The worlds of blockchain and gaming collide in Finland next week as the Blockchain Gamer Connects 2018 event throws open its doors in Helsinki for two days.

Billed as the Global Blockchain Games Conference, delegates will also get access to the hugely popular ‘Pocket Gamer Connects’ which brings together leading figures in the mobile games industry.

Pocket Gamer Connects returns to Finalnd’s capital for a fifth year as one of the world’s biggest B2B games events together with Blockchain Gamer Connects. The two parallel conferences aim to answer the many questions asked by developers as they seek to discover how blockchain can work in the games industry.

The event runs over two days – 11th and 12th September – at the Scandic Marina Conference Centre which will be open for registration and badge collection available from 4pm to 6pm on 10th September.

No fewer than 160 speakers will be spread across 16 conference tracks for both events which will include an expo, game jam, Big Indie Pitch, a $150,000 developer contest, free meeting systems and the now infamous Global Connects Party.

Angry Birds and Candy Crush

Few could argue that Scandinavia is enjoying something of a boom in games development after bringing through the likes of Supercell, King and Rovio – studios which have delivered household names in mobile gaming such as Candy Crush, Clash of Clans and Angry Birds.

Their work, as highlighted by pocketgamer.biz editor Steve Takle has made a huge contribution to triple-digit growth for the sector year-on-year and attracted billions of dollars in international investment from global megacorps including Activision and Tencent.

“What are they putting in the water over there?” he joked.

“Well, government support at an institutional level can’t hurt, encouraging start-ups to look outside the domestic market for export business, and you can’t overlook the region’s early lead in mobile tech that can still be felt today with what has been called The Nokia Effect.

“Combine this history as a hotbed of innovation for mobile technology and gaming with international renown for excellence and design – doesn’t everyone own Ikea furniture now? – and it starts to add up.”

For more details about both events, visit https://www.pgconnects.com/helsinki/blockchain-gamer-connects/