Mangas, airsoft, skateboarding… How Paris Games Week is reinventing itself to become “the Huma Festival of video games”

The organizers of Paris Games Week 2024 have unveiled the program for the Paris video game show which will be held from October 23 to 27. From Xbox to Playstation, from Ubisoft to Activision, the main players in the sector will be present.

The video game festival is preparing for a new meeting at Porte de Versailles at Paris Expo. The 2024 edition of Paris Games Week (PGW) will be held from October 23 to 27 and has been partly redesigned to be an assumed “popular festival”, aimed at a “more family and diverse audience which is changing” and showing itself to be more more and more demanding in his experience.

And to ensure this, SELL, the union of entertainment software publishers, and organizer of the event can boast of having attracted the main players in the industry. Playstation, Nintendo and Xbox will have large stands in Hall 1 to welcome visitors, with numerous activities and games to test among recent or upcoming releases. The PGW can thus boast of being the only major show to welcome the three major manufacturers this year, Nintendo having skipped the Summer Game Fest and Gamescom.

The tenors and big releases are there

“It’s our specificity,” says Nicolas Vignolles, general director of SELL and general director of PGW, to Tech&Co. “It’s the little joke that we do every year. Each time, it’s more and more ‘challenging’, because they assure us quite quickly that they’re going to be there. But as long as it’s not is not signed…”

Xbox will still occupy a significant space to highlight its main recently released games and upcoming blockbusters (Age of Mythology RetoldAra: History Untold, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6undoubtedly Indiana Jones and the Ancient Circle, Stalker 2: Heart of Chernobyl…). An important place will also be given to independent games ID@Xbox with its share of usual pearls, but also to accessibility with a stand organized to welcome all players, whatever their disability.

Playstation should focus its presence aroundAstro Bothis last release, but undoubtedly also Lego Horizon Adventuresits next very family game designed in partnership with Lego around the adventures of Aloy. The Japanese manufacturer should set up between Halls 1 and 2 for a promised “immersive” experience. Nintendo has not lifted the veil on the orientation of its stand, but the father of the Switch generally offers many activities on its stage and gaming stations on its notable releases like the last The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom.

As for publishers, there will also be many of them at the meeting. If Ubisoft chose to push back the release date d’Assassin’s Creed Shadowsthe French publisher should still emphasize Star Wars Outlaws or even the extensions of Prince of Persia: The Lost Crownhis pleasant surprise at the start of the year. Bandai Namco will bet on its Japanese games like Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero who will be entitled to his tournament, his successful saga Little Nightmares III or his neighbor Unknown 9: Awakeningwith Anya Chalotra (The Witcher) featured. Activities aroundFire Ring are also on the program.

Capcom plans to focus on Monster Hunter Wilds, expected on February 28, 2025, the next opus in the saga which is celebrating its 20th anniversary. The Games Made in France space will celebrate 10 years of its presence at the show with no less than 30 French studios and publishers, including Focus Entertainment which will notably present MIO: Memories in orbitArte which should show its range of new indie gems (30Birds, Gloomy Eyes: The Gameetc.) or Microids with The Antsits big November release.

Hall 2 will be dedicated to the PGW Junior. “We completely rethought the concept to diversify and reinvent ourselves,” says Nicolas Vignolles. “There will be fewer gaming terminals and more airy spaces. We are adding coloring stands around the artworks of the most beautiful licenses and video game characters to introduce them to the youngest. There will also be an area with an obstacle course for them to let off steam.” The usual partners like PédagoJeux will be present, with the arrival this year also of the e-Enfance association to raise awareness.

Towards more pop culture and sport

The show also wants to expand its pop culture appeal. This year, a Manga Village is appearing, in collaboration with Mangas.io and Glénat, near the Cosplay stage – one of 11 stages scattered throughout the PGW to host activities of all kinds.

Spanning 3,000 m², Hall 3 will be largely devoted to sport and esports. A very large stage will host multiple competitions in front of more than 800 spectators. A watch party is even planned for October 27 in the afternoon to welcome fans who have not obtained their ticket for the semi-finals of the Words de Valuing at the Adidas Arena. Théo Griezmann, Antoine’s brother, will be there for the first time with his fast close combat (FCC) structure, airsoft style military combat by squad on an obstacle structure.

This space in Hall 3 will also be an opportunity to extend the Olympics effect with a space dedicated to different sports such as skateboarding, BMX and demos of scooter tricks on a wide ramp. A 3×3 basketball court will also be installed. The French Glider Federation will allow visitors to benefit from its virtual reality experience, as will the Table Tennis Federation which wants to ride on the Olympic effect of the Lebrun brothers. Simracing and simdriving are also planned in partnership with the French Motor Sports Federation.

Note that Tesla will also have its stand, with the presence of a Cybertruck, undoubtedly to show the gaming possibilities inside the strange vehicle. We know how much Elon Musk loves video games and suggests being able to play while driving (but not while driving!).

The ambition of a living room that pleases

If the show wants above all to delight the players, they have not forgotten the professionals. A BtoB space will include a conference stage called “Future of Gaming” and a space for meetings and exchanges on themes specific to the video game industry (technical and societal challenges, investors, esports, training, transmedia licenses). …). The space will be open on Saturday to the general public around information and conferences dedicated to talent training with the presence of representatives of schools such as ISART digital, Gaming Campus, etc.

This third edition since the Covid episode and the overhaul of the show is therefore intended to be even more ambitious. “We want to be the Huma Festival of video games,” confides the owner of the show. He assures that this definition is not in vain. The SELL is targeting 200,000 visitors, a legitimate increase compared to last year’s 180,000. “This is the psychological bar that we have not crossed since Covid. We are not looking for gigantism, it is no longer a priority,” nevertheless tempers Nicolas Vignolles. “We want a very high-quality trade show experience. And you have to orchestrate that well for the people you welcome. There is no longer any enthusiasm in seeing endless queues. The public has changed and they no longer want of that.”

Changing the approach is also the priority of the PGW organizers who want to give a purpose to each visit, whether it is an event. In the background, we understand the competition from temporary events designed by licenses like Harry Potter with “brilliant experiences””, recognizes the general delegate. “Our public says that it has this level of requirement, so do the publishers. .”