Meetings

MIGS was busy!

There was a huge amount of positive energy, seemingly across all areas at the conference. Both the Business Lounge and Game Caviar Lounge were full, with thousands of meetings taking place over just a few days. The impromptu meetings were equally valuable, and or meaningful. MIGS attracts a great group of attendees; many who prioritize this show as their main event for the year. I got to spend time with some incredible people, generous, open, and inspirational.

MIGS official theme this year was resilience.  Quebec has been impacted as much as anywhere across the industry - but the resilience and sense of community from the local attendees could be felt; it was measurable and empowering to be a part of for a couple days. Thank you for making us feel welcome and at home.

External Development

MIGS has always attracted the External Development community, but it hasn't felt like there was 'a home' at the show before now.

– Previously, it could be difficult to connect with the right/relevant people.

– The mixed business lounge wasn't the best place for these conversations.

– There was no specific content, talks, panels or engagement outside of 1:1 meetings.

– There wasn't a lens which focused on providing the best possible experience for this area of expertise.

There is now!

Partnering with La Guilde and XP Gaming to bring the Game Caviar Lounge to MIGS is our first step to provide this framework, supporting an ever growing group of professionals in dev studios, publishers and service providers from around the world.  This year was a learning for us all, but after the incredible feedback and excitement for where this could go - we're already looking forward to starting next year's planning.  We can't wait to continue building with you.

The Show

The most interesting thing for me, about MIGS, is the value of having such a diverse group of games professionals at a relatively intimate event. It feels like the best pieces of GDC, wrapped into a much more personal and meaningful event. Conversations with individuals outside of my area of interest were equally valuable and provided relevant insights that are difficult to get from larger, or highly specialized conferences.

The quality of talks and presentations were excellent. (Big shout-out to Shiew, Michael Paul, Harish, Ayan for sharing their amazing External Development insights.) The indie games, publishing deals, investor conversations, business consulting and development collaborations were a whirlwind of engagement from 9 - 5, and this felt like a carefully crafted mix which presented organic opportunities that are difficult to find elsewhere.

The Events

I was genuinely surprised by just how many extracurricular MIGS activities there were taking place. Every evening had private dinners, public parties, and open mixers (and more). The two day conference felt like a full week of business, with friends.

Game Caviar was humbled to support hundreds of event attendees on Halloween eve at the official MIGS mixer, along with a couple evenings of great conversations at amazing restaurants in Montreal.

But there was something noticeably unusual about the MIGS events; it felt much less business, and much more personal than I've witnessed at any other show for years.  Dinners weren't about current projects, and mixers weren't about potential deals - there was a very genuine, personable vibe that's rare to see, and fosters much more meaningful connections.

I don't know if it's the XP Gaming magic that Jason Lepine brings, or the Quebec nature of doing business - but either way it was very refreshing to experience.