Game Republic 2026: Attendance Surges 78% [Confirmed]

Game Republic New Horizons 2026 officially concluded at Riverside Stadium in Middlesbrough, England, registering an unprecedented 78% attendance increase to 461 verified industry delegates alongside 257 commercial pitch meetings held between October 14 and October 16, 2026. According to verified reports from GamesIndustry.biz, the regional Northern UK games gathering scaled up from 259 attendees in 2025 to 461 this year. More than 100 participants traveled from London and the South East, joined by international delegations representing Denmark, Sweden, Finland, China, Italy, Japan, Canada, the United States, France, and the Netherlands. Commercial matchmaking surged in tandem, with formal MeetToMatch sessions jumping from 100 to 257. Platform titan Nintendo ran a dedicated developer relations breakfast to guide indie studios on dev tools and publishing pathways. The conference roster featured 48 elite industry speakers, headlined by former Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Ken Kutaragi, IO Interactive CEO Hakan Abrak, and Landfall CBO Rebecca Lautner, alongside studios Housemarque, Bithell Games, and 4J Studios. This growth complements broader regional momentum seen in events like the [Splitscreen Game Conference: Reboot Successor [Confirmed]](/news/splitscreen-croatian-games-conference-launch), cementing Northern England as a vital development corridor.