The highlight of July’s Brazil International Games (BIG) festival was a surprise for everyone, especially the event’s blockchain sponsors: game developer Mark Venturelli’s viral talk ‘Why NFTs are a Nightmare’. In an interview afterward Venturelli said something about the convention that I’ve kept thinking about since I left Brazil, “I don’t feel I have hurt BIG by talking shit about NFTs because BIG does not need these guys,” he said. “It’s the other way around. Our biggest event here in the Brazilian industry is not going anywhere.”
Outside of Venturelli’s talk, which was a brilliant takedown of the design and politics of blockchain games, BIG didn’t make international headlines. It’s not an E3 or a Gamescom, but that belies how much potential is bubbling just under the surface of the Latin American gaming scene. Venturelli said local developers are now getting investments from Epic and Microsoft, and there are prospective 200-person studios opening in Brazil in the near future. “Right now, because of the instability in Europe, investors are looking at South America like, ‘Is this the next big thing?’” he said. Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo and Epic were present at BIG this year, a far cry from the much smaller indie festivals of past years.
“Indie games are getting attention, but the industry still needs to evolve a little bit more to get competitive,” said developer Leonardo Castanho, head of a small team making Astrea, a ‘dice builder’ in the vein of Slay the Spire. “But if you compare games from this year to 2019, there’s an evolution. The games from Brazil are much better.”
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
BITING BACK
The tooth is out there in adventure TEETH OF GLASS
SMOKE ALARM
THE INVISIBLE SMOKE FACTORY is back in a Flash
MECH ME OVER
Move over Mario, here's mech-based platforming in ARMORED SHELL NIGHTJAR
"I like Pillars of Eternity better than Baldur's Gate III"
PILLARS OF ETERNITY deserves a bigger space in the CRPG pantheon
"A harrowing dark fantasy about hapless, bright-eyed children"
Spelunking into hell with MADE IN ABYSS: BINARY STAR FALLING INTO DARKNESS
THE IMMORTAL LOCK
A massive, meaty game in a single horrific Quake map.
NEW MANOEUVRES
Building a dedicated sim racing space in an average family house
OVERWATCH 2
Save me space girl.
REET GOOD TIME
THANK GOODNESS YOU'RE HERE is a riotous recreation of Yorkshire
THE PLUCKY SQUIRE
How many games let you make friends with a MtG card?