 BGIn and Members at GDC 2008 Post Report The Game Developers Conference San Francisco is one of the most important annual events in the games industry. With over 200 exhibitors present, it is a vital conference for anyone involved in making, publishing, and financing games. Simply put; GDC San Francisco is the perfect place to network and do business with industry professionals and enthusiasts from all around the world in a short amount of time.
This is the second year that BGIn showcased the Benelux Games Industry at the Game Developers Conference, and it was definitely the best year yet! Despite a few logistic/preparation challenges, GDC 2008 was truly a dynamic and fast paced experience full of wild rushes and multitasking, as people found their way to their next speaking session, meeting location, or simply searched for a place to charge their laptop. BGIn’s members proudly showed off their work and answered questions from the heavy flow of traffic, and were able to develop many important contacts, both old and new. But it wasn’t all business, we also had a great time! GDC 2008 had its fair share of dining and dancing. Events like the Dutch business breakfast were very successful. With more than 70 people in attendance, The Dutch Business Breakfast was a great place to deliver a message of unity and cooperation for Dutch Game Development that really hit home. From the Jake’s Cigar Bar (with free Matevaza beer) to San Francisco’s Supper Club, the exhibitors at GDC left a trail of good times around town that reflects the spirit of game development: work hard, and play harder.
Here’s what some of our exhibitors had to say about the GDC San Francisco 2008: “GDC 2008 has been a great success for Elements Interactive. We had loads of fun at the pavilion and met a lot of interesting people and companies. Kudos to Tommy and the NBSO for organizing everything really neatly. We look forward joining the gang again next year!” – Wouter ten Brink, Elements Interactive B.V. 
“GDC is over… and it was a huge success! I’d like to thank everyone for being part of this adventure and from my end, I enjoyed every single second of it! “ - Tommy Goffin, BGIn Director Belgium & Luxemburg
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“The GDC 2008 experience drove home that being there is really worth it! For Khaeon, both the sessions and exhibition proved to be very useful and informative and on the business side we completed all targets and in relatively short time. Apart from that, it was great meeting and working with everyone on the BGIN stand, it was truly inspiring to see things come together like that. Thanks one and all for all the effort and input, until next time!” - Erik t’ Sas, Khaeon Games
“Once again we had a great year with BGIn! For the past two years the booth has provided us with an excellent position for networking and sales. We greatly enjoyed the team-work and crazy conference fatigue that we endured with our fellow exhibitors. Everyone was very cool, and we look forward to drinking a beer with them again next year!” – Hector Fernandez, VP Business Development, Streamline Studios 
“I would like to thank Tommy of course for organizing everything, the stand, food etc was very good!
To the rest of you thanks for being there, we really liked to be "brothers in arms" for the duration of the event. Best of luck to you all, regards from the entire Cannibal team.” - Remco Huijser, Director of Communications, Cannibal Game Studios  “First of all my thanks to everybody for the kind neighborship that we developed amongst us. I really enjoyed it. Furthermore, I would like to thank Tommy for the organization of the BGIn booth. (…) The conference (…) gave me background information on the gaming sector and I got 3 real leads (my target was 2). Hope to see you all again next year…” - Dirk Verlee, Investment and Trade Commissioner, Flanders Investment & Trade  It is always a great experience when the game community comes together for the improvement of each other’s lives and businesses. Thanks to all of our exhibitors this year who shared in this vision and assisted in making the BGIn booth an enjoyable experience of business and fun!
The BGIn Board would additionally like to thank the kind assistance of the NBSO, NOST and CGLA. May the successes of this year’s GDC San Francisco set the bar for future events, as BGIn continues its journey with ever greater prosperity for all. We’re already planning next year’s edition, with a larger exhibition space, and multiple stands clustered together to make a European area. We look forward to making even more of an impact, with a greater presence of the Benelux Games Industry at GDC 2009.
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