Esports to return to London Games Festival 2018

First details of the upcoming 2018 London Games Festival have been announced.

A post on the Ukie website states that the festival will return from April 5th to 15th 2018 and include the Games Finance Market (linking developers with investors), Now Play This, a festival of experimental game design, EGX Rezzed – an expo of PC and indie games, and the BAFTA Games Awards at Troxy.

Plus, a range of activities ‘that bring games to life on the city streets’ – including esports and street art, an exhibition of BAME artists in games and a game character/cosplay parade – are set to be announced soon.

Organisers are also launching a new HUB event, a two-day B2B event including conference sessions, a pop-up coworking space and gallery.

Earlier this year, the Digital Schoolhouse inter-school esports tournament finals for children and teenagers took place at London’s Gfinity Arena, as part of the London Games Festival (see our video coverage below):

This summer, the British Esports Association held a pilot scheme esports club for children at Maida Vale Library, which is due to be extended to a more regular club later this year.

Overall, over 50,000 people attended 40 different events across 20 London venues at the London Games Festival this year. The festival is supported by the Mayor of London, with funding worth some £1.2 million from the London Enterprise Action Panel.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said: “In just a couple of years, the London Games Festival has become a major attraction for consumers and professionals alike and Games London is delivering significant investment for our cutting-edge tech sector – showing that London is open to creativity and innovation and open for business.”

See more esports events in Britain and around the world on the British Esports Association’s event calendar