games-lift-2024:-these-five-developer-teams-will-receive-the-hamburg-incubator-funding

Games Lift 2024: These five developer teams will receive the Hamburg incubator funding

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Five teams have won over the Games Lift awarding committee with their game projects. On September 9, the Games Lift Incubator will start for them as a unique support program in Germany. Included is a one-year workshop and mentoring program with international industry experts and 15,000 euros in financial support, as well as room for collaboration and exchange with the other participating teams. More than 30 experts in game design, product development, pitching, business development, press relations and marketing from the Games Lift network will share their experience with the teams to give their projects a professional start. Starting this year, the program also offers participating teams a joint trip to an international industry event. The Games Lift Incubator is organized and implemented by Gamecity Hamburg on behalf of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg.

A total of 21 teams and solo developers applied for the fourth Games Lift Incubator. The decision for the five participating teams was made by the awarding committee, consisting of Kristin von der Wense (Publishing Producer Daedalic Entertainment), Ole Schaper (Managing Director The Sandbox Hamburg (Sviper GmbH)), Heiko Gogolin (Managing Director Rocket Beans Entertainment) and Tobias Graff (Co-Founder, Programmer and CEO Mooneye Studios).

Margarete Schneider, Project Manager at Gamecity Hamburg, on the award committee’s decision: “We are delighted with the large number of applications for our incubator and the high standard of the pitch decks submitted once again. It is particularly pleasing that we are receiving more applications from outside Hamburg, who see the city as an attractive location for starting a new business. The Games Lift Incubator provides gaming start-ups with comprehensive starting support and enables them to forge connections in Hamburg’s diverse games scene.

The five winner projects and teams for Games Lift Incubator 2024:

  • ForeFeathers by Team Honeybeak
  • Frisia – Cozy Villages by Rouven Cabanis
  • Light of Atlantis by Duck ‘n’ Run Games
  • Pubcrawler by Triflgard
  • Tiny Garden by Tales from the Garden

ForeFeathers by Team Honeybeak is a 3D Puzzle-Platformer where players slip into the role of a penguin, who explores the sky-high ruins of an ancient civilization of birds. Traversing the flying islands with the ancient powers of flight, solving tricky puzzles and keeping the penguin’s friends away from trouble are some main aspects of the game.

In Frisia – Cozy Villages by Rouven Cabanis the player gains control over an uninhabited Northsea island and is tasked with building a functional, yet cozy and beautiful little town. Inspired by the frisian architecture of the Dutch and German Northsea coast, Frisia aims to create a cozy gameplay experience in harmony with simple town-building and strategy game mechanics.

Light of Atlantis by Duck ‘n’ Run Games is a 2D puzzle metroidvania in which players take on the roles of various robots with individual abilities to explore the sunken ruins of Atlantis. By draining and releasing water into the various rooms, the robots shape their environment and improve their chances against different enemies. Light of Atlantis was part of the Gamecity Hamburg prototype funding in 2023 and received in the same year the German Computer Game Award (Deutscher Computerspielpreis) in the category “Best Prototype”.

Pubcrawler by Triflgard is a co-op PC game in which up to four players need to work as a team, to navigate a giant, mechanic, wandering pub through an apocalyptic wasteland. In the process, they must complete a variety of challenging tasks that can only be mastered as a team. Working together efficiently, pleasing the different guests and keeping a cool head even when the giant pubcrawler faces technical issues are the key to a successful journey.

In Tiny Garden by Tales from the Garden players slip into the role of a deity who fills a deserted planet with life. Together with their servants, a group of cute leaf creatures that must be protected from evil spirits, they plant a constantly growing garden. As soon as the garden is fully grown, the evil spirits can be soothed and the player can move on to the next planet in help.

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Gamecity Hamburg brings five start-ups to the Indie Arena Booth at gamescom 2024

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gamescom, the world’s largest trade fair for video games, is returning to Cologne from August 21 to 25. Through the “Road to gamescom” program, Gamecity Hamburg enables five indie studios from Hamburg to participate in the Indie Arena Booth, the largest joint booth of game developers worldwide. The start-ups will present their games to numerous gamescom visitors as well as potential business partners and the press. Other companies from Hamburg will be at gamescom to showcase projects and hold business meetings.

“With our ‘Road to’ program, we bring indie studios to relevant games events and prepare them to meet publishers, make contacts, and present their games to consumers. Our joint stand at the Indie Arena Booth enables us to achieve all these goals at gamescom”, says Dennis Schoubye, Head of Gamecity Hamburg. The joint booth of Gamecity Hamburg will present five promising projects from Hamburg at the Indie Arena Booth in Hall 10.2, F010g – E019.

These five studios will present their games at the Indie Arena Booth:

 Godcomplex Games – Stack ‘Em Up 

Godcomplex Games completed the Games Lift Incubator 2022 and received prototype funding for their game in 2023. Stack ‘Em Up is an exciting online and offline multiplayer player party game for up to four players. They absorb slimes with unique abilities, which they can creatively combine and stack to collect points and eliminate opponents in fast-paced battles.

Markus Koepke – Journey Beyond the Edge of the World

Journey Beyond is an immersive first-person adventure set on an abandoned fishing trawler in the middle of the North Sea. Players explore the ship and its mysterious history, which is revealed through puzzles, radio recordings, and atmospheric music. Markus Koepke has successfully completed the Gamecity Hamburg Games Lift Incubator 2023.

Pipapo Games – Map Map – A Game About Maps

Pipapo Games completed the HAW Games Master, further developed their game in the Games Lift Incubator 2023 and received Gamecity Hamburg prototype funding in 2024. In the cozy exploration game Map Map – A Game About Maps, players slip into the role of adventure-hungry cartographers who explore and map the surroundings on unknown islands full of secrets and thus get closer to the trail of a buried treasure.

Slime King Games – Under the Island 

Under the Island delivers fantastic graphics and presents a profound adventure story in the RPG genre. After moving to Seashell Island, the protagonist, Nia, must save her home from sinking, together with new friends. Solve puzzles, fight monsters, explore the map: Under the Island offers well-made old-school RPG classics and combines them with renewed ideas and a great soundtrack by Miyoko Takaoka (Sonic, Terranigma and others).

Sven Ahlgrimm & Mathilde Hoffmann – ODDADA  

ODDADA is a music construction kit game. Players create their own musical landscapes: machines and buildings become instruments that play new compositions at different levels. The developer duo Ahlgrimm and Hoffmann are from Berlin/Hamburg. Hamburg native Mathilde Hoffmann has been a successful sound designer and composer for games for many years (including Unrailed, Deep Space Gardening, Closer the Distance, and many more), while Sven Ahlgrimm is an experienced programmer, artist, and game creator.

Three of the five projects presented received funding from Gamecity Hamburg, including participation in the Games Lift Incubator and the receipt of prototype funding.

Companies from Hamburg at gamescom 2024

Other companies from the Hamburg games industry will be on-site at gamescom 2024 to present their new games or to initiate new business partnerships. Some examples:

Osmotic Studios will be showing their narrative slice-of-life adventure game Closer the Distance, which will be released on August 2, 2024, for PC, Playstation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. A demo will be playable at the Indie Arena Booth.

Mooneye Studios will be represented as part of the Home of Indies in Hall 10.2 with the games Smushi Come Home, Farewell North, and Lost Ember.

InnoGames GmbH will be available for press and business contacts for individual appointments.

Bigpoint GmbH will be available in the B2B area for business contacts and press appointments.

Daedalic Entertainment will be available for talks in the B2B area, and they will be presenting the cozy puzzle game Woodo in the indie area in the B2C area.

In addition, the Hamburg gaming internet channel Rocket Beans TV will accompany gamescom with numerous live broadcasts.

Gamecity Hamburg supports the Hamburg games industry and the diversity in the industry

In addition to programs such as “Road to gamescom”, the Gamecity Hamburg initiative, which is financed by the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, supports the regional games industry with other tailor-made funding programs: In the Games Lift Incubator, game developers and founders receive one year of intensive coaching and mentoring from international industry experts in addition to financial support. With prototype funding, Gamecity Hamburg also supports the development of game prototypes in Hamburg with up to 80,000 euros per project. In 2024, Gamecity Hamburg introduced a mandatory diversity checklist for all applicants of the funding programs, which actively contributes to more diversity in teams and projects.

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FREE-TO-PLAY SPORTS APP ‘HOTTAKES’ SCORES INVESTMENT FROM INCENTIVE GAMES

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Incentive Games, leading B2B gamification provider, today announced that they are increasing their strategic investment in HotTakes, a North American Free-to-Play affiliate app.

HotTakes has taken Ontario by storm and is poised to revolutionise B2C customer acquisition with its innovative format. Players can win valuable prizes with no betting or deposits involved. Through gamification and simplification, HotTakes has built a ‘free trial’ environment where newcomers can experience the thrill of sports betting without the financial risk.

Since its inception in 2022, HotTakes has secured partnerships with some of the biggest operators in North America, including bet365, PointsBet, BetMGM and Caesars. Incentive Games recognises HotTakes as the future of B2C engagement, and the company is set to expand into the broader US market throughout 2024.

John Gordon, CEO of Incentive Games, has been a key advisor to the HotTakes team, providing valuable insights on product development and business direction.

John said, “This is one of our most important strategic investments to date. I believe HotTakes has what it takes to crack the code on a longstanding problem in the US market: acquiring online betting customers at a cost that is lower than their customer lifetime value.” He continued, “When I first met the founders, some of them were still in university – as a Scot, I refuse to call it college – and they were already profitable. The team is full of bright young minds who are making waves in the industry. I see them as some of my many (acknowledged) children and supporting the company throughout their success is incredibly rewarding!”

Tyler Amirault, CEO of HotTakes, said, “The synergy between HotTakes and Incentive Games is truly exceptional. As we strive to become North America’s ultimate B2C free-to-play platform, partnering with the industry’s leading B2B provider is a game-changer. John and Incentive Games’ expertise in balancing engagement with simplicity and intuitiveness will be instrumental as we expand across the US market. Together, we’re transforming customer acquisition from an ad-heavy approach to an educational and rewarding journey for sports fans.”

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Azerion Announces Launch of Habbo Hotel: Origins

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Azerion proudly announces the launch of Habbo Hotel: Origins, inviting players to relive the magic of the iconic virtual world as it existed in 2005. This thrilling release marks a major milestone in online gaming history, inviting players to experience the original charm and magic of the early Habbo Hotel.

Habbo Hotel: Origins allows players to relive the magic of the original Habbo experience, meticulously recreated to mirror its 2005 counterpart. With a focus on authenticity and community engagement, it provides players with a genuine and immersive gaming experience that captures the essence of the early days of Habbo. By fostering community involvement and preserving the nostalgia of 2005, we aim to reignite the passion of longtime fans and introduce new players to the charm of Habbo.

Today, we invite players to step back in time and experience the nostalgia of Habbo Hotel Origins. Featuring an authentic recreation of the game from 2005, this launch promises a fresh, community-driven approach to gameplay.

Exciting Features Await:

  • Users can launch the client from the Habbo Hotel Origins website.

  • Habbo Hotel Origins will host three hotels catering to English, Portuguese, and Spanish-speaking players.

  • As an 18+ game, Habbo Hotel Origins marks a deliberate shift in the target audience, offering a more mature and immersive experience. While retaining the essence of 2005, Habbo Hotel: Origins introduces necessary updates to comply with modern safety regulations. These include revisions to the call for help flow, additional profile options for enhanced privacy control, GDPR support for data management, and mandatory TOTP registration/login to bolster account security.

  • A Community-Led Journey: In a departure from convention, Habbo Hotel: Origins will adopt a community-led approach to development. In the InfoBus Park room, important questions about development and direction will be posed, with players empowered to vote on these questions and influence decisions, actively shaping the future of the game.

“We couldn’t be more excited to present Habbo Hotel: Origins to our players worldwide,” said Jurriaan van Teunenbroek, VP of Games and Content at Azerion. “This release is the culmination of countless hours of hard work and dedication from the Habbo team, highlighting the enduring legacy of Habbo. We invite players from across the globe to join us on this nostalgic journey and take a trip down memory lane with Habbo Hotel: Origins.”

“I am very excited that we are able to release something that the community has been asking for years. Now everyone come and see what made Habbo popular all those years ago!” continued Mika Timonen, Product Director of Habbo.

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Move and earn leader STEPN drops new app and gaming token

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FSL, the global gaming and development studio behind web3 lifestyle app STEPN, NFT marketplace MOOAR, and social-strategy game Gas Hero, has officially announced the launch of STEPN GO. The new product is a social lifestyle app that rewards your daily movement and social interactions. Today marks an exciting milestone with the release of the STEPN GO Whitepaper and Tokenomic model. The game introduces a new token, GO GAME TOKEN (GGT), which users can earn by walking, jogging, and running with digital NFT Sneakers. There will also be a PvP game feature that allows users to earn GMT, the FSL Ecosystem token.

The original STEPN app was launched in 2021 and remains the world’s leading ‘Move and Earn’ application, pioneering the genre of gamified web3 fitness applications. With over 5.6 million registered users and over 1 million Sneaker NFTs owned by players, STEPN achieved monumental success, acquiring a global community. STEPN has partnered with prolific brands over the years including ASICS, Steve Aoki, and most recently adidas. STEPN was also the first blockchain gaming app to integrate Apple Pay, creating a seamless onboarding experience for web2 native users.

Yawn Rong, Co-Founder of FSL commented, “The STEPN community has been requesting social features within the app since the early days of STEPN. Therefore, we’re so excited to reveal these new features, which will propel STEPN GO into mainstream adoption. In addition to the Haus Mechanism and Interactive Map, we will also implement PvP elements within the app. Community is at the heart of everything we do at FSL, and we are ecstatic to announce this monumental milestone today, reinforcing our commitment to empowering and engaging our users.”

Building on the success of STEPN, FSL has designed unique social features within STEPN GO. The first key social element is the ‘Haus System’, which is a lending system that allows users to share their Sneaker NFTs with friends and family members who are new to the app, and split their earnings. This system will enable easy onboarding for new users to enjoy the app and kickstart their fitness journey. Another unique feature will be the ‘Interactive Map’, which will allow users to see other players’ avatars and even add them as friends within the platform. This Interactive Map will also allow users to drop messages that can be found by other players out doing STEPN GO runs.

Jerry Huang, Co-Founder of FSL added, “With STEPN GO, anyone can onboard their friends and family to web3 without needing to create a wallet or even buy NFTs. Exercise will be more fun and rewarding. We will combine fitness with many enjoyable experiences, including having your own customizable avatars with unique outfits!”

The Alpha Version of STEPN GO is set to launch by Q3 2024 with a Sneaker NFT Alpha Prize Draw lasting one month. A total of 3,000 Sneaker NFTs will be distributed within the app. To enter, users will be required to lock GMT. Access to the Alpha Prize Draw will be limited to FSL ID users, ensuring the most loyal FSL community members are rewarded. An additional 2,000 Sneakers will also be given away via the STEPN X account and STEPN GO Discord. Make sure to follow STEPN on X for your chance to win a Sneaker and gain early access.

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NVIDIA and GIGABYTE bring NVIDIA Reflex iCafe Attack across 20 gaming cafes, rewarding INR 2,00,000 through esports tournament

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NVIDIA, the world leader in accelerated computing, has tied up with GIGABYTE, a global leader in computer hardware, to bring the NVIDIA Reflex iCafe Attack. The esports tournament took place across 20 gaming cafes in India including Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Shillong, and Bangalore, with teams registering to compete in Counter-Strike 2 for a share of the INR 2,00,000 prize pool.

Commenting on the successful association and the completion of the NVIDIA Reflex iCafe Attack, Sunil Grewal, Director, GIGABYTE India, said, “We are thrilled to wrap up the first-ever NVIDIA Reflex iCafe Attack, bringing Counter-Strike 2 esports action to cafes in every nook and corner of the country. As leaders in the manufacturing of graphic cards loved by gamers worldwide, we are glad to have organized a grassroots-level esports tournament bringing together esports enthusiasts in an epic showdown, enabling us to connect directly with the Indian PC gaming community.”

The NVIDIA Reflex iCafe Attack esports tournament, in collaboration with GIGABYTE, highlighted the importance of top-tier hardware like the GIGABYTE GEFORCE RTX 4070 SUPER GAMING OC 12GB GDDR6 in competitive gaming. With advanced features such as ray tracing and AI-enhanced graphics, this GPU ensures smooth performance and low-latency responsiveness crucial for esports titles like Counter-Strike 2. Its robust cooling system and overclocking capabilities maintain peak performance during intense gaming sessions, empowering players to excel. By integrating cutting-edge hardware, GIGABYTE enhances the esports experience, fostering competitiveness and immersion in the digital arena.

The NVIDIA Reflex iCafe Attack 2024 was a resounding success, with more than 70 teams registering to compete in the open-for-all tournament.

These 70 teams competed in their local cafes, where the best 32 advanced to the National Playoffs. The NVIDIA Reflex iCafe Attack 2024 National Playoffs happened every Saturday and Sunday, across April 2024, where the 32 teams locked horns in intense Counter-Strike 2 esports action for the lion’s share of the INR 2,00,000 prize pool.

Ultimately, Mumbai’s Global Gaming Cafe dominated Bangalore’s Colosseum Cafe 3-0 in a one-sided grand final to be crowned the champions. The team will walk away with INR 1,00,000 of the total prize pool.

● Global Gaming Cafe (Mumbai): INR 1,00,000

● Colosseum Cafe (Bangalore): INR, 60,000

● Immortal Cafe (Delhi): INR 40,000

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The best European gamers will meet in Vilnius: global tournaments and the latest technology presentations

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As Lithuania increasingly finds itself in the spotlight of the global gaming community, country’s gamers can once again rejoice at significant news. Lithuania will host “Trackmania World Tour” stage. With this news, it is planned that 24th to 26th of May, in Vilnius the “Baltics Gaming Expo” will bring together the best gamers from across Europe and the world.

International tournaments and showcase battles

“We love to play, and we’re really good at it at the highest level. This is the second year that the “Baltics Gaming Expo” will gather video game enthusiasts and professionals from all around Europe. If last year, 29,000 participants and visitors came to participate or watch tournaments, explore the latest technologies, and try out newly released games, this year, we expect even bigger growth. After all, we have some special news – the “Trackmania” game tournament at the event is included in the global rankings. In other words, all the best players are coming to Vilnius”, says Šarūnas Tamulis, one of the organizers of the “Baltics Gaming Expo”.

Players from France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands, Poland, Latvia, and other countries will participate in the global ranking tournament. Among the participants will be representatives from Lithuania.

The largest gaming and technology event in the Baltic States will also feature “Counter Strike”, “Valorant”, “Rocket League”, “League of Legends”, and other international tournaments.

“There will also be special showcase battles. The best players and streamers in the country will meet on the main stage and compete playing “Counter Strike” and “Valorant”, the organizer says.

From famous streamers’ to retro games

In the gaming community, it’s popular to watch other players remotely broadcast their matches via social networks (game-streaming). Streamers are like opinion leaders, whose popularity and influence grow every day.

“To the delight of our community, the very popular streamer AnnieFuchsia will also attend the event. She has gathered half a million followers on her Twitch channel alone. For those interested, we will create an opportunity to participate in a discussion with the gamer, get answers to significant questions, or even get a photo together”, says Š. Tamulis.

Attendees of the event will also be able to enjoy a space dedicated to exceptional retro games. It will feature dozens of classic arcade games from the 80s and 90s.

“The technology giant “Samsung”, has prepared special activations for the visitors. At the largest “Galaxy AI” stand, you’ll be able to familiarize yourself with the latest artificial intelligence news and try them out on smart devices. There will also be a special “Brawlstars” tournament at the stand, where well-known content creators and enthusiasts of this game from Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia will meet. The winner will receive the latest “Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra” phone”, the organizer presents.

A weekend for popular culture

The “Baltic Gaming Expo” will take place during “Comic Con Baltics 2024 powered by Samsung,” the largest popular culture event in the Baltic States. From May 24th to 26th, “LITEXPO” will turn into a universe of popular culture.

Fans will have the chance to meet stars from iconic Hollywood projects. Among them are actors from the “Harry Potter” films Natalia Tena and Devon Murray, “Marvel” film actor Sean Gunn, “Highlander” actor Adrian Paul, actress Natasha Halevi, internet comic stars Rob DenBleyker of “Cyanide&Happiness,” “Natural Habitat Shorts,” “Nobody Sausage,” and Nathan W. Pyle, creator of “Strange Planet” comics.

The event will also feature the largest cosplay competition in the Baltic States, premieres of the latest films, presentations, and discussions, an interactive family space, the “Artists’ Alley,” which annually unites around a hundred popular culture artists, a space for vendors offering many curiosities, impressive decorations from the most famous films and series worldwide, and many other attractions.

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Midjiwan Supports Reforestation Efforts With New Elyrion Tribe Skin In The Battle Of Polytopia

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Midjiwan, the award-winning independent studio behind The Battle of Polytopia, is celebrating Elyrion (∑∫ỹriȱŋ) Tribe Week with a brand-new Midnight (₼idŋighţ) skin and donations to support reforestation.

Tapping into the Elyrion Tribe’s nature magic abilities, every purchase of an Elyrion item in the game will plant one real-world tree from April 22-28 2024. Midjiwan has teamed up with The Canopy Project, an organisation that works with global partners to reforest areas in urgent need of rehabilitation, combining The Battle Of Polytopia’s themes with a desire to make real change in the world. Previous years of Elyrion Tribe Week have resulted in the planting of over 12,000 trees.

The Elyrion Tribe is a mysterious group of elves, dedicated to defending their woodland home with their unique magic and connection with nature. Players using the Elyrion tribe have the ability to enchant animals into Polytaurs and summon powerful Fire Dragons.

Christian Lövstedt, General Manager at Midjiwan, commented:

“This is a hugely exciting partnership, allowing players to support the planet and contribute to reforestation whilst also accessing brilliant new content to use in The Battle Of Polytopia.”

Alongside donating to The Canopy Project, The Battle Of Polytopia also boasts a brand-new skin for the Elyrion Tribe! The Midnight skin allows players to create graves, build crypts, and summon demons in dark forests, all in service of the mysterious Shard of D’Naeh.

The Midnight skin re-skins the entire Elyrion Tribe as the Midnight Cult. Everything the Elyrion Tribe is all about – nature, enchantment, and sanctuary – is turned on its head, corrupted into a dark, twisted dystopia of itself.

Midjiwan has already invested €250,000 in solar power projects in rural areas around Africa, and other charitable projects. The studio continues to seek opportunities to combine its in-game creativity with real-world benefits. The Battle of Polytopia is available on Nintendo Switch, the App Store, Google Play, PC, and Tesla cars.

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G2 Gozen crowned inaugural Red Bull Instalock Champions with Grand Finals sweep

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G2 Gozen crowned inaugural Red Bull Instalock Champions with Grand Finals sweep

  • G2 Gozen were crowned inaugural champions of Red Bull Instalock in 3-1 win against VCT Game Changers 2023 champions Shopify Rebellion
  • The invitational tournament ran from 20-21 April at the UK’s premier esports and gaming venue, the Red Bull Gaming Sphere in London
  • Red Bull Instalock brought together some of the best women’s VALORANT GC teams from around the world including G2 Gozen, GIANTX, Shopify Rebellion and Karmine Corp
  • The tournament was hosted by Yinsu Collins, with insights from Kieran “Kairo” Tulloch, Billie “BillieIDK” Purdie, Matt “Twiggy” Twigg, and Harry “Hazza” Chapman and an appearance from Megan “Megsoundslikeegg” Garner
  • AGON by AOC was the official Monitor Partner for Red Bull Instalock, providing cutting-edge AGON PRO AG254FG monitors, featuring a 360 Hz refresh rate and 1 ms response time, for the best in-game experience.

G2 Gozen have been crowned the inaugural Red Bull Instalock champions, claiming the victory across a weekend packed with exhilarating VALORANT matches and tactical plays. Streamed live from London’s premier esports and gaming venue, the Red Bull Gaming Sphere, Red Bull Instalock marked the UK’s first professional women’s VALORANT tournament of 2024.

Red Bull Instalock brought together four of the world’s best professional women’s VALORANT teams for a spectacle tournament, G2 Gozen, GIANTX, Karmine Crop, and 2023 VALORANT Champions Tour: Game Changers Championship winners Shopify Rebellion. Putting a unique twist on the traditional team composition, the competing teams were required to implement three of the game’s offensive class, duelists.

Red Bull Instalock quickly established itself as a high-stakes competition, with teams racing to dominate maps across a best-of-three format across the Upper Semi-Finals. The first game of the tournament saw powerhouse G2 Gozen battle it out against underdogs GIANTX, with GIANTX securing their position in the Upper Finals with a tiebreaker victory against G2 Gozen (2-1).

The second match featured North America’s Shopify Rebellion, who swiftly relegated the French force of Karmine Corp to the Lower Bracket (2-0). Facing off once again, G2 Gozen vanquished GIANTX in a Lower Bracket match underdog victory, securing themselves a position in the Grand Final to compete against Shopify Rebellion (2-0).

This Lower Bracket victory marked a turning point for G2 Gozen, who delivered a flawless masterclass in VALORANT against the North American titans Shopify Rebellion. The Grand Final was an intense showdown, pivoting to a best-of-five format in a battle for the crown. Shopify Rebellion started off strong, with a one-map lead, a reward following their success in the Semi-Finals, but G2 Gozen quickly closed in on that lead as they took the first and second maps. In a gripping third and final map, G2 Gozen swiftly closed out the tournament, claiming the win over the tournament frontrunners and Game Changers 2023 champions Shopify Rebellion (3-1).

The tournament also featured a show match featuring some of the UK’s most beloved VALORANT creators going head-to-head, including Talia Mar, Shan “ThePizzaWaffle” Hadden, Ella “Tenshi” Merry and Alexandra “LexieMariex” Butterfill. Hosted by British FNATIC content creator and partnered streamer Megan “Megsoundslikeegg” Garner, the nail biting creator show match saw Team Jupi take the win after a surprise comeback from Team Tenshi forced the match into overtime.

Kieran “Kairo” Tulloch, Billie “BillieIDK” Purdie, Matt “Twiggy” Twigg, and Harry “Hazza” Chapman were also part of the broadcast, providing live commentary and analysis.

Following the gripping grand finals, recently crowned Red Bull Instalock champion, G2 Gozen Pro and Red Bull Player Michaela “Mimi” Lintrup said: “We learned so much playing in this new format at Red Bull Instalock, how undisciplined people can be when playing something so chaotic. In the chaos, the thing that helped us to secure the win was to chill.”

Red Bull Instalock host Yinsu Collins also commented: “I loved my experience at the first ever Red Bull Instalock! The invited teams were incredibly competitive and tackled the format in a really unique way. Throughout the tournament, as the player’s normal game plan was out the window, we saw a lot of creativity, pros thinking on their feet, adaptation and some new approaches to how the game can be played.”

AGON by AOC, a global leader in gaming monitors, returned to join the Red Bull Gaming universe once again as the official Monitor Partner for Red Bull Instalock. Bringing the event to life and providing cutting-edge hardware for the esports tournament, AGON by AOC equipped the event with the AGON PRO AG254FG monitors, featuring a 360 Hz refresh rate and 1 ms response time for the best in-game experience.

Check out redbull.com/gaming for more information.

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Sortium Revolutionizing Video Game Development with Groundbreaking AI Tools Launch and $4 Million+ Funding Round

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In a significant leap forward for the gaming and entertainment sectors, Sortium, a leader in the wave of generative AI within gaming, has launched innovative AI tools for artists and game developers, marking a new era of creativity and efficiency. These tools, leveraging the Polkadot infrastructure, are set to transform the gaming industry by enhancing the creative process, streamlining production workflows, and producing high-quality user-generated content.

This transformative step is supported by a successful funding round Sortium just closed, surpassing $4 million. The round was led by industry stalwarts such as Signum Growth, with significant contributions from a diverse array of investors, including Cathie Wood’s ARK Investment Management LLC, IDG Blockchain, IVC Fund, Polygon, and 1881 S Group AG. This wide-ranging support underscores the industry’s confidence in Sortium’s potential to revolutionize 3D video game design and entertainment production.

Sortium’s AI tools integrate seamlessly into existing game production ecosystems, automating challenging content creation tasks. This innovation enables studios to significantly speed up production times and reduce costs, allowing them to focus more on innovation and design while empowering users across any system to design their own characters, thereby opening new creative freedoms and revenue streams for developers and individual creators alike. Sortium’s team, with deep expertise in game development, AI, and IP rights management, ensures the smooth adoption of this technology.

According to Angela Dalton, CEO & Founder of Signum Growth, “The Sortium team’s technical capabilities are impressive. Perhaps even more importantly, they possess deep expertise, relationships and understanding across the traditional gaming industry. Generative AI is in its broader market experimentation phase, leading many to ignore IP rights in the spirit of progress and innovation. Sortium’s believes that IP rights will ultimately matter – baking them into the technology at the outset, and respecting artists’ work, are core tenets of the company that we fully support.”

Building on this foundation of technical excellence and ethical commitment, Sortium’s innovations also translate into tangible benefits for the gaming community.

“Sortium is leading the frontier of AI in gaming and creative applications. Sortium gives creatives unparalleled freedom in leading gaming environments like Unreal,” said Lex Avellino, Founder & CCO at Passage, one of Sortium’s partners. “The team is breaking technical barriers, and it adds a huge value for our consumer audiences who want to take advantage of the latest virtual tech but need to act with speed and simplicity.”

Sortium is actively forming partnerships with major intellectual properties and leading gaming platforms. A recent major collaboration with Bit Brawl, a game utilizing Sortium technology to deliver live content to over 5,000 users, showcases the versatile application of Sortium’s tools across various gaming environments. Its technology’s wide compatibility with leading development platforms ensures extensive adoption potential and effortless integration into professional industry practices. Sortium’s enterprise solutions, such as the LiveOps API, aim to enhance gaming experiences and enable continuous creativity through endless, tailored content generation.

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