gamescom 2016 ends on a high note: last year’s record number of visitors equalled

• With 345,000 visitors, gamescom 2016 matched its previous best result from 2015
• gamescom trends illustrate the role of games as a defining medium
 
Cologne/Berlin, 21 August 2016 – gamescom 2016 wrapped up on Sunday with impressive visitor numbers: 345,000 people visited the world’s largest event for computer and video games in Cologne, Germany, from 17 to 21 August. In the process, gamescom 2016 matched its record from last year. Overall, gamescom and associated events attracted more than 500,000 visitors to Cologne. This was announced today by Koelnmesse as the organiser of gamescom and the BIU, the German Games Industry Association, the main sponsor of the trade fair. The number of exhibitors grew significantly with an increase of 9 per cent: 877 companies from 54 countries (2015: 45) were represented at this year’s gamescom.
 
[quotation cite=”Dr. Maximilian Schenk, Managing Director of the BIU”]‘gamescom 2016 thrilled players worldwide and its impressive development as the world’s largest event relating to computer and video games continues: along with numerous events in the area, gamescom now attracts over half a million people to Cologne.’[/quotation] ‘gamescom 2016 thrilled players worldwide and its impressive development as the world’s largest event relating to computer and video games continues: along with numerous events in the area, gamescom now attracts over half a million people to Cologne,’ says Dr Maximilian Schenk, Managing Director of the BIU. ‘The importance of gamescom as a 360-degree event on the future of digital entertainment and the digitisation of our society has again increased significantly: partners and guests from worlds of society, economy and politics came to gamescom in greater numbers than ever before. They come to gamescom to experience, to understand and to discuss the digitisation of media, business and society.’

gamescom trends illustrate the role of games as a defining medium

The theme of this year’s gamescom was ‘Heroes in New Dimensions’. This combined both the current trends in the computer and video games industry such as virtual reality, e-sports and ‘the player as the designer’ as well as the development of the exhibition to a trade fair for digital entertainment. All three trends could be experienced at gamescom by the 345,000 visitors: After the virtual reality headsets from HTC and Oculus already appeared on the market a few weeks ago, PlayStation VR will follow in the coming weeks. Accordingly, visitors were able to try out many virtual reality games for themselves at gamescom. There were also live e-sports events in many of the halls, for instance, in the ESL Arena, where numerous tournaments were held throughout gamescom. The many cosplayers on-site took on the special role of the ‘player as the designer’: no other medium is so actively shaped by its users as games.
 
According to Schenk: ‘The current computer and video game trends illustrate the role of games as a leading medium in the digital age: With virtual reality, we are seeing a completely new platform developed by the games industry, which will permanently alter not only the entire entertainment industry, but also many other areas of the economy. In the area of e-sports, a whole ecosystem is currently being built up at breakneck speed by e-sports athletes, clans, leagues and tournaments, which is followed by hundreds of millions in Germany and all over the world. And the active role played by gamers in shaping games is also becoming a model for many other entertainment industries.’
 
You will find photos of the gamescom opening tour here: http://www.gettyimages.de/Fotos/gamescom-2016?excludenudity=true&family=editorial&page=1&phrase=gamescom%202016&sort=best#license

About gamescom

gamescom is the world’s largest event for computer and video games, as well as Europe’s largest business platform for the games industry. With the business area, the entertainment area, the GDC Europe, the gamescom congress and the gamescom city festival, gamescom offers tailored platforms for all audiences.

About the BIU

The BIU, the German Games Industry Association, is the association of the German computer and video games industry. Its 26 members are developers, publishers and suppliers of digital games. Together, they represent over 85 per cent of the German market. The BIU is, for example, the organiser of gamescom. As an expert partner for media and for political and social institutions, the BIU answers all questions on the topic of digital games.

Press contact:

Martin Puppe
BIU – Bundesverband Interaktive Unterhaltungssoftware e. V.
Charlottenstraße 62
10117 Berlin
Germany
Tel.: +49 (0)30 2408 779-20
Fax: +49 (0)30 2408 779-11
Email: puppe@biu-online.de
Twitter: @game_eV
Facebook.com/BIUeV

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