BIG Festival 2021 is Officially a Wrap with More than 40 Million Views Across Digital Storefronts
Brazil’s Independent Games (BIG) Festival, the largest independent games festival in Latin America, has once again come and gone, and this year’s event saw record numbers across the board. Between the more than 545 companies from 64 countries present at the event and panels from some of the industry’s biggest names, BIG Festival was a smashing success for everyone involved, especially the hundreds of indie developers looking to make some business connections
An incredible 40 million estimated users accessed the games of BIG Festival across the Microsoft Store, Google Play, and App Store. This astounding number provides even more evidence of the accelerated growth being seen in the Brazilian gaming industry - the 13th largest video game market globally and second in Latin America.
“If in 2020 we were taken by surprise by the pandemic, this year, we were prepared to deliver a very high-quality online experience,” said Gustavo Steinberg, director of BIG Festival. “Precisely due to the online format, we were able to increase the number of panels and bring in international speakers, a more complicated task in a face-to-face event. In addition, we managed to reach people from all regions of the country and the world.”
“BIG Festival has always been a special time to discover and talk about the local independent gaming scene,” said Eliana Russi, executive manager of the Brazil Games Project. “In 2021 that moment was even more important for business, as our meeting platform registered more than 545 companies from 64 countries in search for business.”
The panels at this year’s event were viewed more than 790,000 times and included Capcom’s presentation about Resident Evil that showcased the first game in the franchise to be dubbed in Brazilian Portuguese, as well as introducing the stellar voice actors for the first time. The site itself attracted more than 2 million viewers throughout the week, which for the first time ever allowed viewers to play the games and try the demos from the comfort of their own homes.
Of course, what BIG Festival is truly about is generating business and growing partnerships between developers and publishers, and this year’s edition was an astounding success for the many studios, publishers, and investors in attendance. As the most important hub in the independent games market in Latin America, Brazil and BIG Festival serve as the nexus for business development and partnership in the gaming industry, and in 2021 saw a staggering 5,642 business meetings. The launch of a new Job Portal, where companies can seek qualified labor and aspiring industry workers can find opportunities for work, witnessed more than 1,000 registered professionals sign up.
With support from Brazil Games Export Program, a partnership between the Brazilian Game Companies Association, ABRAGAMES, and the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil), BIG Digital carries the traditions of its massively successful physical counterpart as a fundamental business hub for video game professionals across the globe through its lectures, networking events, and digital face-to-face meetings. It was a golden opportunity for developers, not just those in Brazil, but from a global audience, to meet with giants in the segment, such as Nintendo, Microsoft, Sony, Ubisoft, Google, HTC, Xbox Game Studios, Bioware, and Epic Games, who see BIG as an opportunity to see Brazil’s video games industry up close.