Not Just Tourism: Planning Your Event Strategy | NZGDC 2025

Not Just Tourism: Planning Your Event Strategy | NZGDC 2025

by Vee Pendergrast

Humanities, Social Sciences & Thought Video Games UGGraphical and digital media applicationsUGGComputer games design
🎙 Vee Pendergrast 👥 1K 📅 October 9, 2025 ⏱ 47 min 👁 156 📄 expert opinion 🧭 2026-08-16
Available in: English (current) Français

Keywords

event planninggame industrypitchingnetworkingbusiness strategy

Summary

Vee Pendergrast, Industry Development Manager at CODE, delivers a practical talk on planning an event strategy for game developers. Drawing on extensive experience at major events like PAX, GDC, and Gamescom, she emphasizes that attending events should be driven by clear business aims, not tourism. The talk categorizes events into developer-centric conferences, B2B expos, consumer events, and online conferences, each serving different purposes. She stresses the importance of preparation: having a polished pitch deck, a stable demo, a wish list, and a validation strategy. For consumer events, capturing audience contacts and building community is key. For business events, she advises using matchmaking tools, preparing professional profiles, and being specific about what you’re looking for. She also covers media engagement, press kits, and the importance of training your team to pitch effectively. The talk includes practical tips on networking, such as using paper business cards and making personal connections. She concludes with a strategic timeline, emphasizing starting validation early and choosing events that align with your goals.

166 words

Critical Evaluation

Value of the Information & Strength of the Argument

The talk provides high practical value, offering concrete, actionable advice for game developers at various stages. The speaker’s extensive experience lends credibility, and she supports her points with real-world examples and anecdotes. The argumentation is coherent and well-structured, moving from event types to preparation, execution, and follow-up. She effectively argues that preparation is crucial and that attending events without a clear strategy is a waste of resources. The advice is pragmatic, addressing common pitfalls and offering solutions. The talk is persuasive, motivating developers to take a strategic approach to events.

Scientific Rigor, Source Quality, Title Accuracy

The talk is based on the speaker’s personal experience and industry knowledge, but it lacks formal citations or references to external sources. The information is consistent with common industry practices, but the lack of verifiable sources reduces its scientific rigor. The title accurately reflects the content, and the talk stays on topic throughout. The speaker’s credibility as an industry professional adds to the reliability, but the absence of data or research limits the overall rigor.

180 words

Title / Content Match

The title accurately reflects the content, which focuses on strategic event planning for game developers, emphasizing business outcomes over tourism.

Quality & Reliability

8/10

The speaker is an experienced industry professional with extensive event participation, providing practical, actionable advice. The talk is based on personal experience and industry knowledge, but lacks formal citations or data. The advice is consistent with common industry practices.

Key Moments

Markers derived by PSI from the transcript: the creator did not define chapters.

Contribution & Novelties

The talk offers a comprehensive, practical guide to event strategy for game developers, synthesizing years of experience into actionable advice. It fills a gap by focusing on the business side of events, often overlooked by developers. The emphasis on preparation, validation, and strategic alignment is particularly valuable.

Pour aller plus loin :

  • MeetToMatch — Official site of the matchmaking platform mentioned in the talk.
  • presskit() — Tool by Rami Ismail for creating press kits, as recommended in the talk.
  • Game Developers Conference — Official site of GDC, a major industry event discussed.
  • Gamescom — Official site of Gamescom, the world’s largest games event.
  • PAX — Official site of PAX events, a series of gaming conventions.

115 words

Radar Profile

The radar profile shows high scores in information quantity and quality, reflecting the talk's rich content and practical advice. The technical level is moderate, suitable for a broad audience. Reliability is high due to the speaker's experience, though the lack of formal sources slightly lowers it. Overall, the talk is a valuable resource for game developers.

Reliability 7/10