Games Talks Live: Speakers announced for Scottish games industry talks in Edinburgh, Dundee & Glasgow

From April 1-3, Games Talk Live Scotland promises to offer a mix of insightful industry talks as well as networking opportunities for those working in the Scottish games industry.

Organised by the Scottish Game Developers Association, which has been supporting the industry in Scotland since 2019, the upcoming event series look to foster collaboration and growth within the country’s games ecosystem.

Games Talks Live Scotland: April speaker lineup

With a range of figures from across the games industry and beyond, the April 2025 event will be headlined by a keynote speech from Dr Dan Pinchbeck, the co-founder of Still Wakes The Deep developer The Chinese Room.

In addition, there will be talks from Aardman Animation’s technical director Jonathan Quinn, Chris Filip from UK Global Screen Fund and Amanda Ford, founder of the Scottish Games Education Network.

Here is the full lineup of speakers for Games Talks Live Scotland:

• Dr Dan Pinchbeck, co-founder of The Chinese Room
• Jonathan Quinn, Technical Direction, Aardman Animation
• Nathan Sölbrandt, Business Development Director, Xsolla
• Johan Toresson, Head of Scouting, Raw Fury
• Spike Laurie, Partner, Hiro Capital
• Sam Costello, Investment Director, Hiro Capital
• Simon Brown, Head of Studio, PASSION Games
• Chris Filip, Fund Manager, UK Global Screen Fund
• Kraig Brown, Development Manager, Digital Xtra
• Jock MacDonald, Senior Programmer, Scopely
• Sophie Smart, Production Director, No More Robots
• Amanda Ford, Founder, Scottish Games Education Network
• Cillin Farrell, Co-Founder, Peaty Turf
• Fallible Things, Indie Developer, GameDevEd
• Phil Vaughan, Programme Leader, CoSTAR
• Rich Mooney, Moonwidd Comics

While the majority of speakers will appear during each day of Games Talks Live Scotland, some appearances will be limited to one or two days of the event.

Kraig Brown, Amanda Ford and Fallible Things will speak in Edinburgh and Glasgow. Meanwhile, No More Robots’ Sophie Smart will only speak during day one in Edinburgh while Phil Vaughan from CoSTAR and Rich Mooney from Moonwidd Comics will only appear in Dundee.

There are also be a number of additional speakers, publishers and more to still be announced.

Games Talks Live Scotland schedule

Running over three days and in three Scottish cities, the full schedule can be viewed on the organisation’s website.

Day one will take place in Edinburgh on Tuesday, April 1, before heading to Dundee for the second day on Wednesday, April 2. The series of events will then end in Glasgow on Thursday, April 3.

Business talks will generally lead each evening with more general talks from 6pm to 10pm. There will also be a charity raffle on each day to support Digital Xtra with tickets assigned for every £5 donated.

• Tuesday, April 1 - Edinburgh, Voodoo Rooms
• Wednesday, April 2 - Dundee, Beat Generator
• Thursday, April 3 - Glasgow, Sloans Ballroom

Talks will be livestreamed on YouTube for those unable to attend in person for those who sign up for a free livestream ticket.

How to get tickets & ticket prices

Tickets for Games Talks Live Scotland are available from Eventbrite. Prices are as follows:

• All 3 nights; Edinburgh, Dundee & Glasgow with food - £104.33
• All 3 nights; Edinburgh, Dundee & Glasgow without food - £34.81
• Edinburgh on Tuesday, April 1 with food - £54.07
• Edinburgh on Tuesday, April 1 without food - £32.68
• Dundee on Wednesday, April 2 with food - £54.07
• Dundee on Wednesday, April 2 without food - £32.68
• Glasgow on Thursday, April 3 with food - £59.41
• Glasgow on Thursday, April 3 without food - £32.68
• Online livestreaming ticket - Free

All ticket prices for each day of the even includes fees.

Talks to raise funds for Scottish charity Digital Xtra

Speaking about the April events, Colin Macdonald of the Scottish Game Developers Association said: “We're incredibly excited to bring together such a diverse and talented group of speakers for the next Games Talks Live.”

The former Grand Theft Auto producer continued: “This event is a fantastic opportunity for the Scottish games community to connect, learn, and grow together. We believe this year's lineup will provide attendees with invaluable insights and inspiration.”

Previous Games Talks Live events have also raised more than £40,000 for causes including Special Effect, NHS, Ukrainian Red Cross, Warchild and Glasgow Children's Hospital.

This year’s series of talks will support charity Digital Xtra, which aims to help every young person in Scotland access innovative, meaningful, and creative extracurricular computing activities regardless of gender, background, or where they live.

Games Talks Live is supported by sponsors Team Terrible, Xsolla, UK Global Screen Fund, Pocket Sized Hands, 4J Studios, Blazing Griffin, Johnston Carmichael, Hyper Luminal Games, Ninja Kiwi, NoCode, Rivet Games, and Speech Graphics.