eSports are skyrocketing, and next week's GDC Next has several talks to discuss the future of the phenomenon, with famed Starcraft II commentator Day[9] on what makes a game fun to watch, Turtle Entertainment on how the ecosystem works for games such as League of Legends and World of Tanks, and a panel including Twitch and Riot on the evolution of eSports.
GDC Next will take place alongside the App Developers Conference on November 5th-7th, 2013 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The new event aims to highlight the future of video game development, with session tracks organized around 'Next Generation Game Platforms', 'Free To Play & New Business Models', and 'Smartphone & Tablet Games', as well as cloud and indie game tracks.
Starcraft II commentator and eSports personality Sean "Day[9]" Plott will explain how to design games with spectators in mind in 'The Observer Friendly Game.' Plott will discuss what makes a game as fun to watch as it is to play, in order to tap into the community-building potential of streaming eSports events, Let's Play videos, and other spectator-friendly applications for games.
Turtle Entertainment's VP of gaming communities David Hiltscher will explain the ins and outs of the eSports industry in a talk called 'Inside the eSports Ecosystem: A Business Overview.' Hiltscher, who oversees the ESL eSports leagues, will use his work with companies like Riot Games (League of Legends) and Wargaming (World of Tanks) to discuss how the eSports ecosystem works, who the major players are, and how big it has become.
In the panel discussion 'The Evolution of eSports as a Sport, Entertainment and International Pastime,' League of Legends developer Riot Games' VP of eSports Dustin Beck, Twitch COO Kevin Lin, eSports competitors Team Dignitas managing director Michael O'Dell, eSports host Marcus 'djWheat' Graham, and Garena Premiere League lead manager Jason Ng will discuss the growing presence of professional games. Attendees will gain a clear understanding of the state of eSports, the path to developer success in the industry, and some data-driven indicators of its evolution as a global pastime.
Be sure to check out the GDC Next Session Scheduler to see the other announced talks and begin your planning. Previously announced Future of Games Track talks include EA Mythic lead designer Kate Flack on toy industry insights she brought to Ultima Forever, Ubisoft Blue Byte's Teut Weidemann on why mobile is everything, and more.
Online registration ends Thursday 31st at midnight for GDC Next and the co-located ADC; register now and save up to $200 on ADC, GDC Next, or a combined VIP All Access Pass. For all the latest news on GDC Next, subscribe for updates via Facebook, Twitter, or RSS. Also, check out ADC's focus on Education Apps: EA founder Trip Hawkins on his new learning service, Animoca on complying with new online privacy rules, and Dreamkind on standing toe-to-toe with Elmo and other powerful kids' brands.
