Finndie Forge DEMO DAY Competition 🎮

​Your game. Your pitch. Your next opportunity.

​Join us for an evening dedicated to Finnish indie games, emerging developers and playable game projects.

​On Demo Day, selected developers get 3 minutes to pitch their game demo to an industry jury - with the opportunity to receive feedback, make valuable connections and get their project in front of people from the game industry.

​Whether you're a developer looking for your next opportunity or a game enthusiast who wants to discover the next generation of Finnish Indie games, you're welcome to join us.

​📅 16 October 2026
📍 StartHub Lahti, Verstaskatu 19, 15210 Lahti
🕐 17.00-22.00

​Free to attend - registration required.

🎮 Want to pitch your game?
Apply here → https://luma.com/9dl0czhl

📺 Watch the Demo Day Live
Can't make it to Lahti? IGDA Digihub will be livestreaming the event online.

Livestream link will be shared before the event.

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🎮 What is Demo Day?

​Demo Day is a showcase event for indie game developers and emerging game projects.

​Selected developers will step on stage and have 3 minutes to pitch their game demo to our jury.

​The goal is simple:

​Show us your game. Tell us why it matters. Make us remember it.

​After the pitches, the jury will evaluate the projects and selected teams may have the opportunity to continue the conversation with industry professionals.

​What you can expect

​🎮 Playable indie game demos
🎤 3-minute live pitches
👥 Industry jury
💬 Feedback & discussion
🤝 Networking
🧩 Opportunities for future collaboration

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🚀 Who can apply for the competition?

​Demo Day is open to:

• ​Indie game developers

• ​Small game studios

• ​Student teams

• ​First-time developers

• ​Early-stage game projects

• ​Developers with a playable prototype or demo

​You don't need to have a finished game.

​If you have something playable and you're looking for feedback, funding, publishing, connections or your next opportunity - we want to see it.

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🎤 The 3-Minute Pitch

​Each selected developer will have exactly 3 minutes to introduce their game to the jury.

​Your pitch should answer three simple questions:

​1. What is your game?
Give us the elevator pitch.

​2. Why is it interesting?
Show us the core gameplay, hook or unique idea.

​3. What are you looking for?
Tell us what you need next.

​For example:

​"We're looking for a publisher."

​"We're looking for funding."

​"We're looking for a development partner."

​"We're looking for feedback and industry connections."

​⏱️ Keep it simple

​You only have 3 minutes.

​You can use:

• ​Gameplay footage

• ​A live demo

• ​Screenshots

• ​Slides

• ​Trailer footage

​Your presentation should be prepared in advance.

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📤 Submit Your Game

​Want to pitch your game at Demo Day?

​Register through Luma → https://luma.com/9dl0czhl and tell us about your project.

​We will ask for:

• ​Game title

• ​Team / studio name

• ​Contact person

• ​Email

• ​Short game description

• ​Genre

• ​Platform

• ​Current development stage

• ​Link to your playable demo

• ​Trailer / gameplay video

• ​Website / social media

• ​What are you looking for?

• ​Short description of your team

​You don't need a finished game.

​A playable prototype is enough.

🎮 Want to pitch your game?
Apply here → https://luma.com/9dl0czhl

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⚖️ How will games be evaluated?
Our jury will evaluate each project across three key areas:

​💰 Commercial Potential
Market appeal, business potential and target audience fit.

​⚙️ Technical Execution & Quality
Technical quality, usability, stability and overall execution.

​✨ Uniqueness
Originality, distinctiveness, creative identity and memorable gameplay.

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📍🗺️ Getting Here

​🚌 By bus:
Verstaskatu 19 is easily accessible from Lahti Travel Centre by local buses 1, 1S, 1K and 13. (“Niemen kampus”)

​StartHub is approximately 4 km from Lahti Travel Centre.

​For the most up-to-date departure times and routes, check the LSL journey planner.

🚗 By car: Parking
Paid parking is available near the venue.
P1 & P4: 1 hour free, then €1/hour.
Parking can be paid through eParking, EasyPark, Moovy or Parkman.

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📅 Important dates

​15 September - Applications open
9 October - Application deadline
12 October - Selected developers announced
14 October - Pitch materials deadline
16 October - Demo Day 🎮

For more information, you can contact us at lahti@igda.fi, but we are easiest to contact through our Discord.

Hublead: wawethewaras (Mika Happonen)

Sign up here to speak at IGDA Lahti! We’ll let you know when a slot opens.

Please note that, unfortunately, as a community-supported, non-profit event, IGDA Finland Lahti Hub cannot guarantee covering speakers’ expenses.

Join us for the next meetup at Kotka at Street Food Factory! The date is Thursday 15.10 starting at 17:00. Come hang out with us once again. See you there!

IGDA Helsinki Presents:
October Meetup with Remedy Entertainment
13.10.2026

Tis’ that time of the year again, where we celebrate the spooky season — October! So come hang at our next IGDA Helsinki October Meetup where we’ll be celebrating Remedy Entertainment’s recently released game CONTROL Resonant! Be sure to dress up in your best spooky attire in the spirit of early Halloween!

📣 Note: No pre-registration is required to join our Meetup.

WHAT:
IGDA Helsinki October Meetup with Remedy Entertainment

WHEN:
Tuesday 13.10
Doors open at 17
Program starts at 17:45

WHERE:
Maxine, Kamppi shopping center, 6th floor (Elevators can be found on the E-floor, between Jungle Juice Bar and Rax). Note that Maxine is a 18+ venue, hence you must be 18+ years of age to attend.

PROGRAM:
Intro and welcoming words by Remedy Entertainment Executive Producer Juha Vainio
Live Q&A with the CONTROL Resonant team moderated by Juha Vainio, with Senior Level Designer Arhi Makkonen, Senior Environment Artist Masha Malitskaya and Senior Gameplay Designer Ville Varis

🕹️ Wanna showcase your game at our Demo Corner and get some valuable feedback? Sign up here: https://forms.gle/N7F8Jo8m6GmbeuFP9  
Deadline for signups is October 9th at 23:59 . Note, you will need to submit a 10 - 30s gameplay video! 

💬 Our Chat Corner will be open and ready for chatting! Keep an eye out because this month’s chat corner will be at a different location within Maxine!

We’ll also have an AMA Session (19:00 - 20:00) with Emma Varjo who leads UX and Design and has worked across AA and AAA console and PC games, including the Trine series and Overwatch 2. See more details of Emma’s background further below!

🗣️ Café Lingua is back! Interested in practicing and improving your Finnish or Swedish language skills by chatting with native-speaking game industry professionals? Join the "Let’s speak in Finnish/Swedish" - Café Lingua between 17-17.45!

PROGRAM DETAILS:

Live Q&A with the CONTROL Resonant team moderated by Juha.

Juha Vainio, the Moderator
Juha Vainio is the Executive Producer of CONTROL Resonant and the CONTROL Franchise at Remedy Entertainment. He joined Remedy 2017 and started as the Lead Producer of CONTROL, heading the production, and shipping the game. He has over twenty years of management experience in software development and fifteen years of production experience in the games industry. In his previous life he produced mobile titles such as Angry Birds Star Wars at Rovio, and as the CEO of Epic Owl he shipped the still-profitable-after-11-years free-to-play mobile game Space Arena: Build and Fight. Juha has also been active in the Finnish Game Dev Community being a former member of the board of directors of both IGDA Finland and Finnish Game Development Studios’ Association. 

Arhi Makkonen
Arhi Makkonen is a Senior Level Designer on CONTROL Resonant. He has worked at Remedy Entertainment for eight years, joining during the final year of Control’s development. Makkonen was the first Level Designer to join CONTROL Resonant, contributing extensively to early prototyping. His main focus throughout development has been creating the game’s world structure and designing its Zones, the game’s more open areas. Previously he worked on games like Bad Biggies and designing interactive board game tutorials. From outside of work Makkonen is enthusiastic tabletop and live-action roleplayer and loves game jams.

Masha Malitskaya
Masha Malitskaya is a Senior Environment Artist on CONTROL Resonant. She has been at Remedy Entertainment for 4 years focusing largely on the semi-procedural worldbuilding and open spaces of CONTROL Resonant. She has been an environment artist for 14 years and has created environments for games like The Division 2, Rainbow Six Siege, and Skyforge specializing primarily in level layouts and composition.

Ville Varis
Ville Varis is a Senior Gameplay Designer on CONTROL Resonant. He has been working at Remedy Entertainment for eight years and primarily worked on the final phase of Control's development and through its two expansions. On CONTROL Resonant he was responsible for the player's melee system, combat abilities and some of the game's boss fights. Working at Remedy is Ville's first job in the game industry, although he worked on multiple hobbyist and school projects before this.

Chat Corner AMA at 19 - 20 with Emma Varjo

Emma leads UX and Design and has worked across AA and AAA console and PC games, including the Trine series and Overwatch 2. She's spent her career at the intersection of design and research, figuring out how to turn player feedback into better games, and she's especially passionate about accessibility. Ask her anything about the cross section of UX and game design, research, facilitation, or making games work for more people. 

ACCESSIBILITY:
At IGDA Helsinki we strive for making our events accessible for everyone. We kindly ask all attendees to stay away from using strong perfumes or similar fragrances. The Meetups can be crowded at times, meaning that the sound volume can also become rather loud.

Maxine is wheelchair accessible. There's a few steps at the entrance, for that please ask security at the cloakroom for a ramp. Accessible toilet can be found at the back of the space.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding any type of accessibility of our Meetups, then please contact helsinki@igda.fi and we will do our best to assist you. We also have an accessibility contact present at the Meetup until 19:00. They can be found near the entrance and are ready to assist with any accessibility-related matters!

Reminder that IGDA Meetups use the THE FINNISH GAME INDUSTRY Code of Conduct! 

The game and music industries in Tampere have active networks that regularly meet within their respective communities. In October, these networking events will come together for a special joint meetup! 

Ever wondered how game music gets made and how to possibly make some yourself? This is your chance to come meet game developers and musicians to make some magic happen!

The evening will consist of wonderful mingling between gamedev and music people with Finnish Game industry’s own rockstar Ari Pulkkinen joining us. First with a short interview and then by spending the evening with us!

FusionLabs’ people are also hosting a “speed dating” event for game developers and musicians to bridge the gap.

We’d like you to fill in the following registration to get a better image of how many would arrive. The form also includes a section to sign up for the speed dating! Please follow the link to the registration form.

We’re not forgetting the Demo Corner! If you want to show your games please fill in the Demo Corner Sign up form here.

WHAT: IGDA Tampere x Indie Tampere October Games & Music Meetup with One Trick Entertainment & FusionLabs!
WHEN: 6th of October 2026 at 18:00-22:00!
WHERE: Bar Ihku Tampere, Hämeenkatu 23, Tampere!

Join us for our first Kouvola meetup this autumn at Betony!
The date is 24.9 starting at 17:00.

We encourage everyone to come check us out and hang out! Hope to see you there!

welcome to the IGDA Turku September Meetup - Summer Training 2026: Project Showcase!

This time we’re diving into the Summer Training 2026 program, powered by Turku AMK and Step On D4 Oy! Two student teams have been working on their game projects for the past four months, and now it’s time to check out what they’ve been building. Each team will pitch their game live, sharing their progress, challenges, and creative visions so far.

When: 22.9.2026

Where: Kaivomestari (EduCity)
Doors open: 17:00

Program starts: 18:00

Small indie studios are struggling to get funding and here is a company attempting to fix the problem: Finndie Forge! Hear from Toni Tilsala and Ville Muhonen about how they plan to support indie developers and help people build teams. They are gonna tell about their next huge event were developers can get feedback for their games and testers can earn prices by finding bugs!

Sign up now: Register Link

About Finndie Forge:
Early-stage game developers in Finland struggle to access funding, team building, professional support, and publishing opportunities, despite the strong educational pipeline. We provide a community-driven platform and funding for Finnish indie game developers. Guiding them from brilliant ideas to published products. We will create and support new gaming companies in Finland and help the whole industry to evolve and prosper.

Website: https://finndieforge.fi/

Event is organised by IGDA Lahti in Fellmanni-talo. Doors open at 17:00 and presentation starts at 18:00. After presentation there is time to do networking. Event closes about 20:00.

You can also present your demos or ask for feedback on your game projects after presentation. If you want to ask for more details contact: wawethewaras (Mika Happonen) in IGDA Lahti Discord (https://discord.gg/328zTZfy9z)

Reminder: IGDA events uses the Finnish Game Industry Code of Conduct!

WHERE:
Fellmanni-talo, Kirkkokatu 27, 15140 Lahti
WHEN:
Friday 11th September, 17:00-20:00

🚅 You can easily arrive at our event by train from Helsinki in 1h or from Kouvola in 30 min.
🚶 Around 1km/15min walk from the train station.

Event follows code of conduct of IGDA Finland!

Fellmanni-talo is wheelchair accessible! 
The event will be happening on the second floor, but the building has an elevator, and accessible toilets can be found on the same floor. Our volunteers will be opening the doors to get in, and on the inside, there is a button to open the door. 

For more information, you can contact us at lahti@igda.fi, but we are easiest to contact through our Discord.

Hublead: wawethewaras (Mika Happonen)

Sign up to let us know you’re coming: Register Link

Sign up here to speak at IGDA Lahti! We’ll let you know when a slot opens.

Please note that, unfortunately, as a community-supported, non-profit event, IGDA Finland Lahti Hub cannot guarantee covering speakers’ expenses.

IGDA Helsinki Presents:
September Meetup
feat. Game Designers of Finland
08.09.2026

Update to what was previously communicated: There will be no mandatory security and cloakroom fee after all! Next Games, A Netflix Game Studio stepped in and enabled us to keep the event free and thus more accessible. Big Thank you to Next Games, A Netflix Game Studio! 💛

Brave the first days of Autumn at our next IGDA Helsinki September meetup! We’re collaborating with the amazing Game Designers of Finland and learning all about "friendslop" games. 🎮 Please scroll further below for more information on the talks and our speakers. ⬇️

📣 Note: No pre-registration is required to join our Meetup.

WHAT:
IGDA Helsinki September Meetup with Game Designers of Finland

WHEN:
Tuesday 08.09.
Doors open at 17
Program starts at 17:45

WHERE:
Maxine, Kamppi shopping center, 6th floor (Elevators can be found on the E-floor, between Jungle Juice Bar and Rax). Note that Maxine is a 18+ venue, hence you must be 18+ years of age to attend.

PROGRAM:
Introduction to the Game Designers of Finland by Collin Foss - Game Designers of Finland started in 2020 as a way to bring game designers in Finland together and build a stronger community around the craft. They've grown to close to 900 members and have organized around 20+ events so far. And now they want to hear from YOU!

In Slop We Trust by Tanja Saarentaus & Ali Irdiren - In this talk, Ali and Tanja explore friendslop games: what they are and why they have become so darn popular. They examine what makes the genre so distinctive and how its design, social interaction, and shared chaotic experiences contribute to its appeal and overall fun factor. Are friendslop games really slop, or are they actually far from it?

🕹️ Wanna showcase your game at our Demo Corner and get some valuable feedback? Sign up here: https://forms.gle/GuR9UWjwGc518GTC9
Deadline for signups is September 4th at 23:59. Note, you will need to submit a 10 - 30s gameplay video!

💬 Our Chat Corner will be open and ready for chatting! AMA Session: Begüm Doğan from the IGDA Finland Grant team and the Marketing Witch from Hexen Marketing will be hosting the AMA and weaving marketing magic for indie game developers.

PROGRAM
🎤 Game Designers of Finland Introduction by Collin Foss
Game Designers of Finland started in 2020 as a way to bring game designers in Finland together and build a stronger community around the craft. They've grown to close to 900 members and have organized around 20+ events so far. Over the years GDoF have had a pretty broad mix: industry talks, workshops, mentoring, design discussions and social events, with events hosted together with companies like Remedy and Supercell, sessions with experienced people from the Finnish games industry, and hands-on events like a board game design workshop supported by Game Makers of Finland. Their events are practical and useful, while also just giving designers a good reason to get together and meet each other. Going into 2026, GDoF want to figure out how they can have more of an impact, especially with how much the industry is changing. They're interested in doing more around mentoring, peer support, hands-on design, playtesting and supporting solo or independent creators, but they also really want to hear from YOU about what would actually be useful and where GDoF will head into the future!

🗣️ Collin Foss is a Creative Director at Nitro Games with 15+ years of experience across game design, product, and design leadership. He started his career at Digital Chocolate and later spent five years at Rovio, working across both new and live games. More recently, his focus has expanded from mobile free-to-play into PC and console, including work on PAYDAY 3 with Starbreeze, leading Nitro’s Netflix project, and currently directing the development of a popular PC game for mobile F2P. Originally from the U.S. and based in Finland for the past 16 years, Collin is the founder of Game Designers of Finland. Outside of work, he’s a strategy game fan, occasional solo developer, father to a four-year-old and a now 10 week old puppy.

🎤 In Slop We Trust by Tanja Saarentaus and Ali Irdiren
In this talk, Ali and Tanja explore friendslop games: what they are and why they have become so darn popular. They examine what makes the genre so distinctive and how its design, social interaction, and shared chaotic experiences contribute to its appeal and overall fun factor. Are friendslop games really slop, or are they actually far from it?

🗣️ Tanja Saarentaus is a Development Coordinator in publishing at Remedy Entertainment. She has nearly a decade of experience in marketing, in addition to her work in publishing and production. She has worked on games including Merge Mansion, FBC: Firebreak, and CONTROL Resonant. She is also a long-time volunteer with IGDA Helsinki and Game Designers of Finland.

🗣️ Ali Irdiren is a Game Designer at Rovio Entertainment, where he designs “Beyond F2P” Angry Birds experiences for partner platforms. His indie work spans multiple genres and themes like Isop0dyssey, Crowing Around & Purrbots Unleashed. He’s active in the game jam scene with mehu jam and bad jam. Ali has been volunteering with IGDA, Game Designers of Finland and Finnish Game Jam.

For more information on Game Designers of Finland, check out their website!

TL;DR:
- IGDA Helsinki September Meetup with Game Designers of Finland
- Tuesday 08.09.
- Doors open at 17, program starts at 17:45
- Demo Corner and Chat Corner are Open!

ACCESSIBILITY:
At IGDA Helsinki we strive for making our events accessible for everyone. We kindly ask all attendees to stay away from using strong perfumes or similar fragrances. The Meetups can be crowded at times, meaning that the sound volume can also become rather loud.

Maxine is wheelchair accessible. There's a few steps at the entrance, for that please ask security at the cloakroom for a ramp. Accessible toilet can be found at the back of the space.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding any type of accessibility of our Meetups, then please contact helsinki@igda.fi and we will do our best to assist you. We also have an accessibility contact present at the Meetup until 19:00. They can be found near the entrance and are ready to assist with any accessibility-related matters!

Reminder that IGDA Meetups use the THE FINNISH GAME INDUSTRY Code of Conduct! 

Better a bit late than never… Its time to kickstart the Fall/Winter season of IGDA Tampere meetups with our September Meetup!

How has the summer treated you? Has the Finnish summer given you new ideas and renewed your enthusiasm for the autumn? Come share your summer memories with your fellow game development enthusiasts! We will gather up at the usual spot in Bar IHKU Tampere, found in Hämeenkatu 24!

As a new thing this meetup we’re again taking influence from Helsinki and make our own version of the popular chat corner! If you want to sit down and have a conversation, theres a place for it!

Our demo corner also returns with new vigor! If you have cooked up something during summer, please sign up using the form and come show it! The demo corner sign up form can be found here

WHAT: IGDA Tampere September Meetup!
WHERE: Bar IHKU Tampere, Hämeenkatu 23, Tampere!
WHEN: Tuesday 1st of September, Starting at 18:00(6pm)!

Join IGDA Lahti grill party on the 7th of August.

IGDA Lahti will provide grilled sausages to the event. You are also welcome to bring your own foods to grill. The event will take place at Ank­ku­rin Ran­ta­puis­ton BBQ spot. (event address: Ruoriniemenkatu 6, 15140 Lahti).

If you have allergies, please inform them when you sign up.

NOTICE!

As this is an outdoor event and we can't control the weather, the venue place

might change to indoors. We will be notifying all attendees with changes as soon as possible, if the need comes!

Reminder: IGDA Finland uses the Finnish Game Industry Code of Conduct!

Where:

Ank­ku­rin Ran­ta­puis­to Grilling Spot

Ruoriniemenkatu 6, 15140 Lahti

When:

On Friday, August 7th, 2026 from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM

Important notice! Location of the event has change to "Ank­ku­rin Ran­ta­puis­ton BBQ spot" (Ankkuri's beachpark)

Join IGDA Lahti grill party on the 10th of July.

IGDA Lahti will provide grilled sausages to the event. You are also welcome to bring your own foods to grill. The event will take place at Ank­ku­rin Ran­ta­puis­ton BBQ spot. (event address: Ruoriniemenkatu 6, 15140 Lahti). There's a parking area near the kiosk and the grill place. If you have allergies, please inform them when you sign up.

NOTICE! As this is an outdoor event and we can't control the weather, the venue place might change to indoors. We will be notifying all attendees with changes as soon as possible, if the need comes!

Reminder: IGDA Finland uses the Finnish Game Industry Code of Conduct!

Where: Ank­ku­rin Ran­ta­puis­to Grilling Spot

Ruoriniemenkatu 6, 15140 Lahti
When: On Friday, July 10th, 2026 from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM

Come hang out and enjoy the summer for the second time in a row, with IGDA Satakunta!

When: July 4th, 2pm to 4pm (or longer if people want to keep chatting!)
Where: Cafe Pori Jazz, Pori (Link to a map)
What: Chill hanging out!

Check the hub Discord server at the event time for details on which table we’re at! Join the Discord server through this link.

Summer BBQ hangout with IGDA Kymenlaakso!

DATE: 25.6
TIME: 17-20
PLACE: Katariina Seaside park
WHAT: BBQ grilling and hangout
FOOD: Take with you your preferred grill food and drink
GAMES: Frisbee, Kubb, Volleyball, Cards - take with you, or hope that someone else does.

If weather isn't on our side, the inside location will be announced day before, keep an eye on our Discord for the quickest updates.

NOTE that all IGDA Kymenlaakso events follow the Finnish Game Industry Code of Conduct, by attending the event you agree to follow them.

Come hang out and enjoy the summer with IGDA Satakunta!

When: June 13th, 2pm to 4pm (or longer if people want to keep chatting!)
Where: Cafe Pori Jazz, Pori (Link to a map)
What: Chill hanging out!

Check the hub Discord server at the event time for details on which table we’re at! Join the Discord server through this link.

Note: No free coffee this time, as the venue doesn’t take reservations!

Join IGDA Lahti grill party on the 12th of June. IGDA Lahti will provide grilled sausages to the event.

You are also welcome to bring your own foods to grill.

The event will take place at Pikku Vesijärvi grilling spot next to Kioski Pikkuvesku (event address: Kariniemenpuistotie 12).

There's a parking area near the kiosk and the grill place.
If you have allergies, please inform them when you sign up.

NOTICE!
As this is an outdoor event and we can't control the weather, the venue place might change to indoors. We will be notifying all attendees with changes as soon as possible, if the need comes!

Reminder: IGDA Finland uses the Finnish Game Industry Code of Conduct:
Link

Where: Pikku Vesijärvi Grilling Spot (next to Kioski Pikkuvesku) Kariniemenpuistotie 12, 15110
When: On Friday, June 12th, 2026 from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Sign up now:

Summer is here and we will bring it in with a classic!

It’s been awhile since we have had a regular hangout at Betony in Kouvola. So we are bringing it back with a nice summer outdoor seating - as long as the weather allows.

DATE: 11.6
TIME: 17-20
PLACE: Restaurant Betony in Kouvola
WHAT: Chill outdoor hangout for the good old times

If the weather is sad then we will sit inside.

NOTE that all IGDA Kymenlaakso events follow the Finnish Game Industry’s Code of Conduct. By attending the event, you agree to follow the Code of Conduct.

Join us for The Finnish Game Awards 2026 Watch Party on 21.5 18:00-21:00 at StartHub! Stream starts at 19:00.

Finnish Game Awards 2026: https://neogames.fi/the-best-finnish-games-in-the-world-will-be-awarded-at-the-finnish-game-awards-2026-gala-in-may/

Details where StartHub is: https://www.starthub.fi/en/contact/

The Finnish Game Awards 2026 gala will honor the best Finnish games of the last year and celebrate the Finnish games industry. The nominees for Finnish Game of the Year 2025 are Amistech Games (My Winter Car), Channel37 (The Last Caretaker), Cornfox & Brothers (Oceanhorn: Chronos Dungeon), Hanki Games (Sledders), Kimmo Factor (Sektori), MiTale (Willow Guard), Next Games (Puzzled), Notovia & Dreamloop Games (I’m on Observation Duty 8), and Zaibatsu (Squishmallows Match). Short game descriptions and links can be found at the end of the release.

WHAT:
The Finnish Game Awards 2025 Watch Party

WHEN:
Thursday 21th May, 18:00-21:00

WHERE:
StartHub, Mukkulankatu 19, 15210 Lahti

IGDA Finland is committed to keeping our community safe for everyone and has a zero-tolerance policy on harassment in any and all of its forms - please read our Code of Conduct.
If you have questions contact: wawethewaras (Mika Savolainen) in IGDA Lahti Discord (https://discord.gg/328zTZfy9z) or email lahti@igda.fi.

IGDA Helsinki Presents:
May Meetup with Housemarque
12.05.2026

🎉 Spring is here and so is the last IGDA Helsinki Meetup before summer!!

We are super excited for our May Meetup with Housemarque! It’s a super special event with not one but two amazing talks! Come learn about being a Technical Narrative Designer and changes in one job title, and come find out more about the Production of SAROS. Save Tuesday May 12th in your calendars and bring your best summer vibes while we celebrate together one last time before the Summer! ☀️

After May we’ll take a break for June & July and will be back again in August.

📣 Note: No pre-registration is required to join our Meetup.

WHAT:
IGDA Helsinki May Meetup with Housemarque

WHEN:
Tuesday 12.05.
Doors open at 17
Program starts at 17:45

WHERE:
Maxine, Kamppi shopping center, 6th floor (Elevators can be found on the E-floor, between Jungle Juice Bar and Rax). Note that Maxine is a 18+ venue, hence you must be 18+ years of age to attend.

PROGRAM:
What's in a Name? - Musings on becoming a 'Technical' Narrative Designer by Jana Stadeler
The first thing most people in this industry learn of each other is our job title - and changes to that title mark the major milestones of our career as much as game releases do. In this talk, Jana explores the shifts in identity that come with moving departments in the workplace, and the assumptions we often need to navigate in an industry that evolves to quickly to settle on definitions.

The Production of SAROS: A Journey through the Pipeline by Petteri Siponen
Taking a step back to look at the project’s development through a production and technical lens. A short summary of our recent wins, the hurdles we cleared, and the practical lessons learned during the build-up to our latest release.

🕹️ Wanna showcase your game at our Demo Corner and get some valuable feedback? Sign up here: https://forms.gle/hvXfPjcugaG4i1vG8
Deadline for signups is May 8th at 23:59. Note, you will need to submit a 10 - 30s gameplay video!

💬 Our Chat Corner will be open and ready for chatting! We’ll also have an AMA Session (19:00 - 20:00) with Tanja Saarentaus who works as a Publishing Producer at Remedy Entertainment. See more details of Tanja’s background further below!

What's in a Name? - Musings on becoming a 'Technical' Narrative Designer" by Jana Stadeler
The first thing most people in this industry learn of each other is our job title - and changes to that title mark the major milestones of our career as much as game releases do. In this talk, Jana explores the shifts in identity that come with moving departments in the workplace, and the assumptions we often need to navigate in an industry that evolves to quickly to settle on definitions.

The Production of SAROS: A Journey through the Pipeline by Petteri Siponen
Taking a step back to look at the project’s development through a production and technical lens. A short summary of our recent wins, the hurdles we cleared, and the practical lessons learned during the build-up to our latest release.

Chat Corner AMA at 19 - 20 with Tanja Saarentaus!
Tanja Saarentaus works as a Publishing Producer at Remedy Entertainment. After nearly 10 years in marketing, she decided to follow her passion and transition into the game industry and production. Tanja graduated with a degree in Game Design last year and before moving into a full-time role in the industry, she gained experience as a Production Trainee at both Metacore and Remedy Entertainment.

ACCESSIBILITY:
At IGDA Helsinki we strive for making our events accessible for everyone. We kindly ask all attendees to stay away from using strong perfumes or similar fragrances. The Meetups can be crowded at times, meaning that the sound volume can also become rather loud.

Maxine is wheelchair accessible. There's a few steps at the entrance, for that please ask security at the cloakroom for a ramp. Accessible toilet can be found at the back of the space.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding any type of accessibility of our Meetups, then please contact helsinki@igda.fi and we will do our best to assist you. We also have an accessibility contact present at the Meetup until 19:00. They can be found near the entrance and are ready to assist with any accessibility-related matters!

Reminder that IGDA Meetups use the THE FINNISH GAME INDUSTRY Code of Conduct! 

Welcome to the IGDA Satakunta monthly meetup!

The meetup will be at Caffe Locale at Yrjönkatu 12, Pori, in the basement meeting space.

This time we have a guest speaker, Aku Koskinen, who will be telling us about interactive ways to learn Blender!

Programme:
14.00: Doors open
14.30-15.00: “Interactive learning in Blender” - Aku Koskinen
15.00-17.00: Small talk and networking

Welcome to all interested in game development!

Time: 17:15-20:30
Date: 29.5
Place: Xamk Kouvola Campus, Building Paja, Room Fuel (lowest floor)

IGDA Kymenlaakso and Xamk are buddying together to help students and beginners find out how to stand out when pitching, showcasing and demoing a game, as well as how to refocus and motivate your team after an event like Demo Day, with the feedback received.

Xamk and IGDA Kymenlaakso have gathered a panel of game industry experts in pitching and demoing games. We have also pre-collected questions from students and game developers, to make sure that the relevant questions are being asked.

This event is not only for Xamk students, but it is aimed towards them - however if you are interested in the panelists and the topic, you are welcomed to join!

Reminder that IGDA Meetups use the THE FINNISH GAME INDUSTRY Code of Conduct and by attending the event you agree to follow them.

Join us for our IGDA Kymenlaakso April meetup in Kotka! Meet us at Street Food Factory at 18:00 on the 16th of April.
Come and hangout with the Kymenlaakso gaming community! Learn from each other and share your current projects. Did you attend Xamk Game Jam and wanted to hang out more with others who attended? This is just the hang out for you.