With a historic peak in the French video game market in 2023, the sector could not be doing better. In Tours, the Pixel Players association, the cluster which brings together industry players in the region, can only see the development of the sector at the local level.
“Things have changed a lotnotes Ferreol Chevalier, the vice-president of the association, created at the end of 2021. We just finished our first full year, after our first year settling in. » And the number of players who are members of the association (companies, communities, e-sport teams, etc.) continues to increase: there were around fifty in 2023, compared to 87 at the end of April 2024. “And we hope to pass the 100 actor mark by the end of 2024.”
A place dedicated to video games in Deux-Lions in 2026
After development in Tours and Indre-et-Loire, Pixel Players is now seeking to bring together regional players, by meeting businesses and communities in Indre or Loiret. On June 11, 2024, the association is organizing, for example, the Pixel Players Connect Day, in Orléans, an event which brings together local, national and international players, aimed at economic decision-makers and communities.
In Tours, the City decided to join the association during the last municipal council, on April 8, 2024. “A strong signal of greater awareness among elected officialsrejoices Ferreol Chevalier. But local authorities are already supporting us. The Region is our main financier, the Metropolis helps us with our premises in Mame and the City of Tours plays a facilitating role, particularly in general public events or for the installation of businesses in the region. »
The City thus sold a plot of 4,600 m² to the e-sport (electronic sport) company Solary, historically based in Tours, to support its development. A project to set up a place dedicated to supporting young video game companies is also in the works, in the Deux-Lions district. “We are at the stage of submitting the building permit, with delivery scheduled for 2026”, hopes the vice-president. The association also hopes to create a fund
In this context, Pixel Players wants to highlight the strengths of Tours, in particular the fact that “all players in the sector are represented”. But the objective is above all to create a regional hub, in order to face competition from other regions.
“This is why we work a lot with schools and training centers”, explains Mélanie Paris, the general delegate of the association. These include the Brassart, E-artsup, and Cefim schools. And despite the strong competition to capture talent, “we manage to keep our nuggets”she assures.
The association therefore includes several video game studios which have released or are preparing to release their first games. Sometimes with national prizes at stake, as for the Supercube studio, with its game The Pioneers: Surviving Desolation.
