CEBU’S creative industry continues to show potential for income generation among local game developers.
Lawrence Panganiban, chairman of the Sugbo Entertainment Expo (See) for Cebu Business Month 2019, said local groups need support from the community to prosper.
“There is a wonderfully talented and passionate group called Cebu Game Developers. They’re trying to push really hard to make original games, and for guys to profit from all that,” he said.
Panganiban said that despite being only a few years old, local game development companies exist in Cebu, which is known for its budding startup ecosystem.
“There are startup studios like Red Trident that are creating their own original mobile games. They face, based on what I know, struggles similar to any new industry.That’s what we’re trying to do with See Cebu to really help push and empower them,” he said.
With the current generation having digital opportunities at their fingertips, Panganiban stressed the need for stakeholders to provide an environment for digital creatives to thrive.
“Cebu has a lot of raw creative potential. We live in a generation now where more and more people are going into IT because of the courses,” he said.
Cebu Game Developers board member Janyl Tanoy said the group conducts activities in schools and universities to spread awareness of the industry.
Tanoy noted that the University of San Jose-Recoletos has started offering game development subjects in its Bachelor of Science in Information Technology course.
“Game development generates jobs. We need to spread awareness for the industry to grow,” he told SunStar Cebu.
See Cebu will be held on June 29 and 30 at The Atrium of the Robinsons Galleria Cebu.