Gamescom held its first all-digital expo in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 coronavirus and planned a hybrid event this year. Due to the ongoing nature of the epidemic, these plans were scrapped, and Gamescom 2021 became an entirely online event. Despite this change, 13 million visitors took part in the event this year. According to event organizers Koelnmesse and German trade body Game, this figure reflects a 30% increase over the number of viewers received by the show in 2020.
“Gamescom 2021 was a huge success”, stated Game MD Felix Falk. The community was connected intimately through Gamescom EPIX. The event also featured the completely renovated Gamescom now hub and our Gamescom show lineup, which included Gamescom: Opening Night Live. Game MD Felix Falk was able to take a significant stride ahead with their digital approach, much to the satisfaction of their many partners and the community as a whole. This provides MD Felix Falk with an excellent digital basis for the years to come when Gamescom can return to Cologne, and they can merge the digital experience with live, in-person visits.
He also expresses his pleasure that just a few weeks before the German parliamentary elections, all parties had used the opportunity to emphasize the importance of digital and games policy for the future legislative era whether it was the political opening of Gamescom or the Debatt(l)e Royale. There was a cross-party agreement that more changes to Germany’s gaming environment were on the way including the streamlining and continuity of game funding, efforts to attract specialist employees, the deployment of serious games and the growth of digital infrastructure. The German games sector could look forward to the German legislative elections with confidence thanks to these favorable indications at Gamescom.
