Gamelab 2012 cierra sus puertas triplicando el número de asistentes y consolidando su espacio de negocio

La VIII Feria Internacional del Videojuego y el Ocio Interactivo reúne en Barcelona alrededor de 20.000 personas

Gamelab Academy dedica el fin de semana al fomento de los emprendedores y la pequeñas empresas del sector en España

Gamelab ha concluido hoy en Barcelona la edición más larga y concurrida de su historia. Durante cinco días han pasado por la VIII Feria Internacional del Videojuego y el Ocio Interactivo alrededor de 20.000 personas entre profesionales del sector y aficionados que han abarrotado las conferencias y que han podido probar muchos de los lanzamientos más esperados del año.

Este último fin de semana la feria se ha volcado con la Gamelab Academy, un programa destinado al fomento de los emprendedores y de las pequeñas empresas españolas al tiempo que apuesta por un formación de calidad para los futuros profesionales. Las principales compañías españolas y profesionales de referencia mundial han puesto en común su experiencia en una serie de conferencias abiertas al público.

Entre ayer y hoy también se ha celebrado en Gamelab 2012 la gran final de la GT Academy con la asistencia del creador de 'Gran Turismo', Kazunori Yamauchi. El diseñador japonés ha estado presente a lo largo de todo el congreso en el que ha mantenido un encuentro con el público, una masiva firma de autógrafos y ha recogido el Premio de Honor de la Academia del Videojuego.

Además de Yamauchi, otros grandes nombres de la industria del videojuego han pasado por Gamelab 2012. Por ejemplo, Hironobu Sakaguchi, creador de la saga 'Final Fantas' y Premio Leyenda Gamelab de este año; Al Lowe, creador del mítico ligón 'Leisure Suit Harry'; Phil Fish, el cerebro detrás de 'Fez', uno de los lanzamientos más especiales de los últimos tiempos; Xavier Carrillo, fundador de Digital Legends, referente mundial en los juegos para móviles; o Enric Álvarez, director creativo de Mercury Steam, responsable de 'Castlevania: Lords of Shadow' cuya nueva versión para Nintendo 3DS se ha podido probar en Gamelab 2012.

Pero ha habido más primicias en Gamelab 2012. Tan sólo 15 días después de su presentación mundial en el E3, Nintendo ha traído aquí la nueva consola Wii U, que no llegará a las tiendas hasta Navidad; Playstation también ha mostrado su Wonderbook, un periférico de la PS3 con forma de libro que permite interactuar con la pantalla gracias a la realidad aumentada. De entre los nuevos juegos que se han podido probar en Gamelab 2012 destaca el esperadísimo 'Borderlands 2' y 'Spec Ops: The Line' para Xbox 360, ambos títulos presentados por 2K.

También han estado presentes en Gamelab 2012 empresas de 'juegos serios', como la castellonense DEMbeta cuya semiesfera de realidad virtual aplicada ha sido una de las atracciones más visitadas de la exposición.

Gamelab también ha querido este año aumentar su apuesta por el desarrollo de negocio internacional. Gamelab Hub, la plataforma para la internacionalización de las empresas españolas de videojuegos, ha reunido en la feria a más de 160 empresas y ha gestionado más de 1.100 reuniones de trabajo entre ellas. El número de empresas internacionales que participan en esta inciciativa se ha triplicado por tres en esta edición de 2012.

Gamelab 2012 ha contado con el apoyo del Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte, la Generalitat de Catalunya a través del Institut Català de les Empreses Culturals, el Instituto de Comercio Exterior (ICEX), Acc1ó (Agencia Catalana de apoyo a la Competitividad de la Empresa), la Asociación de Desarrolladores de Videojuegos de España (DEV), la Academia de las Artes y las Ciencias Interactivas, FICOD, el Ajuntament de Barcelona y la Fira de Barcelona; con el patrocinio de Minijuegos, Mediapro, Autodesk, Adobe, Unity 3D y Plastic SCM. Medio Oficial, www.rtve.es. Medio Asociado, www.vadejuegos.com. Medios Colaboradores, Pocket Gamer, Develop, Vandal y Gamereactor.

Puedes ampliar información a través de Gamelab.es, Facebook y Twitter y acceder a dossier y fotos en http://www.gamelab.es/2012/prensa/material-y-recursos/

Kazunori Yamauchi confiesa en Gamelab su sueño de ser "el Steven Spielberg japonés"

Phil Fish anuncia que 'Fez' saltará a más plataformas después de vender más de 100.000 copias en Xbox

Gonzo Suárez asegura que "el videojuego es un tsunami a observar" y que "las opiniones no lo detendrán"

Si ayer era el mítico Hironobu Sakaguchi ('Final Fantasy') quien protagonizó la jornada de Gamelab 2012, hoy ha sido otro de los grandes nombres de la historia del videojuego quien ha revolucionado la Feria de Barcelona: Kazunori Yamauchi, el genio detrás de 'Gran Turismo', que anoche recogió el Premio de Honor de la Academia de las Artes Interactivas y que hoy ha mantenido un encuentro con el público del congreso.

En su charla, Yamauchi ha recordado cómo de niño su gran afición era coleccionar insectos. "Tan pronto como salía de casa me subía a la montaña y me pasaba todo el día recolectando, hasta que se ponía el sol. Eso tiene mucho que ver con lo que hago ahora en 'Gran Turismo", explica: "Ir a ciudades de todo el mundo y hacer esa recolección".

Con esa exhuberante precisión en la recreación de coches, calles y circuitos es como se ha convertido no sólo en un referente para el sector y la industria automovilística, sino en un visionario que ha redefinido los límites entre lo real y lo virtual.

En su visita a Gamelab Yamauchi ha confesado que los videojuegos eran para él sólo un pasatiempo y que su sueño era otro: "Mi deseo era convertirme en director de cine, pero la industria del cine en Japón es muy pequeña por lo que comprendí que mi sueño de convertirme en el Steven Spielberg japonés no iba a ser posible".

Por la tarde, el diseñador también ha atendido a los muchos fans de 'Gran Turismo' firmando autógrafos en el 'stand' de Playstation en la feria, en el que hay varios simuladores disponibles para el público.

También ha vistado Gamelab el polémico Phil Fish, diseñador de uno de los videojuegos mejor acogidos por crítica y público en los últimos años: 'Fez'. Fish ha explicado a su manera por qué ha estado en el ojo del huracán varias veces con controvertidas declaraciones : "Tengo una bocaza, hay alguien que cita lo que digo y la gente acaba pensando que soy un gordo racista. Por cierto: Fuck you, haters!".

Zanjado ese tema y asumidas las propias limitiaciones ("Dar charlas como esta es agotador porque te odias a tí mismo al darte cuenta de que no tienes nada que decir"), Fish ha centrado su ponencia en narrar la parte final del proceso creativo de 'Fez' y la angustia y el vacío posterior a su lanzamiento.

"El último año del desarrollo de fue como el último metro de la carrera para un atleta, con esas imágenes en que se ve casi cómo se les descompone el cuerpo". Ese proceso está bien documentado en el documental 'Indie Game, The Movie', cuyos autores filmaron durante semanas a Fish en su estudio. "Fue muy duro tener una cámara todo el día enfocándome. ¡Y me pedían que hablara con ellos en los peores momentos! Ahora la gente me ve como ese lunático maniaco asesino... pero no siempre soy así", ironiza.

"Y una mañana te levantas y no puedes cambiar nada más. Nada. Ni un retoque. Y eso después de cinco años de no hacer otra cosa es terriblemente duro", asegura. "Ahora intento volver a trabajar en otra cosa pero no puedo, es como si tuviera un muro. Y eso que tengo ideas y ganas de crear algo nuevo".

En sus primeras seis semanas, 'Fez' vendió más de 100.000 copias para Xbox. Tras ese impresionante éxito, Fish ha anunciado hoy en Gamelab que el juego saltará a otras plataformas. "Después de trabajar cinco años en esto, cuanta más gente pueda jugar con él. mejor".

Junto a estas ponencias, también se ha celebrado hoy la ya tradicional Mesa de Cultura de Gamelab, con la participación del creador de videojuegos Gonzo Suárez y del director de la Academia de Cine, José Garasino. Suárez ha lamentado el "desfase tremendo" que se produce entre la presencia del ocio interactivo en la sociedad y en los medios. "El videojuego es un 'tsunami' a observar y las opiniones no lo detendrán", aventura antes de reinvidicar: "Quiero que la Cultura mire al videojuego para admirar su grandeza y no para que lo legitime".

Para subrayar la relevancia del videojuego en nuestros días, Suárez ha puesto un ejemplo muy gráfico: "La memoria de las personas que empezaron a jugar con el Spectrum no es la de 'cuando vi aquella peli' sino la de 'cuando era ese personaje'. Los antropólogos no podrán explicar qué pasó en esta época sin incluir el videojuego", asegura.

Mientras, Garasino ha descrito al videojuego como "un hijo bastardo del cine que se ha comido a su propio padre" a consecuencia de "su experiencia más inmersiva". "El cine está modificando su narrativa porque la cultura audiovisual de los espectadores ha cambiado", añade. Y lanza un mensaje a su propio sector: "La constante reinvención de la industria del videojuego es un ejemplo para el cine, que le está costando mucho adaptarse a los cambios".

Gamelab 2012 continúa hasta el domingo 1 de julio en la Fira de Barcelona, con una exposición de videojuegos abierta al público y el programa de conferencias Gamelab Academy destinadas a los futuros profesionales del sector. Además, el domingo se celebrará la gran final de GT Academy con la presencia de Kazunori Yamauchi.

Gamelab 2012 cuenta con el apoyo del Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte, la Generalitat de Catalunya a través del Institut Català de les Empreses Culturals, el Instituto de Comercio Exterior (ICEX), Acc1ó (Agencia Catalana de apoyo a la Competitividad de la Empresa), la Asociación de Desarrolladores de Videojuegos de España (DEV), la Academia de las Artes y las Ciencias Interactivas, el Ajuntament de Barcelona y la Fira de Barcelona; con el patrocinio de Minijuegos, Mediapro, Autodesk, Adobe, Unity 3D, Codice Software y Plastic SCM. Medio Oficial, www.Rtve.es. Medio Asociado, www.Vadejuegos.com. Medios Colaboradores, Pocket Gamer, Develop, Vandal y Gamereactor.

Puedes ampliar información a través de www.gamelab.es, Facebook y Twitter.

El momento decisivo de GT Academy en GAMELAB 2012

Kazunori Yamauchi, que recogió anoche el Premio de Honor de la Academia de las Artes y las Ciencias Interactivas, estará presente en la final española de GT Academy

Los 32 mejores jugadores de la fase de clasificación se verán las caras en Gamelab mañana sábado 30 de junio y el domingo 1 de julio

La presente edición de GT Academy llega a su momento más esperado. Mañana sábado 30 de junio de manera virtual dentro de la feria y el domingo 1 de julio se celebrará la final española en las instalaciones exteriores de Gamelab montadas para la competición. Competirán los 32 mejores jugadores de la fase de clasificación. La presencia de Kazunori Yamauchi, creador de la saga Gran Turismo®, será el principal aliciente para los finalistas. Además, Lucas Ordóñez, ganador de la edición de 2008 y actual piloto de Nissan, acudirá a la importante cita.

El pasado 24 de junio finalizó la fase online del programa de conducción promovido por Nissan y PlayStation®. Después del desafío final se elaboró una tabla clasificatoria con todos los resultados de cada región. Únicamente los 16 mejores jugadores de esta fase obtuvieron su plaza para participar en la final española.

El resto de participantes que se verán las caras en Barcelona consiguieron su clasificación durante el pasado Salón Internacional del Automóvil de Madrid. Cientos de apasionados del mundo del motor visitaron el stand de GT Academy en la feria madrileña para conseguir un puesto en la final nacional. Tan solo los 15 mejores consiguieron clasificarse y el próximo fin de semana lucharán por la victoria en Gamelab 2012.

La plaza restante que concede el derecho de participar en la final española de GT Academy fue entregada en Marca Sports Café la semana pasada. Tras una intensa lucha en el circuito de Nurburgring a bordo del Nissan 370Z GT Academy (Versión Tuned), el mejor corredor recibió el pase directo para la final.

Estos 32 aspirantes tendrán que demostrar sus habilidades como piloto virtual y real el próximo 30 de junio y 1 de julio en Barcelona. De entre todos ellos, solamente los tres mejores jugadores conseguirán alcanzar la final europea. Esta fase se celebrará en el mítico circuito británico de Silverstone durante el mes de agosto y reunirá a los más hábiles y rápidos de todo el continente.

En su función como principal precursor de GT Academy, Kazunori Yamauchi aprovechará su presencia en Barcelona con motivo de su participación en Gamelab 2012 para estar cerca de los finalistas. El desarrollador japonés es un gran aficionado a la competición automovilística, por lo que estará muy interesado en conocer en primera persona la pasión de los competidores y sus sensaciones conduciendo por primera vez un automóvil real de alta cilindrada.

Lucas Ordóñez, ganador de GT Academy en 2008, también estará presente en este momento tan decisivo. El joven piloto de Nissan es un ejemplo del éxito que está teniendo el programa de conducción GT Academy y su presencia en la final española será una motivación para los 32 aspirantes.

Las noticias sobre la GT Academy de Nissan y PlayStation® se pueden seguir en varias plataformas: www.facebook.com/GTAcademy | http://eu.gran-turismo.com | www.twitter.com/GTAcademy.

V Premios Nacionales a la Industria del Videojuego

New York Crimes de Pendulo Studios se alzó con 4 galardones de los Premios de la Academia

Hironobu Sakaguchi y Kazunori Yamauchi recogieron los premios honoríficos con una gran ovación

Anoche se entregaron, en el marco de Gamelab Barcelona 2012, los V Premios Nacionales a la Industria del Videojuego de la Academia de las Artes y las Ciencias Interactivas, en una gala en la que ejerció de maestro de ceremonias el actor Álex O’Dogherty.

Al acto asistieron los candidatos, los máximos responsables de este sector y creadores y desarrolladores nacionales e internacionales.

Además de anunciar los ganadores elegidos por los miembros de la Academia, se entregaron los Premios Especiales de la Prensa y del Público, el Premio al Mejor Proyecto Universitario y el Premio Especial a la Mejor Producción.

New York Crimes de Pendulo Studios se alzó con 4 ‘Pulgas’, la estatuilla que representa al primer protagonista de un videojuego español allá por 1983.

Reality Fighters de Novarama y Zack Zero de Crocodile Entertainment S.L., obtuvieron 2 galardones cada uno.

Como colofón, Kazunori Yamauchi (Gran Turismo) recibió el Premio de Honor de la Academia, e Hironobu Sakaguchi (Final Fantasy) el Premio Leyenda Gamelab 2012. Ambas estrellas recibieron una gran ovación por parte de los asistentes.

La lista completa de ganadores de los V Premios Nacionales a la Industria del Videojuego es esta:

• MEJOR JUEGO DEL AÑO: NEW YORK CRIMES de Pendulo Studios, publisher Fx Interactive

• MEJOR JUEGO DE CONSOLA DE SOBREMESA: ZACK ZERO de Crocodile Entertainment S.L.

• MEJOR JUEGO PC: NEW YORK CRIMES de Pendulo Studios, publisher Fx Interactive

• MEJOR JUEGO PARA NAVEGADOR: DESAFÍO CHAMPIONS de Kotoc, publisher RTVE.es

• MEJOR JUEGO PARA CONSOLA PORTÁTIL: REALITY FIGHTERS de Novarama, publisher Sony Computer Entertainment Europe

• MEJOR JUEGO PARA DISPOSITIVOS MÓVILES: SUPERMAGICAL de Super Awesome Hyper Dimensional Mega Team, publisher Gala Pocket

• MEJOR JUEGO PARA REDES SOCIALES: SOCIAL WARS de Social Point, S.L., publisher Social Point, S.L.

• MEJOR PRODUCCIÓN NOVEL: ZACK ZERO de Crocodile Entertainment S.L.

• MEJOR DISEÑO DE JUEGO: AFTERZOOM de Abylight, publisher Abylight

• MEJOR DIRECCIÓN ARTÍSTICA: NEW YORK CRIMES de Pendulo Studios, publisher Fx Interactive

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• MEJOR ANIMACIÓN: LAS AVENTURAS DE TINTIN de Ubisoft Barcelona, publisher Ubisoft

• MEJOR MÚSICA ORIGINAL: NEW YORK CRIMES de Pendulo Studios, publisher Fx Interactive

• MEJOR SONIDO: FREAK WARS (TORRENTE ONLINE 2) de Virtual Toys, publisher Virtual Toys

• MEJOR TECNOLOGÍA: REALITY FIGHTERS de Novarama, publisher Sony Computer Entertainment Europe

• PREMIO ESPECIAL A LA MEJOR PRODUCCIÓN: SONY COMPUTER ESPAÑA

• MEJOR PROYECTO UNIVERSITARIO: FORGOTTEN KODAMA: THE SEED OF LIFE de Hugging Cactus y la Universidad Pompeu Fabra

• PREMIO ESPECIAL DEL PÚBLICO: UNEPIC de Francisco Téllez de Meneses

• PREMIO ESPECIAL DE LA PRENSA: THE MYSTERY TEAM: CAZADORES DE PISTAS de Tonika Games y Sony Computer España

• PREMIO LEYENDA GAMELAB 2012: Hironobu Sakaguchi

• PREMIO DE HONOR DE LA ACADEMIA: Kazunori Yamauchi

Gamelab 2012 cuenta con el apoyo del Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte, la Generalitat de Catalunya a través del Institut Català de les Empreses Culturals, el Instituto de Comercio Exterior (ICEX), Acc1ó (Agencia Catalana de apoyo a la Competitividad de la Empresa), la Asociación de Desarrolladores de Videojuegos de España (DEV), la Academia de las Artes y las Ciencias Interactivas, el Ajuntament de Barcelona y la Fira de Barcelona; con el patrocinio de Minijuegos, Mediapro, Autodesk, Adobe, Unity 3D, Codice Software y Plastic SCM. Medio Oficial, www.Rtve.es. Medio Asociado, www.Vadejuegos.com. Medios Colaboradores, Pocket Gamer, Develop, Vandal y Gamereactor.

Puedes ampliar información a través de www.gamelab.es, Facebook y Twitter.

Hironobu Sakaguchi presenta en Gamelab 2012 las primeras imágenes de su nuevo juego

El creador de 'Final Fantasy', que recoge esta noche el Premio Leyenda, repasa en la Feria de Barcelona los mejores momentos de su carrera

El mítico Al Lowe explica cómo va a relanzar 'Leisure Suit Larry' con una campaña de 'crowdfunding'

El mundialmente famoso Hironobu Sakaguchi ha estado hoy en la VIII Feria Internacional del Videojuego y el Ocio Interactivo que se celebra estos días en Barcelona. El creador de 'Final Fantasy' ha mantenido un encuentro en Gamelab, en el que ha recorrido su larga y prolífica carrera en el mundo de los videojuegos.

Sakaguchi ha recordado cómo "los siete juegos anteriores a 'Final Fantasy' fueron un fracaso". "En realidad, ni nos gustaban a nosotros mismos", ha confesado. "Por eso decidimos jugárnoslo todo a una carta y crear el que sería nuestro último intento, nuestra fantasía final. Si 'Final Fantasy' no hubiera funcionado, nos hubiéramos marchado de este sector".

El creador japonés, que esta noche recogerá el Premio Leyenda de Gamelab, ha señalado que una de las claves del éxito de su saga es el talento de su equipo: "Lo que pasa es que la gente con talento muchas veces no hace lo que dice el director sino lo que les sale de...", bromea. "Si el director consigue liderar todo eso, es cuando se logra un producto de calidad".

Sakaguchi, además, ha presentado en Gamelab 2012 el primer tráiler de su nuevo juego, 'Party Wave', un desarrollo para iPhone que nace de su pasión por el surf. "No hay mucha diferencia entre crear un juego épico de consola y uno para iOS", explica: "Todos los juegos son como tus hijos y los cuidas hasta el más mínimo detalle, independientemente de cuál sea el tamañano del proyecto".

Junto a Sakauchi hoy ha participado en Gamelab Al Lowe, que se llama a sí mismo "el creador de videojuegos más viejo del mundo". Quizá lo sea en edad, pero no en ganas de seguir dando rienda suelta a su sentido del humor y picardía.

Lowe sorprendía hace 25 años con 'Leisure Suite Larry', un videojuego sobre las aventuras de un hombre incapaz de ligar con las mujeres. "Ahora los nuevos juegos consisten en introducir variaciones respecto a otros que ya exisiten", lamenta. "La idea de Larry, en cambio, era hacer algo totalmente distinto. Optamos por una comedia sexual, algo que no se había hecho hasta el momento".

Ahora trabaja en adaptar al mítico Larry al siglo XXI, con nuevos gráficos, música y todas las demás posibilidades que se han abierto en los últimos tiempos. "Es que el primer Larry iba en dos 'floppy disc'. Ahora hasta un auricular con 'bluetooth' tiene más memoria que eso", ironiza.

Para ello ha abierto una campaña de 'crowdfunding', es decir, al margen de los gigantes del sector y recavando financiación de los futuros usuarios. "Lo bueno de no trabajar para un gran editor no sólo es que tienes más libertad, sino que la gente que invierte suele enviar también sus ideas, lo que al final enriquece el producto final", asegura.

Lowe anima a los desarrolladores a explorar esta fórmula, aunque advierte: "El 75% de los juegos inscritos en estas plataformas fracasan". Para evitarlo aporta su fórmula: "Las campañas tienen que ser divertidas, creativas, estar actualizadas, ofrecer recompensas interesantes para los inversores... Por ejemplo, se me ocurrió incorporar el Larrywood's Walk of Shame, en el que ofrecíamos poner el nombre de 20 personas que invirtieran 750 dólares: lo vendimos en menos de 24 horas".

También ha pasado hoy por Gamelab el conseller de Cultura de la Generalitat, Ferran Mascarell, que ha presentado la asociación DEVICAT, que reúne a los editores y desarrolladores de videojuegos de Cataluña, de la que forman parte Digital Chocolate (dirigida por Gerard Fernández), Digital Legends (de Xavier Carrillo), Novarama (Daniel Sánchez Crespo), Social Point (Horacio Martos y Andres Bou) y UbiSoft (Maria Therese).

Mascarell ha destacado la importancia de "apostar por el videojuego como un sector estratégico con el apoyo de las instituciones públicas y acompañados por otros elementos clave como una formación de calidad".

Mascarell ha destacado la importancia de "apostar por el videojuego como un sector estratégico con el apoyo de las instituciones públicas y acompañados por otros elementos clave como una formación de calidad".

Gamelab 2012 continúa mañana con la presencia de Kazunori Yamauchi, el creador de la saga 'Gran Turismo', que esta noche recoge el Premio de Honor de la Academia de las Artes Interactivas. También participará Phil Fish, el creador de 'Fez', uno de los videojuegos mejor recibidos por crítica y público en los últimos años.

Además, el secretario de Estado de Cultura, José María Lasalle, el creador de videojuegos Gonzo Suárez y el director de la Academia de Cine, José Garasino, hablarán de cómo la industria del videojuego es pionera en el entorno digital y puede servir de referencia para el resto de industrias culturales que tienen que buscan ahora su sitio en el entorno digital.

Gamelab 2012 cuenta con el apoyo del Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte, la Generalitat de Catalunya a través del Institut Català de les Empreses Culturals, el Instituto de Comercio Exterior (ICEX), Acc1ó (Agencia Catalana de apoyo a la Competitividad de la Empresa), la Asociación de Desarrolladores de Videojuegos de España (DEV), la Academia de las Artes y las Ciencias Interactivas, el Ajuntament de Barcelona y la Fira de Barcelona; con el patrocinio de Minijuegos, Mediapro, Autodesk, Adobe, Unity 3D, Codice Software y Plastic SCM. Medio Oficial, www.Rtve.es. Medio Asociado, www.Vadejuegos.com. Medios Colaboradores, Pocket Gamer, Develop, Vandal y Gamereactor.

Puedes ampliar información a través de www.gamelab.es, Facebook y Twitter.

Gamelab 2012 supera todas las expectativas de público en su primera jornada dedicada a los videojuegos para móviles

Xavier Carrillo anima a los diseñadores de videojuegos a conquistar el Este en la inauguración de la VIII Feria Internacional del Videojuego y el Ocio Interactivo

Los responsables del juego más vendido del mundo, 'Angry Birds', reconocen que su éxito les pilló por sorpresa

"Cuando vi a mi madre jugando al 'Angry Birds' en su móvil fue cuando me di cuenta de que iba a ser algo grande". El comentario de Teemu Huuhtanen, vicepresidente de Rovio, en la jornada inaugural de Gamelab 2012 explica bien el fenómeno: los juegos para móviles no sólo son el sector con mayor potencial de crecimiento por número de terminales (2.300 millones de personas se conectan ya a Internet a través de su teléfono móvil) sino que han puesto a jugar a personas que nunca antes lo habían hecho.

"¿Cómo de grande es el mercado de los móviles", se preguntaba Simon Podd, de Flurry, la principal empresa de analítica de audiencias de este sector. "Hay 7.000 millones de personas en el mundo; 6.000 millones de suscripciones a líneas de telefonía móvil y 2.300 millones de usuario de Internet a través del teléfono. Sin embargo, sólo 530 millones de personas tienen un terminal iPhone o Android, es decir que la penetración es de tan sólo un 25% del total", explica Podd. "Se puede decir que como oportunidad, casi no ha empezado".

Por ese motivo, Gamelab 2012 ha dedicado su jornada inaugural a analizar la situación actual del mercado de juegos para móviles, a identificar los retos que los diseñadores tendrán que afrontar en los próximos años y a señalar dónde están las mejores oportunidades para las empresas del sector.

"Go East!", ha empezado aconsejando Xavier Carrillo, fundador de Digital Legend, una empresa de Barcelona situada a la vanguardia de los desarrollos para móviles cuyos juegos han llegado a ser número 1 en ventas a nivel mundial. Incluso su 'Bruce Lee Dragon Warrior' fue el más vendido Japón, el mercado más exigente con los juegos de artes marciales.

Carrillo ha subrayado lo rápido que están cambiando los hábitos de consumo en Asia. China hasta el año pasado era un mercado casi impracticable por los altísimos niveles de piratería, la escasez de 'smpartphones' y los problemas para la distribución; sin embargo, en tan sólo un año la venta de iPhones y de terminales Android se ha disparado hasta el punto de que en ese plazo de tiempo el número de descargas del Apple Store en China ha igualado las que se producen en Estados Unidos.

En Japón, según Carrillo, el mercado que hasta ahora estaba dominado por las marcas blancas y las restricciones de los operadores locales, ahora crece exponencialmente. Además, Carrillo anuncia que pronto se unirá un tercer e inmenso país: India, donde hasta ahora apenas ha habido penetración pero que gracias a una tableta Android que se vende a 40 dólares se espera un crecimiento masivo en la demanda de contenidos.

Pero si alguien sabe de difusión masiva es Rovio, la empresa creadora de 'Angry Birds', el juego para móviles más vendido del mundo, la franquicia de mayor crecimiento de la historia, número 1 en todas las plataformas donde se ha publicado. Teemu Huuhtanen, vicepresidente de la compañía, ha reconocido que el fenomenal éxito de su juego fue "un accidente" pero que el acierto de Rovio fue darse cuenta a tiempo para transformarse de una empresa de videojuegos en una compañía de entretenimiento global.

Huuhtanen ha recordado cómo el primer 'Angry Birds' tardó 167 días en alcanzar los 10 millones de descargas, mientras que la nueva entrega de la saga, 'Angry Birds Space' ha llegado a esa cifra en poco más de una semana. Pero no todo en Rovio es una historia de éxitos: antes hubo otros 51 juegos que no llegaron a triunfar.

Una de las claves en el éxito sostenido de 'Angry Birds' es, según Huuhtanen, la renovación permanente del contenido, lanzando actualizaciones cada dos o tres semanas y la expansión a todas las plataformas "relevantes". "Si es digital, allí estará 'Angry Birds", ha resumido.

Pero ya no es sólo un juego: ahora hay camisetas, muñecos, libros... "Es difícil saber cuántos productos físicos hay de 'Angry Birds", reconoce. Tanto es así que en 2011 el 30% de los ingresos procedían del 'merchandising', una proporción crecerá mucho este año. En parte por el lanzamiento de una serie de animación basada en el juego y producida por su propio estudio que estará disponible, no en las televisiones, sino en las plataformas digitales este mismo año.

Huuhtanen, además, ha añadido que "muy pronto" lanzarán su nuevo y ya esperadísimo juego, 'Amazing Alex', sobre el que guardan absoluto secreto pero esperan que siga la estela del ya mítico 'Angry Birds'. Curiosamente, este juego es una licencia adquirida a una compañía estadounidense llamada Snappytouch fundada por el español Noel Llopis.

La empresa catalana Social Point sigue la estela de Rovio con inmenso éxito en todo el mundo. La estrella de su catálogo, el 'Social Empires', tiene 1.200.000 usuarios activos en Facebook. Los fundadores de la compañía, Horacio Martos y Andrés Bou, han anunciado en Gamelab que dan el salto al mercado móvil convirtiendo sus juegos en multiplataforma. Así, los fans de 'Social Empires' podrán empezar la partida en Facebook y continuarla desde el móvil allá donde se encuentren.

Mañana Gamelab 2012 abre su exposición de videojuegos, con acceso al público, en la Fira de Barcelona, que permanecerá hasta el domingo. Entre los ponentes que estarán mañana en el congreso figura el creador de 'Final Fantasy', Hironobu Sakaguchi; Al Lowe, humorista y músico, que suele referirse a sí mismo como “el diseñador de videojuegos más viejo del mundo”; Alexander Seropian, creador original de 'Halo'; o Enric Alvarez: creador de 'Castlevania: Lords of Shadows', entre otros muchos.

Gamelab 2012 cuenta con el apoyo del Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte, la Generalitat de Catalunya a través del Institut Català de les Empreses Culturals, el Instituto de Comercio Exterior (ICEX), Acc1ó (Agencia Catalana de apoyo a la Competitividad de la Empresa), la Asociación de Desarrolladores de Videojuegos de España (DEV), la Academia de las Artes y las Ciencias Interactivas, el Ajuntament de Barcelona y la Fira de Barcelona; con el patrocinio de Minijuegos, Mediapro, Autodesk, Adobe, Unity 3D, Codice Software y Plastic SCM. Medio Oficial, www.Rtve.es. Medio Asociado, www.Vadejuegos.com. Medios Colaboradores, Pocket Gamer, Develop, Vandal y Gamereactor.

Puedes ampliar información a través de www.gamelab.es, Facebook y Twitter.

Gamelab 2012 starts tomorrow in Barcelona, which one of the biggest fairs in the videogames industry

This year the conference, which is gathering together the key industry gurus in interactive entertainment, will focus on mobile gaming, social games and the business model in the digital world

The creators of Gran Turismo, Kazunori Yamauchi, and Final Fantasy, Hironobu Sakaguchi, will participate in this event, which will take place from June 27 to July 1, 2012

The 8th International Videogames and Interactive Entertainment Fair, Gamelab 2012, will open its doors tomorrow, which will assemble many of the industry legends for five days in Barcelona to discuss the current state of the sector, and to anticipate the future that will face videogames developers.

Gamelab 2012 will analyze the latest creative, technological and commercial trends, and will attempt to predict the impact of digital entertainment on our lives in the immediate future. Leading names from the world of politics, arts and communications will discuss the scope and social, cultural and economic effects of this global phenomenon, alongside the big industry gurus.

A radically different approach compared to other industry events, which aims to transcend mere industry concerns and place videogames 100% at the heart of global communications and general interest.

The opening day will be devoted to the impressive growth of videogames for mobile devices. Gamelab Mobile looks at one of the largest windows of opportunity for games creators: the number of mobile devices with videogames is set to reach 15 billion in 2015. Unlke the other events in the conference, which will take place in the Fira de Barcelona, this event will be held at the Hotel Catalonia Plaza.

The features of Gamelab 2012 are:

• The fair is open to the public: The big names in the videogames industry and in the world of communications and technology will be unveiling their latest innovations from June 28 to July 1 in the Fira; the fair is anticipating over 20,000 visitors over the four days.
• Gamelab Mobile: A whole day dedicated to the revolution sparked by games for mobile devices. This will take place on June 27 at the Hotel Catalonia Plaza.
• The National Videogames Industry Awards: Organized by the Spanish Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences in partnership with Gamelab. The award night is Thursday, June 28, 2012.
• Conferences and debates: Presentations from leading international industry gurus.
• Professional networking: Gamelab Hub, exhibition and meeting spaces for professionals and companies from all over the world.
• Training activities: Gamelab Academy, dedicated to younger visitors to advise them regarding training, and help them make their first steps into the professional world.

Among the big industry names attending the fair are:

• Al Lowe: humorist and musician, generally describes himself as "the oldest videogames designer in the world."
• Alexander Seropian: Original creator of Halo, and now turning his vast games experience to mobile telephones.
• Carsten Van Husen: His main game, Metin2, has attracted a fanbase of 9 million active users a month.
• Chris Avellone: Creator of the successful license Fallout: New Vegas that is now turning to crowd funding for Wasteland 2.
• Enric Alvarez: Creator, among many other games, of the hit Castlevania: Lords of Shadows, the first game that Japanese multinational Konami developed outside Japan.
• Hironobu Sakaguchi: Creator of Final Fantasy, who will be honored by the industry with the Legend Award Gamelab 2012 at the opening ceremony of the National Videogames Awards.
• James Ohlen: Creative Director of online videogame Star Wars: The Old Republic.
• Julien Merceron: Technological strategy guru for big videogames companies.
• Kazunori Yamauchi: Creator of the Gran Turismo saga, and professional racing driver. He will receive the Honor Award from the Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences.
• Phil Fish: Designer of Fez, one of the games to receive the most plaudits from critics and public over the last few years.
• Xavier Carrillo: Founder of Digital Legends, a company that has received numerous awards for games developed for mobiles.

Gamelab 2012 is supported by the Ministry of Culture, the Autonomous Government of Catalonia through the Catalan Institute for Cultural Companies, the Institute for External Commerce (ICEX), Acc1ó (Catalonian Agency for support to Company Competitiveness), the Association of Spanish Videogame Developers (DEV), the Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences, the Barcelona Council and the Fira de Barcelona, with the sponsorship of Minijuegos, Mediapro, Autodesk, Adobe and Unity 3D. Rtve.es is the official media for this 8th fair, and PocketGamer and Develop are the media partners.

Last minute change to the program: Microsoft's Corrine Yu will not be able to attend the fair. In addition Germany developers Crytek will now be represented by Paha Schutz, Director of Business Development, and not Cevat Yerli. These changes have resulted in some rescheduling of the program. You can view the latest schedule here: http://www.gamelab.es/2012/congreso/programa/

For more details, please visit www.gamelab.es

The videogame industry is establishing itself as a strategic and model industry for companies in the cultural sector

The leading international gurus will discuss the latest technological, creative and commercial trends at Gamelab

The 8th International Videogame and Interactive Entertainment Fair has today announced its program, which is more extensive and over a longer period than ever before!

Gamelab 2012 (June 27 to July 1, 2012 in Barcelona) was presented this morning at the Ministry of Culture of the Autonomous Government of Catalonia, with the Director of the Fair, Iván Fernández Lobo; Gonzo Suárez, videogames creator; Ferran Mascarell, Director of Culture; Jaume Ciurana, Deputy Mayor of Culture for Barcelona; Faustino Díaz, Deputy Director of Policy and Cultural Industries in the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport; Carles Flamerich, President of Telecommunications and Social Information in the Department of Business and Employment; and Pere Camprubí, Director of the Fira de Barcelona.

Fernández Lobo emphasized that the 8th year of Gamelab had expanded from three to five days, thus opening its doors even wider to the general public, while still fulfilling its remit as a professional conference. "This is seen as a gourmet event on the international scene", added Gonzo Suárez. "We may not be as big as certain other shows, but we have selected the best content."

The aim of Gamelab is to create business using 'white gold', i.e. to generate wealth from gray matter, Suárez remarked: "If we don't act quickly, we will be consumers and not producers in this global market." The creator of Commandos also highlighted the need for videogames to be a reference for other cultural industries: "Books and audiovisual content can learn to live in an environment that is not only very strong, but which is the only one in which they can survive."

The Director of Culture for Barcelona, Ferran Mascarell, stressed that the videogames sector “is a strategic element of our cultural life, and must be for objective reasons, because it is an industry that influences all the sectors and because it makes us universal, which allows us to be content producers and not just consumers. A culture that wants to be strong must have the tools to enable it to produce content. Our markets must be international, so that everything that is produced has a global reach." On this subject, Mascarell and Suárez said “We are working with several universities to devises courses in videogames."

Faustino Díaz, the Ministry's Deputy Director of Cultural Industries, said "Gamelab is a fundamental part of a structural shift that is moving us towards the knowledge-based society", the Minister of Culture is therefore making a "strong commitment" to the Fair. Similarly, Jaume Ciurana, Barcelona's Deputy Mayor for Culture, confirmed the municipality's 'creative-friendly' strategy for the city, "participating actively in events, looking for originality and talent". Ciruana emphasized the "transversality" of videogames with respect to all the other cultural industries, and its role model for this industry.

Gamelab is the largest professional event in the videogames industry in Southern Europe, and the official site for international companies who have a Spanish-speaking industry and market. The show features are:

• The fair is open to the public: the big names in the videogames industry and in the world of communications and technology will be unveiling their latest innovations from June 28 to July 1 in the Fira; the fair is anticipating over 20,000 visitors over the four days.
• Gamelab Mobile: an entire day dedicated to the revolution sparked by games for mobile devices. This will take place on June 27 at the Hotel Catalonia Plaza.
• National Videogames Industry Awards: organized by the Spanish Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences in partnership with Gamelab. The award night is Thursday, June 28, 2012.
• Conferences and debates: presentations from leading international industry gurus.
• Professional networking: Gamelab Hub, exhibition and meeting spaces for professionals and companies from all over the world.
• Training activities: Gamelab Academy, dedicated to younger visitors to advise them regarding training, and help them make their first steps into the professional world.

Among the big industry names attending the fair are:

• Al Lowe: humorist and musician, generally describes himself as "the oldest videogames designer in the world."
• Alexander Seropian: Original creator of Halo, and now turning his vast games experience to mobile telephones.
• Corrine Yu: Chief Engineer at Microsoft, cornerstone of the recent release Halo 4, and one of the most influential women in the world of videogames. She also worked at NASA as a researcher into nuclear physics.
• Enric Alvarez: Creator, among many other games, of the hit Castlevania: Lords of Shadows, the first game that Japanese multinational Konami developed outside Japan.
• Hironobu Sakaguchi: Creator of Final Fantasy, who will be honored by the industry with the Legend Award Gamelab 2012 at the opening ceremony of the National Videogames Awards.
• Cevat Yerli: Founder of Crytek, one of the leading European companies in the industry. Developers of games such as Far Cry.
• James Ohlen: Creative Director of online videogame Star Wars: The Old Republic.
• Kazunori Yamauchi: Creator of the Gran Turismo saga, and professional racing driver. He will receive the Honor Award from the Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences.
• Phil Fish: Designer of Fez, one of the games to receive the most plaudits from critics and public over the last few years.
• Xavier Carrillo: Founder of Digital Legends, a company that has received numerous awards for games developed for mobiles.

Gamelab 2012 is supported by the Ministry of Culture, the Autonomous Government of Catalonia through the Catalan Institute for Cultural Companies, the Institute for External Commerce (ICEX), Acc1ó (Catalonian Agency for support to Company Competitiveness), the Association of Spanish Videogame Developers (DEV), the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences, the Barcelona Council and the Fira de Barcelona, with the sponsorship of Minijuegos, Mediapro, Autodesk, Adobe and Unity 3D. Rtve.es is the official media for this 8th fair, and Pocket Gamer and Develop are the media partners.

Read more about it at: www.gamelab.es

Gamelab is organizing the top event for mobile games in Southern Europe.

Gamelab Mobile, the opening day of the fair, will bring together leading experts to analyze the latest trends in mobile and portable games, the fastest growing sector in interactive entertainment

Gamelab Mobile, the event that will kick off the activities of Gamelab 2012 on June 27, 2012, will assemble the leading international experts in the mobile games, tablet and portable consoles sector.

This sector of the industry is anticipated to experience spectacular growth in the next few years, and will represent one of the best opportunities for content creators of interactive entertainment. An example of how this industry is revolutionizing the sector is Rovio (one of the companies participating in the event) that just one month after selling 50 million copies of the latest Angry Birds title, has already exceeded one billion downloads of the franchise.

Gamelab Mobile, the largest event of this type ever held in Spain, will discuss the creative, technological and commercial trends that will shape the future of portable digital entertainment. Never before have so many specialist companies in this sector been gathered together, and companies with the biggest growth and profile in the world of interactive entertainment.

The most notable attendees include:

• Teemu Huuhtanen and Matt Wilson, two of the leading figures at Rovio, will discuss how to turn a game into a massive global brand.
• Tim Harrison, Head of Content Strategy at Sony Mobile International who, along with Paul Flanagan (Tequila Mobile) and Michael Shade (Fishlabs), will summarize the main alternatives to the Apple store for games distribution.
• Xavier Carrillo, founder and CEO of one of the most prestigious development companies in the world, Barcelona Digital Legends, talk about the developments in technology, platforms and international markets to watch out for over the coming years.
• Simon Podd, Sales Director at Flurry, the specialist data analysis consultancy, will share some fascinating statistics on the volume of the current market in the sector and its anticipated growth in the next few years.
• Horacio Martos and Andrés Bou, young Catalan entrepreneurs who turned Social Point into one of the most successful companies in Europe for Facebook games, will explain how their company entered the world of social games for mobiles, the industry sector that has experienced the most growth.
• Maarten Noyons (founder of Playground Ventures and the International Mobile Gaming Awards, (IMGA)), will chair a panel where various companies will present revolutionary games based on geolocation techniques, an innovative form of entertainment that combines the real and virtual world.
• Daniel Sánchez Crespo, creator of the famous Invizimals from Novarama, will discuss new business models that are set to drive the market for games on the Sony PS Vita platform.
• Chris James, Director of PocketGamer, will chair a panel to discuss the role and use of editors/publishers in the current panorama of digital distribution.

Gamelab Mobile is organized in partnership with PocketGamer, the leading international portal on videogames for all types of mobile and portable platforms, and sponsored by Papaya Mobile, one of the main international mobile social games platforms.

After the first day, Gamelab will move to pavilion 1 of the Fira de Barcelona, Montjuïc where conferences and professional networking events, discussions and student workshops will take place from Thursday June 28 and Sunday, July 1, 2012 and a commercial exhibition where the latest industry innovations will be presented to the press and the general public.

Pre-registration is now open online on our website, We have also created a new online business area where the companies participating can introduce themselves and organize their meeting schedule: http://networking.gamelab.es/

Voting is also open for the Special Award from the Public for the 5th National Videogames Awards. Visit http://www.gamelab.es/2012/premios/premios-del-publico/ to select winners from among the 75 best games in the Spanish games industry; completing the survey alone will enter you for the lottery for 75 entrance tickets.

Gamelab 2012 is supported by the Ministry of Culture, the Autonomous Government of Catalonia through the Catalan Institute for Cultural Companies, the Institute for External Commerce (ICEX), Acc1ó (Catalonian Agency for support to Company Competitiveness), the Association of Spanish Videogame Developers (DEV), the Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences, the Barcelona Council and the Fira de Barcelona, with the sponsorship of Minijuegos, Mediapro, Autodesk, Adobe and Unity 3D. Rtve.es is the official media for this 8th fair, and PocketGamer and Develop are the media partners.

More information at www.gamelab.es

KAZUNORI YAMAUCHI, CREATOR OF 'GRAN TURISMO®', RECEIVES THE HONOR AWARD FROM THE ACADEMY

The Japanese designer, master of hyperrealism in videogames, will attend Gamelab 2012 to accept the award and talk about the limits of the virtual

The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences has accoladed Kazunori Yamauchi with the Honor Award 2012.Yamauchi-san is the creator of the series Gran Turismo®, one of the most successful videogames in history, famous for its high level of hyperrealism. This award, like the other categories, will be presented in Barcelona at the gala of the 5th National Videogames Industry Awards at Gamelab 2012. Yamauchi-san will also remain at the fair to talk about his work, as did the legendary Hideo Kojima when he won the Honor Award.

Videogames designer and professional racing driver, only Kazunori Yamauchi (born Kashiwa, Japan, 1967) could create Gran Turismo®, which has sold over 65 million copies worldwide since its release in 1997. But young Yamauchi-san dreamed of becoming an astronaut or film director as he moved around the country with his parents, who were traveling ceramics sellers. It must have been during these long journeys that he discovered his passion for cars. Naturally curious, he started programming his own videogames when he was 10 years old, and when he landed his first job in Sony's videogames division a few years later, he was amazed that he was able to earn his living from his hobby!

His first project at Sony was designing a car racing game in the Mario Kart style, called Motor Toon Grand Prix, which was released in 1994. The game was reasonably successful, but Yamauchi-san suddenly felt the urge to abandon the comic strip look to make the game experience as close to a real racing car as possible, so he started developing Gran Turismo®. The game was completed in 1998 and not only became the best selling PlayStation® original game, but was hailed as genuinely revolutionary for its meticulous detail in the simulation and the vast selection of vehicles.

Gran Turismo® has become one of the most successful franchises in history, with each of its five titles achieving stratospheric sales figures! But its influence goes beyond the world of videogames: certain vehicles that were previously only sold in Japan were now being exported to the United Sates. Moreover car makers such as Aston Martin, Ruf, Venturi and Alfa Romeo saw their popularity rise, and Yamauchi-san was even hired as a consultant for major brands such as Volkswagen.

But Yamauchi-san's passion for cars goes beyond the virtual; as a professional racing driver, he has competed at the Nürburgring VLN Endurance racing series, the 25 Hours of Thunderhil and the Nürburgring 24 Hours, where he teamed up with Spanish driver Lucas Ordóñez, who in turn entered the world of professional driving when he won a championship in the Gran Turismo® Academy.

Gamelab 2012 will take place from June 27 to July 1, 2012 at the Fira de Barcelona. Online pre-registration is now open on the passes and entrance page. We have also created a new online business area where the companies participating can introduce themselves and organize their meeting schedule.

Gamelab 2012 is supported by the Ministry of Culture, the Autonomous Government of Catalonia through the Catalan Institute for Cultural Companies, the Institute for External Commerce (ICEX), Acc1ó (Catalonian Agency for support to Company Competitiveness), the Association of Spanish Videogame Developers (DEV), the Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences, the Barcelona Council and the Fira de Barcelona, with the sponsorship of Minijuegos, Mediapro, Autodesk, Adobe and Unity 3D. Rtve.es is the official media for this 8th fair, and PocketGamer and Develop are the media partners.

More info at www.gamelab.es

HIRONOBU SAKAGUCHI, CREATOR OF 'FINAL FANTASY', THE LEGEND AWARD, GAMELAB 2012

The legendary designer will attend Gamelab 2012 to collect this award, and to talk about his life and work

Hironobu Sakaguchi, one of the top names in the history of videogames, will receive homage for his incredible career from the whole industry with the Gamelab 2012 Legend Award. This award will be presented in Barcelona at the gala of the 5th National Videogame Industry Awards during Gamelab 2012 . Moreover you can meet Sakaguchi, considered as the father of the fantasy genre, at the fair, where he will talk about his career and his famous designs.

Hironobu Sakaguchi (born in Hitachi, Japan, 1962) had hardly finished university when he started work at a very new company: Square. Three years later he had become Director of Planning and Development. However, the company needed a hit to consolidate its position and for Sakaguchi to be convinced that he had a place in the industry. He therefore decided that the next project would be all or nothing; his final fantasy. The game was released by Nintendo Entertainment Systems shortly before Christmas, 1987 and was an instant success. Over the next few years, Final Fantasy developed into a franchise under Sakaguchi's close supervision.

His career at Square was bound up with Final Fantasy. Four years later he was appointed Executive Vice President, and in his fifth year he vacated his position as a director to become the producer of the franchise. When Final Fantasy VI was released, he was appointed President of Square USA, and in his ninth year he decided to remove himself from the saga to work on other projects such as Vagrant Story, Parasite Eve and Kingdom Hearts.

His influence at Square was such that, when he left his role as Vice President, the company's financial capital was reduced, and was forced to merge with Enix in 2003. Sakaguchi was not comfortable after the merger, and left the company to found his own studio, Mistwalker. Since then he has created two games for Xbox (Blue Dragon and Lost Odyssey), one for Nintendo DS (ASH: Archaic Sealed Heat) and has recently released the co-production The Last Story on Wii.

Furthermore, Sakaguchi wanted to show that videogames and film are two converging artistic forms, and directed a film version of Final Fantasy in 2001. It was the first photorealistic animated movie, and holds the record as the most expensive film based on a videogame in history!

In 2011, the Gamelab Legend Award was given to another great revolutionary creator of interactive entertainment: Peter Molyneux, father of AI applied to games, author of Populous, Black & White, Theme Park, The Movies and Fable, among many others!

Gamelab 2012 will take place from June 27 to July 1, 2012 at the Fira de Barcelona. Online pre-registration is now open on the passes and entrance page. We have also created a new online business area where the companies participating can introduce themselves and organize their meeting schedule.

Gamelab 2012 is supported by the Ministry of Culture, the Autonomous Government of Catalonia through the Catalan Institute for Cultural Companies, the Institute for External Commerce (ICEX), Acc1ó (Catalonian Agency for support to Company Competitiveness), the Association of Spanish Videogame Developers (DEV), the Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences, the Barcelona Council and the Fira de Barcelona, with the sponsorship of Minijuegos, Mediapro, Autodesk, Adobe and Unity 3D. Rtve.es is the official media for this 8th fair, and PocketGamer and Develop are the media partners.

More info at www.gamelab.es

FOUNDER OF 'HALO' DEVELOPER BUNGIE, ALEXANDER SEROPIAN, AT GAMELAB 2012

Creators Alexander Seropian and Corrinne Yu will attend the fair only days after the presentation of 'Halo 4'

Julien Merceron, one of the major experts in technological strategy, will also attend the 8th Gamelab

The Halo saga, the flagship videogame of Microsoft and the Xbox console, has just unveiled the fourth part at E3 in Los Angeles; one of the most eagerly anticipated game launches of the last years. The original creator of the title, Alexander Seropian and Corinne Yu, Microsoft's signed star for the new series of the franchise, will be attending Gamelab 2012.

Alexander Seropian is one of the founders of Bungie Studios, who developed games like Marathon and Myth. Seropian is the original creator of Halo, a project so ambitious that Microsoft bought the company years before its release to make it a star project for the Xbox. Some years later, Seropian founded another company, Wideload Games, which is now part of Disney Interactive Studios, where he has brought his wealth of games experience to mobile phones. So not for nothing is his presentation at Gamelab 2012 called: 'Who put Salsa Alucinante™ in my mobile?'.

Corrinne Yu is one of the most influential women in the videogames industry. With nearly 20 years' experience in large companies, she is a pioneer in the use of 3D in the evolution of game engines for games. She has worked as Technical Lead for various 3D games such as ION Storm and Gearbox. She is currently the first woman on Microsoft's Graphics and Direct 3D advisory board. She has also worked in the aerospace sector, programming on NASA's space shuttle program in Rockwell. She designed experiments for the particle accelerator at the Brookhaven National Laboratory in California and received a national award from the US Department of Energy. Since 2008 she has been responsible for developing new technologies for Microsoft games, some of which have been integrated for the first time in Halo 4, and others will be incorporated in the next titles in the series.

In addition, Gamelab 2012 can announce the participation of another huge technological guru, Julien Merceron, currently Technology Director at the Square Enix Group and previously Technology Director at Eidos. Merceron will explain how the technological strategy is designed in a large title, comparing his experience in each of these large companies and trying to get a glimpse of the challenges that will face videogames creators in the future.

Note: the Spanish Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences has had to change the finalists in two categories of the 5th National Videogame Awards, organized in partnership with Gamelab. The jury realized that the game The Adventures of Tintin does not fulfill the requirements to qualify for the awards for Best Game of the Year and Best Home Console Game, as it was not developed in its entirety by the Barcelona studio, Ubisoft. It will be replaced by the following games that received the most votes respectively: Pocoyo Racing by Zinkia (publisher Zinkia) in the Best Game of the Year category, and Little Racers Street from Ovieto studios MilkStone Studios S.L. (publisher Microsoft - Xbox LIVE Indie Games) in the Best Home Console Game category.

Gamelab 2012 will take place from June 27 to July 1, 2012 at the Fira de Barcelona. Online pre-registration is now open on the passes and entrance page. We have also created a new online business area where the companies participating can introduce themselves and organize their meeting schedule.

Gamelab 2012 is supported by the Ministry of Culture, the Autonomous Government of Catalonia through the Catalan Institute for Cultural Companies, the Institute for External Commerce (ICEX), Acc1ó (Catalonian Agency for support to Company Competitiveness), the Association of Spanish Videogame Developers (DEV), the Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences, the Barcelona Council and the Fira de Barcelona, with the sponsorship of Minijuegos, Mediapro, Autodesk, Adobe and Unity 3D. Rtve.es is the official media for this 8th fair, and PocketGamer and Develop are the media partners.

More info at www.gamelab.es

FINALISTS IN THE 5TH NATIONAL VIDEOGAME INDUSTRY AWARDS

NEW YORK CRIMES (7), ZACK ZERO (6) y LAS AVENTURAS DE TINTIN (4) son los títulos con más candidaturas

We now know the games that have reached the final of the 5th National Videogame Industry Awards, organized by the Spanish Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences in partnership with Gamelab, the International Videogame and Interactive Entertainment Fair.

The voting process is now open for the academics to choose the winners who will be announced at the awards ceremony on Thursday, June 28, 2012 during the Gamelab 2012 events.

This same evening some special Awards will also pay homage to industry heroes and games; the press Award and the public Award. Voting is open on http://www.gamelab.es/2012/premios/premios-del-publico/ to select the 75 best games in the Spanish games industry, and simply taking part in the survey enters participants in the prize draw for 75 Expo passes.

These awards are to recognize in particular the companies and professionals in the Spanish games industry, highlighting the best titles developed over the past year.

Los finalistas en cada una de las categorías de los premios son:

BEST GAME OF THE YEAR

• POCOYO RACING by Zinkia, publisher Zinkia
• NEW YORK CRIMES by Pendulo Studios, publisher Fx Interactive
• REALITY FIGHTERS by Novarama, publisher Sony Computer Entertainment Europe
• ZACK ZERO by Crocodile Entertainment S.L.

BEST HOME CONSOLE GAME

• FOOTBALL UP by EnjoyUp Games, publisher EnjoyUp Games
• LITLLE RACERS STREET de Milkstone Studios
• POCOYO RACING by Zinkia, publisher Zinkia
• ZACK ZERO by Crocodile Entertainment S.L.

BEST PC GAME

• FREAK WARS (TORRENTE ONLINE 2) by Virtual Toys, publisher Virtual Toys
• NEW YORK CRIMES by Pendulo Studios, publisher Fx Interactive
• THE CROSS FORMULA by KatGames, publisher KatGames
• UNEPIC by Francisco Téllez de Meneses

BEST BROWSER GAME

• DESAFÍO CHAMPIONS by Kotoc, publisher RTVE.es
• FURFUR AND NUBLO 2 by DevilishGames, publisher TurboNuke
• LOST ON THE LOST PLANET by DevilishGames, publisher ArcadeTown
• SPIRIT FENCER by Melee Studios, publisher Armor Games

BEST PORTABLE CONSOLE GAME

• AFTERZOOM de Abylight, publisher Abylight
• POCOYO RACING by Zinkia, publisher Zinkia
• REALITY FIGHTERS by Novarama, publisher Sony Computer Entertainment Europe
• THE MYSTERY TEAM: CAZADORES DE PISTAS by Tonika Games, publisher Sony Computer Entertainment España

BEST MOBILE GAME (smartphone & tablet)

• ABY ESCAPE by Pixel Ratio, publisher Bulkypix
• PUSH CARS by RLS Games / Ivanovich Games, publisher RLS Games
• SLIDE SOCCER by Ideateca, publisher Ideateca
• SUPERMAGICAL by Super Awesome Hyper Dimensional Mega Team, publisher Gala Pocket

BEST SOCIAL NETWORK GAME

• GALAXY LIFE by Digital Chocolate Microjocs Game Studio, publisher Digital Chocolate
• NEW IN TOWN by Digital Chocolate Microjocs Game Studio, publisher Digital Chocolate
• PARADISE CLUB by Pyro Studios, publisher IZ
• SOCIAL WARS by Social Point, S.L., publisher Social Point, S.L.

BEST NOVEL PRODUCTION

• CHEESE PLEASE by Noob Ware SL., publisher Gamevil
• KINITO NINKA by Delirium Studios, publisher Yubi Games
• UNEPIC by Francisco Téllez de Meneses
• ZACK ZERO by Crocodile Entertainment S.L.

BEST GAME DESIGN

• AFTERZOOM by Abylight, publisher Abylight
• NEW YORK CRIMES by Pendulo Studios, publisher Fx Interactive
• THE MYSTERY TEAM: CAZADORES DE PISTAS by Tonika Games, publisher Sony Computer Entertainment España
• ZACK ZERO by Crocodile Entertainment S.L.

BEST ART DIRECTION

• ADVENTURE PARK by Pyro Studios, publisher IZ
• NEW YORK CRIMES by Pendulo Studios, publisher Fx Interactive
• SUPERMAGICAL by Super Awesome Hyper Dimensional Mega Team, publisher Gala Pocket
• ZACK ZERO by Crocodile Entertainment S.L.

BEST ANIMATION

• LAS AVENTURAS DE TINTIN by Ubisoft Barcelona, publisher Ubisoft
• MIcOACH FOOTBALL by Digital Legends, publisher Adidas
• NEW YORK CRIMES by Pendulo Studios, publisher Fx Interactive
• POCOYO RACING by Zinkia, publisher Zinkia

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

• NEW YORK CRIMES by Pendulo Studios, publisher Fx Interactive
• PUSH CARS by RLS Games / Ivanovich Games, publisher RLS Games
• THE MYSTERY TEAM: CAZADORES DE PISTAS by Tonika Games, publisher Sony Computer Entertainment España
• ZACK ZERO by Crocodile Entertainment S.L.

BEST SOUND

• FREAK WARS (TORRENTE ONLINE 2) by Virtual Toys, publisher Virtual Toys
• LAS AVENTURAS DE TINTIN by UBISOFT BARCELONA, publisher UBISOFT
• NEW YORK CRIMES by Pendulo Studios, publisher Fx Interactive
• SUPERMAGICAL by Super Awesome Hyper Dimensional Mega Team, publisher Gala Pocket

BEST TECHNOLOGY

• AFTERZOOM by Abylight, publisher Abylight
• FREAK WARS (TORRENTE ONLINE 2) by Virtual Toys, publisher Virtual Toys
• MIcOACH FOOTBALL by Digital Legends, publisher Adidas
• REALITY FIGHTERS by Novarama, publisher Sony Computer Entertainment Europe

Gamelab 2012 will take place from June 27 to July 1, 2012 at the Fira de Barcelona. Online pre-registration is now open on the passes and entrance page. We have also created a new online business area where the companies participating can introduce themselves and organize their meeting schedule.

Gamelab 2012 is supported by the Ministry of Culture, the Autonomous Government of Catalonia through the Catalan Institute for Cultural Companies, the Institute for External Commerce (ICEX), Acc1ó (Catalonian Agency for support to Company Competitiveness), the Association of Spanish Videogame Developers (DEV), the Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences, the Barcelona Council and the Fira de Barcelona, with the sponsorship of Minijuegos, Mediapro, Autodesk, Adobe and Unity 3D. Rtve.es is the official media for this 8th fair, and PocketGamer and Develop are the media partners.

More info at www.gamelab.es

How to finance your own videogame.

Pioneers in developing videogames using 'crowd funding', such as Al Lowe, Chris Avellone and Phil Fish, will be attending Gamelab 2012.

The videogames and digital entertainment industry is once again blazing the trail regarding new ways of financing projects: crowd funding. This is shared financing generated by individual donations from people who are interested in the project. The videogames industry has pioneered this field, and has already achieved some notable successes which will be discussed at our next fair.

Earlier this year the creator of Monkey Island, Tim Schafer, announced he needed US$400,000 to finance his next project, a cartoon adventure that is a closely-guarded secret. The minimum donation was US$15, and the only reward was a copy of the game on its release. Schafer was expecting to receive the money in four months, but had collected over US$1 million in little over 24 hours!

Schafer used the main global crowd funding platform, Kickstarter, to obtain the money, which has already been used by many other games creators to finance their projects. For example, the legendary Al Lowe, humorist and musician who pioneered the development of games for Apple with Walt Disney franchises, will attend Gamelab to talk about his experience in this field: his new project will use crowd funding to relaunch the saga of the famous lothario, Leisure Suite Larry.

The creative director Chris Avellone will also be at Gamelab 2012 (creator of the successful license Fallout: New Vegas and South Park RPG, Planescape: Torment, etc.). He will discuss how the rise of platforms like Kickstarter have encouraged a return to classic games, and will explain how crowd funding influenced his first traditional RPG in nearly 20 years: Wasteland 2.

Phil Fish, creator of Fez, one of most critically and publicly acclaimed games in recent years, will accompany these games veterans at Gamelab 2012. "This is my identity, I'm the guy that does Fez", is how Fish described himself in the documentary Indie Game the Movie, a winner at the Sundance Film Festival and a movie that explores the world of videogames creators. Indie Game was also financed by the Kickstarter platform, and Fish is now looking to potentially "crowd fund" his next project.

Gamelab 2012 will take place from June 27 to July 1, 2012 at the Fira de Barcelona. Online pre-registration is now open on the passes and entrance page. We have also created a new online business area where the companies participating can introduce themselves and organize their meeting schedule.

Gamelab 2012 is supported by the Ministry of Culture, the Autonomous Government of Catalonia through the Catalan Institute for Cultural Companies, the Institute for External Commerce (ICEX), Acc1ó (Catalonian Agency for support to Company Competitiveness), the Association of Spanish Videogame Developers (DEV), the Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences, the Barcelona Council and the Fira de Barcelona, with the sponsorship of Minijuegos, Mediapro, Autodesk, Adobe and Unity 3D. Rtve.es is the official media for this 8th fair, and PocketGamer and Develop are the media partners.

More info at www.gamelab.es

Shigeru Miyamoto, nominated by Gamelab, wins the Prínce of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities

Considered the father of modern videogames, Miyamoto has been behind all the technological and creative revolutions that have facilitated the global expansion of interactive entertainment, devising gameplay modes that have demonstrated the power of the videogame as a mental, physical and social activator.

The most influential videogame designer and producer in history, Shigeru Miyamoto, has today been named the winner of the Prínce of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities, 2012. The nomination was proposed by Gamelab, the International Videogame and Interactive Entertainment Fair held in Barcelona.

When he received the news, Iván Fernández Lobo, Director of Gamelab and President of the Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences, said: "We are very proud to have been responsible for recognizing his contribution to the videogames world. Today is a historic day for the Foundation and the Awards. The announcement of this accolade will serve to significantly boost the digital culture in Spain and internationally, as creators of videogames like Miyamoto will continue to develop communication models in the 21st century. Thanks to his influence, when we talk about videogames today, we're talking about global communication, of such a powerful and democratic form of expression that, far from conflicting with the existing forms, has both absorbed them and improved them using the language of interaction".

"We nominated Miyamoto because we consider him to be the greatest exponent of a great generation of interactive creators, who conceived videogames as a new medium that could bring people together around a shared experience, regardless of age, sex social status or culture.".

On the other hand, Gamelab's advisor and one of the most famous games creators in Spain, Gonzo Suárez, pointed out that "Over the last decades Miyamoto has been the driving force behind all the technological and creative revolutions that have facilitated the global expansion of interactive entertainment, devising gameplay modes that have demonstrated the power the videogame as a mental, physical and social activator."

Born in Kyoto (Japan) in 1952, Shigeru Miyamoto has consistently revolutionized the world of videogames and broken the prevailing technological and creative boundaries time and time again. Voted as one of the most influential people in the world by Time magazine and honored with the French Legion of Honor and the British BAFTA, his career is also notable in that he has never resorted to violence in his games, and has managed to include women and older people in the world of interactive entertainment.

As always with huge strokes of luck, Miyamoto arrived at Nintendo by chance, having just graduated at the Kanazawa Municipal College of Art and Industrial Design; his father was a friend of the president of the company, Hishi Yamauchi, who found him a job as an artist. After one year of training he was tasked with designing an arcade (slot machine) game for the US market based on the adventures of Popeye. However, the game soon ran into rights problems, but Miyamoto remained undeterred, and had designed a ground-breaking formula: a small, mustachioed man who was trying to save a girl from the clutches of Donkey Kong. Despite initial misgivings, the game broke the mold and achieved unparalleled success.

Since his creation, Mario has become the most successful franchise in the history of the industry, with over 450 million videogames sold, and is a global icon. A 1987 survey placed Mario as the most popular fictional character among American kids, even above Mickey Mouse!

But Mario is much more: he was the first character to have free movement around the screen (1980), the first to introduce camera tracking (1987), and the game that tooko place in a fully 3D environment (1993). Miyamoto's work is considered to be the most significant in his field. According to the Gamerankings website, four of the five best games in history bear the Miyamoto hallmark.

Similar to all the great visionaries, Miyamoto's inspiration stems from his immediate surroundings. So one of the most feted games in the history of the industry took place in the woods around his house, whose caves formed the setting of his childhood games, and lead to the creation of The Legend of Zelda. The same principle also found its way into nearly 200 videogames and which reflects elements of cinematic narration: camera pans, use of perspectives, music, etc.

His powers of observation have also smashed the glass ceiling of videogames: age and sex. When he saw how players not only handled the joystick but also how they moved with it, Miyamoto developed the Wii Remote. Thanks to its intuitive interactivity, he has managed to bring women into the world of videogames. Moreover, with certain products, such as the Nintendo DS Brain Training, he has also ensured that senior citizens not only feature in interactive entertainment, but also enjoy it.

His vision and the communicative power of his work have prompted publications such as The New York Times to declare him the successor to Walt Disney, and to consider him as one of the most brilliant minds in history, which has lead directors such as Steven Spielberg to collaborate with him to enhance his productions in the interactive realm.

The Prínce of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities was created in 1981 to honor "the individual, group of people or institution whose creative or research projects represent a significant contribution to the global culture in these sectors." The first winner was the writer María Zambrano and since then it has been awarded to personalities or institutions like the historian Claudio Sánchez Albornoz, journalists Indro Montanelli and Ryszard Kapuściński, to communication media such as the daily newspaper El País, the Efe agency, the CNN television network and the founder of Internet Google.

Gamelab 2012 will take place from June 27 to July 1, 2012 at the Fira de Barcelona. Online pre-registration is now open on the passes and entrance page. We have also created a new online business area where the companies participating can introduce themselves and organize their meeting schedule.

Gamelab 2012 is supported by the Ministry of Culture, the Autonomous Government of Catalonia through the Catalan Institute for Cultural Companies, the Institute for External Commerce (ICEX), Acc1ó (Catalonian Agency for support to Company Competitiveness), the Association of Spanish Videogame Developers (DEV), the Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences, the Barcelona Council and the Fira de Barcelona, with the sponsorship of Minijuegos, Mediapro, Autodesk, Adobe and Unity 3D. Rtve.es is the official media for this 8th fair, and PocketGamer and Develop are the media partners.

More info at www.gamelab.es

GAMELAB 2012 OPENS THE FAIR WITH GAMELAB MOBILE

The Eighth International Videogame and Interactive Entertainment Fair will open its gates with a Congress that will bring together the main international specialists in the business of videogames for mobiles and portable digital entertainment.

The industry of videogames for mobile telephones and tablets will continue to grow immensely in the coming years, according to all the data and predictions, reinforcing itself as one of the best windows of opportunity for interactive entertainment content creators.

One example of how this industry is revolutionizing the sector is Rovio, which after having sold over 50 million copies of its latest Angry Birds title, has now exceeded one billion downloads of the franchise.

Not less significant are the successes of platforms for mobile social games, such as the Japanese GREE and DeNa, which generate billions of dollars every month and are considered by many experts as the next giants of the interactive entertainment sector.

Flurry, an expert company in analysing the audiences for mobile platforms, calculates that throughout the world the number of mobile devices with videogames may reach 15 billion by 2015 and that in just the last year alone the consumption of mobile games has multiplied by 20.

On the opening day of this edition of the International Videogame and Interactive Entertainment Fair, Gamelab Mobile will bring together the leading international experts in the sector to analyze and debate the creative, technological and commercial trends that will shape the future of portable digital entertainment.

The role of telephone operators and manufacturers, mobile social games, tablets as a platform for entertainment, Freemium business models and virtual goods, distribution platforms, marketing and sales for developers, or the panorama of the European and Spanish sector, are all topics that we can expect to be discussed at this event.

Gamelab Mobile opens also with the aim of creating a space that will help connect professionals, companies and European media from the games and mobile applications sector. This event will be held on 27th June, the first day of the fair, in the congress areas of the Hotel Catalonia Plaza de Barcelona with the collaboration of Pocketgamer, the leading international portal about videogames for all types of mobile and portable platforms.

The online pre-registration for Gamelab Mobile, as well as for the rest of the Gamelab 2012 activities, is now open in the sales page for passes and tickets (http://www.gamelab.es/2012/acceso/venta-de-pases-y-entradas/). A new online business space has also been created so that attending companies can make themselves known and manage their meetings schedule (http://networking.gamelab.es/).

The rest of the congress, exhibitions, workshops and all other Gamelab 2012 activities will be held in the Fira de Barcelona.

You can find more information at www.gamelab.es

GAMELAB AND THE SPANISH ACADEMY FOR INTERACTIVE ARTS AND SCIENCES CALL FOR THE FIFTH NATIONAL VIDEOGAME INDUSTRY AWARDS

Las candidaturas podrán presentarse hasta el 30 de abril de 2012.

The International videogame and Interactive Entertainment Fair, Gamelab, in collaboration with the Spanish Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences, is organizing the "Fifth National videogame Industry Awards." These prizes are the greatest recognition for companies and professionals in the Spanish sector, drawing attention to the best projects developed over the last year.

All productions made in Spain and published after April 30, 2011 are eligible to receive awards. For the first time, the fair is also organizing a special award for the best debut production by a Spanish studio.

The candidacies can be presented by the companies owning the rights of the games and projects by sending an email to premios@interactivas.org by April 30, 2012.

Once the candidacy presentation period has been closed, the academics will review the proposals and select the finalists in each one of the award categories.

The selection of finalists will be closed on June 1, 2012 and will be made public once approved by the directive board. From this moment the voting process will be opened to the academics to select the winners, which will finally be made public in a ceremony held during the Gamelab Barcelona 2012 Fair (www.gamelab.es)

The categories up for awards in this edition are:

• 1. BEST GAME OF THE YEAR
• 2. BEST HOME CONSOLE GAME
• 3. BEST PC GAME
• 4. BEST BROWSER GAME
• 5. BEST PORTABLE CONSOLE GAME
• 6. BEST MOBILE GAME (Smartphone and Tablet)
• 7. BEST SOCIAL NETWORK GAME
• 8. BEST DEBUT PRODUCTION
• 9. BEST GAME DESIGN.
• 10. BEST ARTISTIC DIRECTION
• 11. BEST ANIMATION
• 12. BEST ORIGINAL MUSIC
• 13. BEST SOUND
• 14. BEST TECHNOLOGY

You can find more information at www.gamelab.es

GAMELAB 2012 WILL BE OPEN TO THE PUBLIC FROM JUNE 27 TO JULY 1, 2012

The Eighth edition of GAMELAB, one of the most important forums in Europe, extends its dates and area.

Gamelab, has been an annual international meeting point for years for all professionals, directors, companies and fans of vidgeogaming. It is a space where all people implicated in the development of the sector come to share experiences, strengthen synergies and open new business opportunities, transforming Barcelona in the European capital of videogames and interactive entertainment for a while.

Gamelab 2012 will take place, in its eighth edition, in Arena 1 of the Fira de Barcelona, from June 27 to July 1, where it will reunite the leading international creators and gurus of the interactive universe to analyze the latest creative, technological and business trends of the moment.

Due to the success that, year after year, Gamelab has been reaping both in the public and private sector, and the large quantity of requests by participants, this edition of the fair has extended its opening days and areas.

As a complement to the conferences, Gamelab will also offer a business space, panels and artistic and interactive exhibitions, as well as an exhibition area in which to enjoy the latest product releases.

During the fair the presentation ceremony of the Fifth National Videogame Industry Awards will take place, organized by Gamelab in collaboration with the Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences. These awards are the greatest recognition for the most outstanding companies and professionals of the Spanish sector over the last year.

Soon we will inform you of updates about the fair. You can find more information at www.gamelab.es