Gaming cluster once again in global spotlight
Warwickshire's gaming designers and creators have again proved their place at the top of the industry with a clutch of nominations for the Develop Industry Excellence Awards.
The awards, which cover a huge area comprising the United Kingdom and much of Europe, will be presented at a prestigious ceremony at the Hilton Metropole Hotel, Brighton, in July.
Always the biggest awards night in the game development industry calendar, the event will be attended by more than 500 people representing companies from around the world.
And there in the global spotlight Warwickshire will be very strongly represented among 137 companies and 47 games in the running for this year’s awards.
"Silicon Spa" will be at the forefront once again with Leamington Spa-based firms Exient, Midoki, Christopher Randle, SEGA Hardlight, Team Lumo, Modern Dream and Playground Games (who are nominated twice) up for awards.
Organisers have revealed that 2015 has proved one of the strongest ever years for submissions with more than 250 companies nominated.
So for Warwickshire's firms to be nominated in such force shows once again that the gaming industry should be a source of great pride to the county, says Warwickshire County Council leader Cllr Izzi Seccombe.
Cllr Seccombe said: "Warwickshire is rightly proud of its place at the forefront of this fast-moving industry. Having such a strong presence in the nominations for these prestigious awards shows again that ‘Silicon Spa’ continues to lead the way and we will be wishing them well on the night."
At the awards night on July 15, Warwickshire's finalists will compete with others from all over the UK, France, Germany, Sweden and Italy.
Cllr Richard Chattaway, chairman of the Communities Overview & Scrutiny Committee, added: "Warwickshire firms are renowned as pioneers in this field and to continue to be among the industry leaders on a national and international stage is testament to the creativity, expertise and business skills of all involved."