Participating in Canada's largest gaming event, MEGAMIGS + local sightseeing report!

This is TK from the Canadian office. I recently contracted COVID-19 and as a result, my sense of taste has been destroyed. The world is gray

Our Canadian office, Beyond GTA , was a guest at MEGAMIGS 2022, the largest gaming industry event in Canada, held in Montreal from October 19th to 22nd! We took the opportunity to also share some of the city of Montreal, Canada's second most populous city.

What are MEGAMIGS?

With over 15 years of history, this is Canada's largest event for game developers, held every fall in Montreal. Due to the pandemic, it was held online/hybrid for the past two years, but this year, in 2022, it was finally held in person. It's similar to the Tokyo Game Show (TGS) in Japan

Official website *Access from Japan is restricted

Scene from the event

Beyond GTA was invited by our local partner EdgeGap to participate as a guest on the first and second days of the B2B event.

The main venue was home to a variety of companies and creators, regardless of size, with exhibitors mainly consisting of game companies with studios in Montreal and Quebec (both cities in the same province of Quebec), from mega-major companies like EA Games and Ubisoft to individual creators exhibiting in the indie game section

Many technical personnel and game developers were also in attendance, and we witnessed lively discussions between creators taking place inside the booths

In addition, various titles that have not yet been released on the market were unveiled on this occasion, and guests were able to try them out, so there was plenty to enjoy just for those who attended

 

In addition to this, talk events and conferences were held in a separate venue featuring various prominent figures and intellectuals from the games industry, and they excited the audience every day with a variety of topics, including the cutting edge of the industry and future trends

Next year, I'll exhibit at Beyond GTA as well... With that thought in mind, I left the venue after enjoying two days there

 

 

Montreal Tourism

Outside of participating in the event, I explored the city of Montreal, where the event was held. Although it is Canada's second most populous city, the city is not that large, so I was able to sightsee by walking around various places and areas

The downtown area still retains its old French-style streetscape, and there are many churches of historical value throughout the city

 

 

Also, when I was there at the end of October, it was the height of the autumn foliage season, and the trees lining the streets were a vivid color, which was very impressive

 

For food, I tried poutine, a Canadian B-grade gourmet dish that originated in Quebec, where Montreal is located, at a long-established diner. It's junk food consisting of French fries topped with gravy and cheese, and I had it with smoked meat, a local specialty of the city. It was a heavy, heavy-tasting North American dish, but it was delicious (although the portion was too big and I couldn't finish it)

 

On another day, I had the city's specialty smoked meat in a sandwich style at another famous, long-established restaurant. This was also incredibly filling, and it was all I could manage to finish

Although my stay was short, everything I ate during that time was delicious, and even the simple bagels from small bakeries around town were of very high quality, so I got the impression that the food was quite good

 

summary

Between the events and sightseeing, the two days flew by. Quebec, where Montreal is located, is actually the third largest gaming industry in the world, and the industry community seemed very active. While there isn't a large Japanese population there, it seems there is always a demand for creators, so this may be a good option for game creators who want to experience living abroad

The CEO of Beyond GTA, who accompanied me on this trip, also loved the city and muttered, "Maybe next time we'll have an office in Montreal." Perhaps the day when Beyond will expand into Montreal is not far off...?!