10 PORTUGUESE VIDEO GAME INDUSTRY Bigmoon Interactive, contributing to develop- ing global franchises such as the Dakar games. In 2022, Miniclip moved into a new office with a team of 350 employees, hosting the largest operation among its 17 global locations. These investments, mergers and acquisitions are positive signs of the sector's maturity, at- tracting more companies and retaining talent. Is the new Gaming Hub in Lisbon helping to create synergies and develop the industry? This space, the first in Portugal, is designed to help startups and studios grow by promoting collaboration between mentors, investors, and other companies. Since its inauguration, APVP and Unicorn Factory Lisboa have organised events that bring the local community together and foster collaboration. The hub is not just a physical space; it's a catalyst for growth. It has become a point of reference for anyone visit- ing Portugal in the field of video games. This year, Portugal had a pavilion at the Game Developers Conference in San Fran- cisco for the first time. How many compa- nies were there, and what is your assess- ment of their participation? The outcome of this participation is highly pos- itive. This collaboration between eGamesLab and APVP has enabled the Portuguese game development community to showcase its tal- ent and creativity internationally. In addition to the strong representation in the pavilion, with 20 companies present at the event, Portugal stood out on several fronts during the event. This milestone reaffirms the ongoing efforts of the video games industry in Portugal to be- come a global centre of excellence. The APVP has argued that the prevention of video game monopolies is essential. Is competing with the sector's giants one of the main obstacles? We work to ensure that our companies have all the conditions to compete in the global market, and we have several cases in Portugal of companies co-producing video games with other studios or publishers of international importance. These success stories align with the ambitions that the ministers presented in November at the European Council chaired by Spain and dedicated to video games: the European Union must aspire to be a world leader in the video games market. What are the main growth opportunities for Portuguese game developers in the global market? Although there are strong markets already es- tablished today in mobile games and for PCs and consoles, there are also great market op- portunities for innovation. With the new Digi- tal Markets legislation, for example, there is an opportunity to create new shops that bring differentiation to their audience. From a tech- nological point of view, advances in XR and AI allow a company in Portugal to become one of the top companies in its segment (as has been the case with ONTOP, Doppio and Di- dimo, for example).
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