the maximum amount of €400.000 over the various development phases as they see fit. This increased flexibility (before, preproduction support used to be capped at €75.000) should allow the financing to match the needs of a specific project as closely as possible.
While these changes are already in effect since October 5th, the first funding call to use them will be the one in January 2023 (exact date TBC). Should you have any questions while working on an application or you want the lowdown straight from the horse’s mouth, you can contact VAF|Game Fund directlyfor more tailored information.
We feel these changes can contribute positively to the growth acceleration of our local video game sector and we’re anxious to see what they might amount to in the coming years.
All you need to know about the new VAF regulations
Overview of funding measures
Development support
Prototype support: max. €25.000
Vertical slice support:
Production support
Post release support
max. €400.000 (prototype incl.)
Promotion support: max. €75.000
Support for educational version: max. €25.000
Higher state aid intensity:
Standard 50%
in case of “difficult works”
up to 80% for prototype and vertical slice support
VAF|GAME has just announced the results of the third funding call of the year. Let’s take a look at the studios and projects that made the cut.
ARTISTIC GAMES
PRODUCTION
Devillé Arcade secured €56.500 to develop their title Teken.
Nachtvlam was awarded €74.250 for their Verses of Enchantment.
ENTERTAINMENT GAMES
PRE-PRODUCTION
Anaxanthia will be able to further develop their Conduit Station with a support of €60.000.
Cybernetic Walrus was able to secure €75.000 to sketch out Gangstas: Breakneck.
SERIOUS GAMES
PRODUCTION
Possibly Pixelsnailed €168.000 for the development of Ysvogel.
Congratulations to everyone getting support. Here’s hoping the funds will help you maximize the potential of your creative ideas. The deadline for the final call of 2022 has passed. No worries though: VAF|GAME will offer plenty of new funding opportunities next year.
Natascha Rommens 
01/12/2022
