DEVELOP GATHERS PACE AS TANDEM EVENTS ANNOUNCES SATCHELL AND GARRIOTT AS CONFERENCE KEYNOTES

Anticipation for the Develop Conference & Expo, which takes place in Brighton this July 24-26, continues to gather momentum as organiser Tandem Events announces the conference programme is bulging, the Develop Mobile and GAMES:EDU days are taking shape and the speaker line up is already reading like a 'Who's Who' of the video game industry.

Headlining the conference programme for 2007 are video games veterans Chris Satchell and Richard Garriott, who are set to deliver inspirational and informative keynote sessions to an international delegation on Wednesday July 25.

As general manager of Microsoft's XNA Group, Chris Satchell will examine Web 2.0 in a way that straddles two of the Develop Conference's four key themes for 2007: creativity and community. Delegates will hear him talk about how community is fuelling the Web 2.0 movement way beyond the social networking phenomena of You Tube and MySpace, and how this can be used to shape the future of gaming online.

"Consumer creativity and community are major forces that will shape our industry in the next ten years," claims Chris Satchell. "For me, this is the Web 2.0 equivalent of the creativity and passion of the bedroom programming scene I grew up with in the UK. Coming back to the UK to talk to European developers about this major evolution of our industry is a great opportunity to share Microsoft's vision with some of the best developers in the world."

Richard Garriott is the creative force behind the groundbreaking Ultima franchise, MMO guru and executive producer at NCsoft Austin. His keynote session at Develop will outline his vision for the future of massively multiplayer online games, while exploring some of the infinite possibilities the medium presents to both developers and gamers alike.

"I am very pleased to be giving a keynote speech at the Develop Conference this year, " he said. "I'll be taking this opportunity to share with the European development community my experiences and, hopefully, a little wisdom and inspiration, as well as taking the chance to talk about the future of development and projects I am currently working on. The conference is very important for the European development community and offers a great arena for sharing experience and demonstrating new innovation to each other, others in the industry and the media."

Event director Andy Lane added: "Develop is still three months away, but already we have a fantastic line up in place - of both speakers and sessions - for conference delegates, who will be travelling to Brighton this summer from all over the world.

"It goes without saying that we're delighted to confirm Chris Satchell and Richard Garriott as two of our keynote speakers: as Brits living and working in the United States, it will be fantastic to see them back on home soil sharing their stories, knowledge and experience with the development community in Europe."

The Develop Conference includes more than 40 sessions split across seven tracks - design, production, coding, business, art, audio and world vision. World vision is new for 2007 and offers vital insight into games development around the world and a look at what can be learnt from other countries. Underpinning the seven tracks are four key themes: Community, Connectivity, Creativity and Control.

The conference programme is available to view at www.developconference.com where updates will be posted regularly. Delegates can apply for Super, Standard, Mobile, GAMES:EDU, Audio and Expo passes. An early bird discount of up to 20 per cent applies to all passes purchased before July 1 2007. Develop Mobile and GAMES:EDU both take place on July 24.

Running alongside the conference, Develop Expo will bring together around 40 of Europe's most innovative companies from every sector of games development, providing visitors with the opportunity to find out about the latest development tools and technology, make new contacts and catch up with old ones. The expo pass is free to attend.

Notes to editors:

About Tandem Events

Tandem Events has over 20 years of experience in organising market-leading exhibitions, conferences and events across a number of industry sectors, including Develop Conference & Expo, Develop Mobile Conference, GAMES:EDU and Games Grads. For more information, please visit www.tandemevents.co.uk

About Develop Conference and Expo

The Develop Conference and Expo takes place at the Hilton Metropole in Brighton, UK, from July 25-26 2007. Develop Mobile and GAMES:EDU both take place on July 24. For more information and images, please visit www.developconference.com

About Chris Satchell

As the general manager of the XNA Group, Satchell is responsible for driving innovation in products, services and partnerships that will revolutionise the next generation of game development across Microsoft platforms. Satchell joined Microsoft in 2002 as a development manager in Microsoft Game Studios, working on critically acclaimed franchises such as Project Gotham Racing. Most recently he was director of engineering for MGS. He now spends many wet morning and evenings walking around a lake, wondering why Malamutes need so much exercise.

About Richard Garriott

Richard Garriott has been executive producer at NCsoft North America since May 2001. Prior to this, he blazed a trail in the computer gaming industry by co-founding Origin Systems with brother Robert Garriott and producing one of the most successful, longest-running game series of all time: Ultima. In 1992, Origin was acquired by Electronic Arts. Richard stayed with EA/Origin and launched Ultima Online, the first commercially viable massively multiplayer game, in 1997. He left Origin in April 2000 and started a new company called Destination Games, which became part of NCsoft Corporation in 2001. Richard is currently working on his first title for NCsoft, Tablua Rosa.