Casual Games Conference Announces Dates and Speakers

The dates, location, and partial schedule for the 2005 Casual Games Conference have been announced: the event will take place at the Meydenbauer Center in Seattle, Washington, from July 19-20. The Casual Games Conference is devoted to examining "pick-up-and-play" games, chiefly those downloadable on the web or for mobile phones. A preliminary schedule of events for the two-day conference has also been posted. Though a few session blocks have yet to be accounted for, the list of panels and discussion topics includes "Multiplayer," "Alternative Business: Marketing Models," "Advergaming," "FUN!" "Contracts and Royalties," "Wireless: Taking Casual Games to the Wireless Space," "Appealing to the Casual Gamer," and "Designing and Marketing Alternative Game Types." In addition to the scheduled sessions, there is also a lunch break on both days and a Microsoft-sponsored party at the end of the 19th. 30 speakers have been confirmed to appear at the conference; among them are Daniel James, of Three Rings Design; David Rohrl and Hugh DeLoayza from Pogo; Geoff Graber from Yahoo! Games; Jason Kapalka from PopCap; Scott Kim; and Steve Meretzky from WorldWinner. A full list of the schedule and speakers, as well as registration information, can be found at the official conference website.