Organizers have announced that registration and an improved hotel booking system have opened for next February's Game Developers Conference 2011 in San Francisco, also reminding attendees of impending deadlines for GDC Summit lecture submissions and IGF game entries.
GDC showrunners have confirmed that passes are now purchasable for GDC 2011, which returns to the Moscone Convention Center from February 28th to March 4th for five days of summits, tutorials, lectures, panels and roundtable discussions presented by leading industry experts.
The first deadline for purchasing passes for this historic 25th GDC show is December 10th, for Alumni registration, and GDC 2010 attendees should be receiving an email with special registration codes in the next few days.
However, early registration passes -- with up to 35% off final pass prices -- can be bought by prospective attendees at any time.
In addition, GDC organizers have worked with lodging experts Passkey International to set up a special GDC-specific hotel finder, making booking your GDC 2011 hotel much easier. A dedicated site compiles space in all the hotel blocks for the show, making search and finding one or multiple rooms a single-step process.
As for GDC 2011, the event will host two days of leading Summits and tutorials on February 28th and March 1st, 2011, including the debut of the GDC Smartphone Summit, a specialized summit dedicated to game development on iOS, Android and beyond.
Other highlights include the Social & Online Games Summit, the Independent Games Summit, the AI Summit, and a host of other notable Summits. [UPDATE: Organizers have announced that submissions for Summit lectures, formerly open only until the end of Thursday, October 14th, have been extended to October 18th due to popular demand from submitters.]
The comprehensive set of Main Conference sessions at GDC 2011 from March 2nd-4th will offer key lessons on a variety of critical areas of game development: Audio, Business & Management, Game Design, Production, Programming and Visual Arts. These content tracks tackle the various challenges of game development and business, with hard-earned insights from leaders in the industry.
Alongside the full schedule of activities at the conference, GDC 2011 will host a variety of special events, which include the 11th Annual Game Developers Choice Awards, the 13th Annual Independent Games Festival and Awards (for which the Main Competition game entry deadline is October 18th), the GDC Expo, the Independent Games Festival Pavilion, the Career Pavilion, and many more.
"Since its inception, GDC has been an important venue for professionals to gain understanding, refine their craft, and network with their peers," said Meggan Scavio, the event director of the Game Developers Conference.
"This is an especially proud milestone for us. The continued growth in technology and adoption of games coupled with the exciting evolution of the art form of game creation have only reinforced the need for an event that nurtures the skills and inspires the creativity of game makers."
Now celebrating its 25th conference, GDC 2011 continues to support the game developer community and digital entertainment industry through learning, networking and inspiration. Registration and conference information is available online at the official GDC website.
