Nairobi — Xbox, a video gaming brand, now seeks to drive accelerated growth in the African video game industry after it recently concluded its 2024 Xbox Game Camp Africa.
The two-day hybrid event, hosted physically in Johannesburg, South Africa, Casablanca, Morocco, and Nairobi, Kenya, brought together industry experts from Xbox, aspiring game developers, and gaming enthusiasts from across the continent to foster innovation and collaboration.
In Nairobi, the event was hosted at the Microsoft Africa Development Centre, offering participants a series of hands-on workshops covering various aspects of game development, including design, storytelling, brand building, and marketing.
The Nairobi edition of the camp included meetings with various game development studios who pitched their projects to receive support from the Xbox Global Expansion Team.
Some of the projects presented included "Tingish" and "Finke Desert Race" by Arkitech Studios, who won the Fak'ugesi Festival Awards in 2022, an African first award in video gaming, animation, XR (VR and AR), digital art, and music.
Temi Afolabi, the Xbox Global Expansion Team (GXT) Lead for Africa and the Middle East, stated that the 2024 Xbox Game Camp Africa marks a significant milestone in the development of the gaming industry, highlighting the industry's potential for growth across the continent.
"The Xbox Game Camp Africa represents a pivotal moment for us at Xbox. It's not just about coming to Africa, it's about immersing ourselves in the incredible talent here and figuring out how we can truly make a difference leveraging our extensive industry experience. This initiative is our commitment to paying it forward by empowering individuals and equipping them with the tools and knowledge they need to excel in the gaming industry," said Afolabi, Xbox lead Africa.
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The Xbox Game Camp Africa aimed to capitalize on this growth by supporting talent development, providing support, and inspiring the next generation of African game developers.
Irene Githinji, Education Engagements Lead at Microsoft ADC, emphasized the importance of skills development and training in the industry.
"The Xbox Game Camp offers a great opportunity for us to meet up with the Xbox team as well as game developers and see what we can do together in space. We get to see the talent that is budding in the gaming industry and begin designing skilling initiatives that will support the growth of the industry," said Temi Afolabi, the Xbox Global Expansion Team (GXT) Lead for Africa and the Middle East.
According to the Africa Games Developer Survey, around 63 percent of local game developers have five years of development experience or less.
Additionally, African gaming professionals struggle to develop financially viable careers, with just 19 percent ever having secured external investment for any of their past projects.
