Ten talks you shouldn’t miss at PGC Helsinki 2019

After another awesome conference in Seattle back in May, PGC is back again, this time taking Helsinki by storm.  And as always, the conference will be bursting with insights from every corner.

So to give you a hand, we took a peek at the schedule, and listed 10 exciting talks we’re most looking forward to seeing below.

Talk 1 – State of the Industry: Analysis of 3 Billion Mobile Gamers (with GameAnalytics)

When: 1st October 2019 (9:20 – 9:40am)

Speaker: Ioana Hreninciuc, CEO at GameAnalytics

We’re thrilled to be one of the few opening talks at PGC Helsinki this year! And this time, our very own CEO, Ioana Hreninciuc, will be guiding you through our newly-released Mobile Gaming Benchmarks Report for H1 2019.

If you haven’t downloaded it yet, this report covers 1.2 billion monthly active players across nearly 100k games. And more importantly, it has all the latest key trends and performance insights (including retention, ARPDAU, conversion, eCPM, CPI, and more).

Talk 2 – How to Get the Most Out of a Third Party IP (with GameRefinery)

When: 1st October 2019 (10:20 – 10:40am)

Speaker: Joel Julkunen, Head of Analysis at GameRefinery

A great way to save time and resources when building a game is to rely on third-party IPs. Recently taking the market by storm, games have been using IP licenses in their titles (even just the soundtracks or other behind-the-scenes tools). So in this session, learn from Joel at GameRefinery on how you can get the most out of third-party IPs, so your game can really stand out in an ever-growing market.

Talk 3 – Hyper-casual 2.0: How Global Markets are Changing the Hyper-casual Phenomenon (with JoyPac)

When: 1st October 2019 (2 – 2:30pm)

Speaker: Allison Bilas, COO at JoyPac Games

Hyper-casual games are still dominating the global gaming space! And here, Allison Bilas from JoyPac will be going over how this all happened to begin with, and reasons why bite-sized titles will not be leaving the mobile games markets in the East or the West anytime soon.

Talk 4 – Growing Your Games Successfully in China (with Mobvista)

When: 1st October 2019 (2:40 – 3pm)

Speaker: Alexander Janssens, Performance Sales Director at Mobvista

Interested in taking your game to the East? Chinese expert, Alexander from Mobvista, will share a few best industry practices for growing your game in the East.

Busy during this talk? Then make sure to check out their previous event, Xplore China, to learn more about successfully launching your game in the East.

Talk 5 – IAP Pricing Optimisation: Timing, and Place (with Wappier)

 When: 2nd October 2019 (10:40 – 11am)

Speaker: Ted Verani, VP for Business Development at Wappier

How exactly can you maximize your revenue with in-app-purchases (IAP)? A good starting point would be figuring out your pricing model for both locations and times. But this can be tricky to learn, and can take time and resources that some developers may not have.

So in this talk, Ted Verani,  VP of Business Development at Wappier, will share their best tips when optimizing their pricing strategy, all while reviewing one of their top success studies on Global Pricing.

Talk 6 – What’s Next for Hyper-casual Games? (with Homa Games)

When: 2nd October 2019 (11:20 – 11:40am)

Speaker: Jon Hook, CRO at Homa Games

Yes, the hyper-casual scene is rapidly growing, but really, what’s next for this category? Great news – Jon Hook, CRO at Homa Games, will be answering this burning question (and going over some key insights into this genre) during his session in Helsinki.

We’ve actually interviewed Homa Games in the past. In this post, the publishing experts shared their top tips and key lessons when taking an average-performing title and turning this into a smash hit. You can read the full story here.

Talk 7 – How to Run Effective Soft Launches (with Zeptolab)

When: 2nd October 2019 (12 – 12:20pm)

Speaker: Dylan Tredea, Head of Publishing at Zeptolab

A successful soft launch will help you figure out whether your game is a hit or miss. But, the real challenge lies in making sure you have all the information you need (from these launches) to decide whether to “improve” or kill your darlings.

So if this topic strikes a chord, then make sure to check out Dylan Tradea’s talk, as he promises to share a few of his best practices and strategies when running effective soft launches.

Talk 8 – Approaching Growth in Hyper-casual (with Voodoo)

 When: 2nd October 2019 (12 – 12:20pm)

Speaker: Alexander Shea, Publishing Manager at Voodoo

Thinking of making a hyper-casual game? You’re in for a treat. In this talk, Alexander from Voodoo will walk you through how they achieved 771 million downloads in just six months. Don’t miss it!

Can’t make it? Not a problem. Here are a few resources from the experts themselves on how to create successful hyper-casual games:

• Key Lessons From Developing Roller Splat – Voodoo & Neon Play
• Prototype Phases For A Hit Casual Game – Purple Diver
• A Voodoo Guide To Game Design: Keep Things Simple

Talk 9 – Big Mistakes Between a Great Idea & Failed Product (with Huuuge Games)

When: 2nd October 2019 (2 – 2.20pm)

Speaker: Priyank Badkul, Product Owner at Huuuge Games

It’s possible to have lots of great ideas for mobile games, but it’s another thing to actually try and make them a reality. And in many cases, a great idea doesn’t always translate into a successful product. So, sharing first-hand experiences on their own mistakes, Priyank Badkul, Product Owner at Huuuge Games, will be covering 5 key things game developers should assess before deciding to turn an idea into a product.

Talk 10 – What is eSports? A Marketing Tool or a Real Opportunity?

When: 2nd October 2019 (3:20 – 4 pm)

Speakers: Mika Kuusisto, Co-founder and CEO at ENCE eSports; Fabian Scheuermann, VP Product and Publisher Relations at ESL – Turtle Entertainment; Marek-Martin Matyska, Senior Game Designer at Geewa; Selcuk Atli, CEO at Bunch

Bringing an end to our list… we highly recommend you to attend this special panel on eSports. With speakers from all corners of the gaming industry, it seems like the big question they’ll be tackling is whether competitive gaming is changing the way people play games, or becoming another strategy gaming marketers should adopt.

Say hello to our team

Just to let you know, a few of us will be around during the conference at PGC Helsinki 2019. So, if you fancy a chat, feel free to reach out to any one of these guys below. We would love to catch up!

Ioana Hreninciuc – CEO

Don’t miss a chance to talk with our very own CEO, Ioana. Whether you want to chat about our latest H1 2019 benchmarks report, or any upcoming products and releases we have, feel free to drop her a message to meet in person.

Kelly Chiu – Community Manager

I’ll be there this year, and I’m on the lookout for speakers for our very own event series, Making Hit Casual Games, here in London. But, if you’re interested in attending or just learning more about our meetups, please also get in touch! 🙂

Iván Bravo – Customer Operations Director

Unlike PGC Seattle earlier this year, Ivan will be off-stage this time, but is ready to answer any questions you have about global mobile gaming trends or our most recent industry report. If you fancy a chat, you can reach out to him at ivan@gameanalytics.com. (Heads up, in case you’re too busy at the event, he’ll be in Helsinki until October 3)

Junior Mba – Customer Success and Support Manager

If you’re looking to speak to someone about our platform and other features, or just anything technical support-related, make sure to catch Junior. He’ll also be in Helsinki until October 3.