IMPRINT & CONTACTS Dear Readers, Germany is one of the most important marketsfor computer and video games worldwide. NoEuropean country generates higher sales withgames and the associated hardware. Germa- ny's benefits as a business location include itsgeographical position in the heart of Europeand its excellent infrastructure, as well as itsmembership in the EU and the uninhibited ex- change it therefore enjoys with over a half-bil- lion people on the continent.Germany is distinguished by a very livelygames industry. A wide range of companieshere are strong players on the world market.Some of these come from the browser and mo- bile games segment, including, for example,InnoGames, Travian Games and Wooga. In thearea of PC and console games as well, Germanstudios such as Deck 13 ('The Surge'), Mimi- mi Productions ('Shadow Tactics') and YagerEntertainment ('Dreadnought') have recentlyachieved international success. Moreover, Ger- many's Ubisoft studio Blue Byte ('Anno 1800')is opening a new branch in Berlin this year,whose team will be working on one of theFrench parent company’s major brands. Crytekfrom Frankfurt am Main offers one of the tech- nologically most advanced game engines inthe world, CryENGINE, which is used in virtu- al reality games like 'Robinson: The Journey'and such elaborate productions as 'Prey' and'Hunt: Showdown'. In addition, internationallysuccessful developers such as Epic Games andid Software operate their own studio branchesin Germany. Many young developers, too, arecurrently founding small, creative teams thatare attracting attention with special titles at,among other venues, the A MAZE. festival forindependent video games, held annually aspart of the Games Week Berlin. Some 520 com- panies in Germany are active in the develop- ment and marketing of games, providing jobsfor over 11,000 people. Universities in manylarge German cities also train new talent forall major areas of the games industry. Germa- ny also plays a special role in the e-sportssegment: some of the world’s largest tourna- ments, the ESL One tournaments, take placehere. And the ESL itself, one of the most im- portant organisers of e-sports tournamentsand leagues in the world, is headquartered inGermany.Last but not least, Germany is the homeof gamescom, which last year was opened byFederal Chancellor Angela Merkel. The biggestannual event for computer and video gamesin the world and the most important businessplatform for games in Europe, it brings to- gether more than 350,000 people in Cologne,where as-yet-unreleased games can be triedout and business contacts cultivated.I can provide but a brief overview of Ger- many's diverse games industry here. Thispublication, however, offers a much more ex- tensive impression of Germany as a gameslocation. I would be pleased if it helps to winyou over, or to strengthen your future commit- ment as a friend and partner of, and an activeparticipant in the German games industry.Enjoy reading this brochure! Sincerely,Felix FalkManaging Director of game (the German Games Industry Association) PREFACE BROCHURE ON GERMANY AS ABUSINESS AND INVESTMENT LOCATIONINDEX4 Germany: A gateway to Europe8 German games market and its players12 Gaming studios and companies in Germany18 Strengths, chances and the future of the German games industry20 Gaming trends in Germany24 gamescom: celebrate the games28 Germany’s developer landscape 32 Job market situation and education opportunities in Germany's games industry 34 Associations, networks and funding in Germany 37 Generation YouTube in Germany38 Company register of the games industry in Germany Robinson: The Journey, the new VR game fromCrytek (creators of graphics engineCryENGINE),is a dream come true for fans of dinosaurs: a whole world teeming with those beasts to explore.Truly an adventure like no other. 3 Germany is a business hot spot for foreign investors. Currently, around 70,000 foreign companiesare based in Germany, employing approx. three million people. In 2015/2016, the FDI amountedto over 464 billion euros. In their FDI report, the economic development agency of the Federal Republic of Germany, Germany Trade & Invest (GTAI), stated a peak value of 1,944 new FDI pro- jects, representing an increase of 2% compared to the previous year. The related prospect of atleast 30,000 new jobs is also a record high.1. STRONG AND STABLE MARKET ECONOMY With 500 million consumers, united Europe repre- sents the largest market worldwide, with Germanybeing the largest national economy and thus thedriving force in the European market. Being thebiggest market within the EU, Germany's economyis not only very well developed, but also highly di- versified.Representing 16% of the entire population withinthe European Union, Germany generates 21% of theEU's total gross domestic product.The large German domestic market as well as theeasy access to the growth markets in the memberstates of the European Union make Germany aprofitable and extremely attractive location for in- vestors. With 82 million inhabitants (2017), Germany repre- sents the largest state in the EU.Germany's economic strength is ranked 4th in theworld. With the European Central Bank located in Frank- furt a. M., Germany is a powerful financial center. 2. CENTRAL LOCATION AND OUTSTANDING INFRASTRUCTURE The central location in the very heart of Europemakes Germany an attractive location for the gam- ing industry. Conveniently located airports in Berlin,Dusseldorf, Frankfurt/Main, Hamburg and Munichallow for short travel times to all European destina- tions on the one hand, and provide a connection toevery important city worldwide on the other. In thecountry itself, all important hot spots of the existinggaming industry in the cities of Berlin, Frankfurt/ Main, Hamburg, Munich as well as the Baden-Würt- temberg region and the Rhine-Ruhr area (Dusseldorf,Cologne etc.) are quickly accessible – thanks to thewell-developed rail network.TEN GOOD REASONS FOR INVESTING INGERMAN BUSINESSES With France, Austria, Switzerland, Poland, Belgium,the Czech Republic, Denmark, Luxembourg and theNetherlands, Germany has a total of nine neighbor- ing countries – more than any other European nation.The supply in Germany is characterized by an effi- cient communication and energy network.3. HIGH PRODUCTIVITY The international competitiveness of the Germaneconomy is characterized by outstanding qualityand a high performance level – despite decreasingunit wage costs. Hence, Germany boasts an excellentprice-performance ratio within Europe. 4. GLOBALITY Germany as a business and investment location ben- efits greatly from its traditionally close economic rela- tions with Central and Eastern Europe, especially withthe markets in Poland, the Czech Republic and Hunga- ry. This long-standing East-West integration ensuresa correspondingly good economic expertise and letsGermany play a leading role as a platform for thegrowing domestic markets in the European region.5. OUTSTANDING PROFESSIONALS Made in Germany is considered a seal of qualityfor exceptionally high product and service qualitythroughout the world. Germany has a broad rangeof excellently trained and highly qualified profes- sionals, setting international standards. The basis forthis is Germany's excellent education system; 82% ofthe German population have completed some sort of vocational training or have a university degree,which is well above the OECD average. Gross domestic product and population:Germany compared with the rest of Europe GDP(in Bn EUR) GDP-Share (EU-28) Population (in M) Germany3.134 21%82 France2.22915%67 United Kingdom2.36718%65 Italy1.67211%61 Spain1.1147%46 Netherlands7035%17 Poland4243%38 Denmark2772%6 Czech Republic1741%11 Note: Currencies converted with the European Central Bank‘s reference exchange rates for 2016 Sources: Eurostat 2017 Federal Statistical Offce Germany 2017, US