Wisconsin Games Alliance Announces Distinguished Program Schedule for MDEV 2024

Industry leaders from Raven Software, Respawn Entertainment, PUBG Corporation, and ZeniMax Online Studios, show Madison’s evolution into game development hub

MADISON, WI, UNITED STATES, November 4, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ — The Wisconsin Games Alliance has revealed the complete schedule for MDEV 2024, showcasing Madison’s emergence as a significant game development hub. The conference, taking place November 8th at the Alliant Energy Center, features four specialized tracks with topics spanning the entire game development ecosystem, including game development, career development, publishing, marketing, distribution, legal, and platform and tooling.

The day-long conference opens with Santa Monica Studio’s Director of Product Development Meghan Morgan Juinio delivering the morning keynote. The day will conclude with COO of Second Dinner and former Commercial Leader for Overwatch Matt Wyble, sharing insights on cross-disciplinary collaboration in modern game development.

Among the 60+ sessions throughout the day from 90 presenters, several standout presentations showcase the conference’s depth and breadth:

“Raven and the Origins of Wisconsin Video Game Development,” featuring Brian Raffel and Tim Gerritsen

“Studio Heads – State of Games,” featuring Ryan Burnett, Justin Beck, Shaun Nivens, and Mitchell Patterson, moderated by Ben Kvalo

“Unreal Horde Empowering Epic Games,” presented by Ryan Hummer

“Mastering Financial Insights: A Guide To Making Sense Of Your Financial Statements” with Joanie Kraut

“Build Better Online Games: Evaluating Tooling from Prototype to Production,” by Hunter Fortuin

“Publisher’s Playbook: Best Practices for Indie Developers” featuring Big Fan Games, Midwest Games, Bigmode, and Xsolla Funding Club

“The depth and diversity of this year’s program highlights what we’ve long known – that the Midwest is an incredible place to make games,” said Ben Kvalo, President of WGA, Co-Executive Chair of MDEV, and Founder of Midwest Games. “We’re seeing unprecedented growth in our development community, and MDEV serves as both a celebration and a catalyst for that expansion.”

The conference includes specialized workshops, networking opportunities, an artist alley, and the Xsolla Pitch Competition. A game showcase will feature 50+ indie games from local to international developers, alongside dedicated tracks focusing on game development, career advancement, and business strategy, ensuring value for everyone from students to studio executives.

The celebration begins on November 7th with a pre-event social (5-7 PM), offering attendees the chance to meet and network with fellow developers and industry professionals from Wisconsin, the broader Midwest, and beyond. The evening will feature a host and cash bar, light snacks, and an early preview of MDEV showcase participants and local artists, plus a raffle featuring prizes donated by Wacom.

Tim Gerritsen, Co-Executive Chair of MDEV and COO of Lost Boys Interactive, added, “When we started Mdev in 2017, we wanted to bring much more awareness of the great games that are made here in Wisconsin and to the growing game scene here. Wisconsin is a premiere destination for game development and we wanted the world to know. This year’s lineup delivers on that desire and demonstrates that global companies are finally giving credit for the major projects already being developed here and giving our homegrown studios more visibility on the world stage.”

This years show is sponsored by:
Midwest Games, Lost Boys Interactive, Respawn Entertainment, Wolfjaw Studios, Unity, Raven Software, Hoyos Consulting, UW-Whitewater, UW-Stout, DePaul, Xsolla, Helpshift, Unreal Engine, PUBG, Madison College, Git Gud Gaming Lounge, Alkemi Labz, Guild Software, Make Visual, Allison Salmon, Basementmode, Unlock Audio, Flippfly, ZeniMax Media, Clinical Playground, Filament Games, Timothy S. Gerritsen, and Big Fan Games.
MDEV is also supporting Charity Partners:
AbleGamers, Tech for Vets, and Maydm.

To view the full schedule and purchase tickets, visit www.mdevconf.com.

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ABOUT WISCONSIN GAMES ALLIANCE
A local network of game studios, independent developers, faculty, investors, and regional economic agencies with the shared mission of promoting Wisconsin as a premier site for game development.

The Wisconsin Games Alliance (WGA) is dedicated to advancing the games and related industries in Wisconsin and the broader Midwest and beyond. They believe that game development and enjoyment is for everyone. For more information, please visit www.WisconsinGamesAlliance.com.

ABOUT WISCONSIN’S GAME INDUSTRY
Madison’s developer scene has been bolstered in recent years with brands, like EA’s Respawn Studio and Epic Games, joining the mix. This along with Microsoft’s acquisition of two studios in Madison, Activision’s Raven Software and Bethesda Softworks Roundhouse Studios, along with the growth of Lost Boys Interactive, under the Embracer Group, and Krafton’s PUBG studio has seen Wisconsin become a developer hub. Homegrown game studios like Guild Software, PerBlue, Filament Games, Flippfly, and Pyramid Lake Games have further grown opportunities in the space.

Wisconsin has also seen its first two Video Game Publishers open their doors in Midwest Games, from former Netflix exec Ben Kvalo, and Bigmode, from famous Video Game YouTuber, Jason Gastrow aka videogamedunkey, and fellow YouTuber and spouse, Leah Bee.

Katie Timmons
Sheldon Strategy and Consulting
[email protected]

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