We went to DreamHack Hannover and might confidently say that large gaming occasions in Germany are again and higher than ever.
Please permit me to be self-indulgent with this one on a matter that is near my coronary heart. As somebody who got here up within the numerous gaming and nerd-culture scenes in and round Hannover, Germany it made me very completely satisfied to see these scenes alive and thriving below the banner of an official DreamHack occasion.
When you consider gaming occasions in Germany, the one which’ll at all times come to thoughts is Gamescom. Right here is the place you may discover the newest bulletins in video games and the occasion was at all times the center little one between the now defunct E3 which is now the Summer time Video games Fest I assume (thanks, Geoff), and Tokyo Gameshow which focuses extra on the jap market.
However what concerning the gaming occasions outdoors of that? Germany remains to be a titan in esports however there’s a lack of open tournaments and grassroots occasions that would give smaller gamers and groups a stage to indicate what they’re actually about.
What higher place than Hannover to reignite these passions as soon as once more? In any case Hannover’s now defunct CEBIT, formally the biggest pc expo on this planet, was as soon as a primary vacation spot for opponents from around the globe to indicate off their video games and expertise. Enter DreamHack Hannover 2023.
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The DreamHack Hannover 2023 Expertise
From the 14th to the seventeenth of December 2023 DreamHack Hannover opened its doorways to over 24.000 gaming fans, not unhealthy numbers for an occasion that’s solely within the second 12 months of its lifespan. Programming this 12 months featured the finals of the (for now) remaining German ESL Counter-Strike championship in addition to the primary official Escape from Tarkov Enviornment Invitational event.
The principle attraction nevertheless was the LAN get together within the again which featured 11 open tournaments performed by nearly 1000 attendees throughout all of them with their respective finals being performed out on the principle stage.
Visiting the occasion was a bewildering expertise for me, being very out of tune with German gaming tradition I can solely think about that’s what it should’ve been like for my mother and father all these years in the past.
What stunned me and made me very completely satisfied was the quantity of area devoted to artists promoting their wares and unbiased native tabletop creators. And that was the theme I sensed round DreamHack Hannover, there was an effort to signify native companies, expertise, and creators alongside Escape from Tarkov, large Esport, and TCGs.
If there was one criticism I might levy in opposition to the occasion, it is that for those who’re there to only stalk the halls and catch a few of the reside programming right here and there there is not a lot to do outdoors of it. Workshops for Cosplayers and Artists, an effort to get non-TTRPG folks into the interest, or only a area to sit down round and hang around with individuals.
A Look Behind the Scenes and Forward
On Sunday I additionally bought to sit down down and chat with German esports presenter and co-organizer Matthias ‘Knochen’ Remmert concerning the imaginative and prescient of the occasion and its imminent future. Knochen is a veteran of the scene and identical to me has a keenness for Hannover, courting again to these halcyon CEBIT days.
After I requested him concerning the imaginative and prescient for the occasion, he informed me that there was merely nothing like DreamHack in Germany. Positive there are conventions and LANs and esports however hardly ever something working on that scale below the banner of a world competition. The DreamHack model provided organizer Freaks4U a possibility to deliver all their companions collectively for an occasion, in contrast to something Germany has ever seen on that scale.
Within the wake of the German video games business having a very unhealthy 12 months, I additionally requested in the event that they’d think about letting German studios exhibit their video games. Knochen informed me that in the event that they have been to do it, they’d be open to anybody who’d wish to be a part of their occasion, they’d like to deal with the Indies as an alternative of solely platforming large titles that’d draw all the eye.
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One other query that was near my coronary heart was in the event that they’d think about working open tournaments for Combating Video games reminiscent of Tekken, Road Fighter, Responsible Gear, and so forth. He appeared very excited concerning the prospect of working correct FGC occasions at their venue and even requested me if knew anybody who’d wish to manage such a factor. So for my sake, fellow German Combating Recreation fans, please make it occur.
Lastly, I requested about their aspirations for subsequent 12 months and Knochen confessed that they have been very pleased with how stacked the occasion was this 12 months they usually hope to deliver youthful audiences into the venue subsequent time.
As a result of German Legislation, the occasion was off-limits to anybody below the age of 16 attributable to a few of the titles being performed on the large stage. However he informed me that will like to create an area the place mother and father and their youngsters may discover these hobbies collectively and educate one another on them.
These are fairly wonderful targets to have and I am wanting ahead to checking in with them subsequent 12 months to see the following step in realizing that imaginative and prescient.
And that is all the pieces we bought on my DreamHack Hannover adventures. For extra on the weekend, take a look at our impressions of Tarkov Enviornment’s Esport Debut in addition to what we discovered from our interview with Tarkov boss Nikita about the way forward for Escape from Tarkov.