DIGIAGE International Winter Camp 2023 – The Digital Gaming World Meets in This Camp!

DIGIAGE International Game Development Winter Camp will be Held at Bilişim Vadisi on February 8-14!

Between February 8 and 14, the Digital Animation and Gaming Center (DIGIAGE) will host game enthusiasts at Bilişim Vadisi. The camp will bring together many components of the ecosystem, including game designers, software developers, artists, digital cinema and animation film producers, and screenwriters.

Bilişim Vadisi, Türkiye’s technology and innovation hub, will host an important event for the digital gaming world. The Digital Animation and Gaming Center (DIGIAGE) will host participants from 50 provinces between February 8 – 14 in Bilişim Vadisi. Many institutions and organizations, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Youth and Sports, and the Organization of Turkic States, are supporting the DIGIAGE International Winter Camp 2023 event, which will be hosted by the Ministry of Industry and Technology. At the DIGIAGE Future with Games Winter Camp, which will have over 300 participants, game developers will both produce and have fun. The camp, where online participation is also possible, will bring together many components of the ecosystem such as game designers, software developers, artists, digital cinema and animation film producers, screenwriters.

The focus of the winter camp, one of the camps organized by DIGIAGE twice a year, is on startups that can produce as a team or evaluate investment options for corporatization and proper growth. The summer camp is more appealing to individual participants who are willing to enter the sector, improve their technical skills, and participants who want to form new teams.

In This Camp, Our Participants are Much More Ready!

This year, DIGIAGE Winter Camp’23 had a very different application process compared to that in previous years. Our friends who are with us in this camp are those who have successfully passed through 5 different stages. This was also reflected in our camp participant profile. Our friends who will attend our camp will come very motivated to become game entrepreneurs or take part in game initiatives. The rate of participants of our camp who have worked together as a team before is 83%. In other words, when they arrive at the camp, they will be friends who already know each other, who are familiar with the technical aspects of creating games together but are looking for the right support to become entrepreneurs. The fact that these friends chose the Bilişim Vadisi DIGIAGE camp as the right place makes us proud.

The balanced distribution of our camp friends was critical for the proper feeding of the game ecosystem and the proper structure of the companies that will be born here. Our camp participant distribution is 43% software developers – 26% 3D artists – 22% design team members – 8% 2D artists. This proportional distribution is similar to the distribution we see in successful game companies. Our camp will host all kinds of game teams because 35% of our participants are developing or planning to develop games in mobile, 41% in PC/Console and 24% in both areas. With this distribution, it shows that we are building the foundation for team formations that realize larger productions, which are necessary for the Turkish gaming ecosystem to achieve great success. Our camp participants are highly motivated to become game entrepreneurs. This motivation can be seen in the goals they set for themselves. Eighty-five percent of the participants aim to start their own game studio. Of those with this goal, 25% say they will start their own game company in less than one year, 52% in one to three years, 21% in three to five years and 2% in more than five years. DIGIAGE Winter Camp’23 will be instrumental in the establishment of many game studios and meeting with investors. As DIGIAGE, we will continue to work in many different areas other than camps for the development of the Turkish gaming ecosystem.

“DIGIAGE is a Great Opportunity for The National Economy and Young People”

Making statements before the camp, Serdar İbrahimcioğlu, General Manager of Bilişim Vadisi, said, “More than 70 teams have developed games in our DIGIAGE game development camps so far. Although Türkiye still has a 1% share in the global gaming market, we can say that it has an increasing momentum day by day. Therefore, I believe that DIGIAGE represents a great opportunity for both the national economy and the youth of our country, Türkiye. Young people from every Turkish city and town, from many different cultures and ages, come to Bilişim Vadisi to realize their dreams. Their desire and determination will bring Türkiye to important places in the global gaming ecosystem in a very short time. Our aim is to increase Türkiye’s 1% share to 5% in a very short time.”

Will Reveal The Gate for Opportunities

DIGIAGE will offer many opportunities to successful studios at the end of the camp. In addition to traditional game categories, next-generation content ideas such as metaverse and blockchain will be developed into projects, and DIGIAGE will support some of the new game ideas developed by the teams. On the last day of the camp, the teams will have the opportunity to meet with investors. These opportunities will enable international connectivity and labor sharing. Türkiye’s game production power that it offers to the world will grow and design export opportunities will emerge. The camp will also provide an opportunity for new studios to emerge.

Funding Opportunity for Game Entrepreneurs from The Bilişim Vadisi Venture Capital Investment Fund (VCIF) Managed by APY Ventures

Startups that successfully complete the program will have the opportunity to continue their growth by receiving investment directly from Bilişim Vadisi VCIF, managed by APY Ventures. APY Ventures, a partner of the program, will contribute from the perspective of mentor, trainer and investor.

Sector Pioneers will be The Mentors

At DIGIAGE Winter Camp 2023, companies and individuals who have achieved many successes in the sector will provide technical support and mentorship to the camp participants. The trainers and mentors who will come to the camp will guide, advise and collaborate with new entrepreneurs whom they saw themselves years ago, so that they can also be like them years later.