- First speakers announced including one of the production companies behind the $1bn-grossing Sonic movie franchise
- New Game Plus secures partnership with Japan indie game leader BitSummit as tickets go on sale
- London Video Game Orchestra to perform special concert on LGF’s closing day
Momentum for 2025’s biggest UK event for video games continues to build – with speakers and side events added to the London Games Festival schedule as tickets officially go on sale.
The 10th anniversary London Games Festival takes place Wednesday 2 April to Sunday 13 April. In 2024 it became the UK’s biggest games event – welcoming 100,000 guests to events across the city as part of its celebration of video games and interactive entertainment.
London Games Festival is supported by the Mayor of London and is delivered by Games London, an initiative from Film London, the capital’s screen industries agency, and video games trade body Ukie (The Association for UK Interactive Entertainment).
Screen Play, the festival’s conference on the expanding relationship between games and other entertainment industries, has named its first wave of key international speakers:
- Story Kitchen co-founders Dmitri M Johnson and Mike Goldberg will open the event with a keynote discussion on connecting the worlds of games, film, and television. Story Kitchen is one of the production companies behind the blockbuster adaptation of SEGA’s SONIC THE HEDGEHOG -now a $1bn film franchise- and is also working on bringing forward new adaptations of Square Enix’s JUST CAUSE for Universal, Reikon’s RUINER for Universal, SEGA’s 90s classics, STREETS OF RAGE for Lionsgate and TOEJAM & EARL for Amazon MGM Studios as well as Hazelight’s ‘Game of the Year’, IT TAKES TWO, for Amazon MGM Studios. Additionally, Story Kitchen has a Television first-look deal at Amazon MGM Studios as well as an Animated Film first-look deal at DreamWorks Animation. Joining Story Kitchen is Crystal Dynamics. The conversation will be moderated by leading entertainment lawyer Simon Pulman of New York-based Pryor Cashman.
- Amanda Kruse, Head of Business Development at new label Big Fan Games, part of Devolver Digital, will lead a panel that discusses how developers can successfully adapt entertainment IPs into interactive experiences. Other panellists include Cyrille Imbert, CEO of Dotemu, which has worked on a number of acclaimed game revivals including STREETS OF RAGE 4 and TMNT: SHREDDER’S REVENGE.
Screen Play takes place on Thursday 10 April. London Games Festival is partnering with the British Film Institute as an official partner for the conference – the BFI’s Southbank venue will host Screen Play in its prestigious NFT1 auditorium.
Tickets are now on sale via festival.games.london
More panel guests and other session speakers will be announced in February.
Momentum is also building for New Game Plus, the original boutique games expo London Games Festival is launching in 2025 and which runs at the London Museum on Thursday 3 April and Friday 4 April.
New Game Plus’ first exhibitor partner is confirmed as leading Kyoto-based indie games event BitSummit – the prominent showcase’s BitSummit Roadshow will visit London for the first time ever, featuring upcoming Japanese-made indie games. The first wave of games set for New Game Plus will be announced in the coming weeks – titles will include LGF’s 40-strong Official Selection line-up and other titles from leading industry partners, new teams and emerging developers.
New Game Plus tickets are now on sale. Single and two-day passes are available for the event – industry passes are also available for those wanting access to the accompanying conference and meeting area.
All tickets can be purchased via https://tickets.games.london. New Game Plus group rates for students and schools are available via newgameplus@games.london
Elsewhere, the first major side events have been confirmed with partners, including significant offerings from cultural partners.
The London Video Games Orchestra will close out LGF with a special concert on Sunday 13 April at Cadogan Hall. This landmark concert promises to take audiences on a journey through some of the greatest musical hits in video game history, pulled from beloved games such as Fantasy VIII, Skyrim, Warhammer and more.
The orchestra performance joins the schedule alongside the already-announced Battersea Arts Centre, which will be bringing the theatre-video game hybrid performance asses.masses to London as part of its 2025 season. A seven-hour gaming experience taking place 12 – 13 April, asses.masses invites a live audience to play out the epic journey of a herd of donkeys trying to get their jobs back. Find out more at bac.org.uk/whats-on/asses-masses/.
More Side Events will be confirmed in the weeks ahead via LGF’s online channels. Other core event highlights at LGF include:
BAFTA Games Awards – Tuesday 8 April. Celebrating the very best games of the past year and the people who made them.
Games Finance Market – Tuesday 8 April & Wednesday 9 April. Connecting games studios with investors over two days of pre-programmed meetings.
Now Play This – Thursday 10 April to Sunday 13 April. A festival of experimental game design celebrating London’s most innovative game-makers.
Trafalgar Square Games Festival – LGF’s flagship event in the public realm expects to return to the historic site with free games and outdoor activities at the end of the 2025 festival.
For more information by London Games Festival and Games London, head to www.games.london or follow @londongamesfest.
