GamerFest, Ireland’s biggest gaming and esports festival, is returning to the RDS in Dublin on October 22nd and 23rd 2022.
The weekend celebration of gaming entertainment promises the latest games, VR, esports and gaming challenges, a host of special guests including Twitch and YouTube creators, and live stage content. More than 5,000 gamers are expected to gather in person for the first time at a GamerFest event since the initial Covid outbreak.
On the esports front, the GamerFest Main Stage will include an official partnership with Ubisoft and the launch of the €3,000 GamerFest Rainbow Six Siege Ireland Open. This tournament offers an opportunity for Irish teams to qualify for the returning Rainbow Six Siege UK Ireland Nationals (UKIN). From there, teams can earn a spot in the higher-tier Rainbow Six Northern Premier League.
Organisers have also confirmed a partnership with Legion Collegiate Esports, Ireland’s dedicated esports series for third-level students in Ireland. This will see some of the best student esports talent in the country go head to head across titles including Rocket League, Apex Legends and FIFA.
“It’s been incredibly tough not seeing our community since 2020 throughout the Covid pandemic. So we’re incredibly excited to see the return of GamerFest this year. It will be wonderful to see people physically come together and celebrate all things gaming, bringing to life all the incredible friendships and relationships that have developed online over the last number of years.”
Stuart Dempsey, GamerFest
Visitors to the event will have the opportunity to get hands-on with HADO, the Augmented Reality (AR) game, where players do battle with virtual energy balls and shields on a real life court. HADO will also launch the first ever Irish HADO Championship at GamerFest which will see the winning team represent Ireland at the upcoming HADO European Championships in France.
HADO also featured at the UK’s Insomnia Gaming Festival earlier this year and HADO has also had its own ESL UK & Ireland Premiership.
Game dev legends Brenda and John Romero will also be presented with a ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ at GamerFest for their outstanding contribution to the gaming industry in Ireland and internationally.
After visiting Ireland in 2014, the husband-and-wife duo decided to move to Galway permanently and founded Romero Games, offering career opportunities in the sector and contributing to the overall growth of gaming in Ireland. The Romero Games team released Sigil, the unofficial fifth episode of the 1993 video game Doom, in 2019, and Empire of Sin in 2020.
Other special guests lined up include content creators Seapeekay, DeeBeeGeek, Antitinkerbell, Jamie Jay Car, The Gara Show, Miss Audrey and more. Event hosts All Cast Irish Gamers and other content creators will also be taking part.
Organisers have also announced a new partnership with Lucozade, the 2022 Title Sponsor of GamerFest. The drinks brand will be supporting a range of gaming activations across the weekend.
GamerFest was established in 2017 as a community-led gaming event, both for casual gaming fans and competitive esports players, as well as those interested in game dev and content creation.
In recent years, GamerFest has become a hub for content creator talent in Ireland, with a host of YouTube and Twitch special guests set to attend October’s event. Content creators confirmed to date include Antitinkerbell, Jamie Jay Car, The Gara Show, Audrey and event hosts All Cast Irish Gamers, with more special guest announcements coming soon.
A new ‘Creator Zone’ will offer visitors the chance to meet their favourite Twitch and YouTube creators. There will also be an expo hall and marketplace featuring the latest gaming equipment.
GamerFest CEO Stuart Dempsey said: “Like our visitors, the team behind GamerFest are gamers. Ever since our first event five years ago, we’ve kept an absolute focus on one thing – the gaming community. Community guides us in everything we do, ensuring we have the best games, content, special guests and entertainment possible at all our events.
“Just like every other live event, it’s been incredibly tough not seeing our community since 2020 throughout the Covid pandemic. So we’re incredibly excited to see the return of GamerFest this year. It will be wonderful to see people physically come together and celebrate all things gaming, bringing to life all the incredible friendships and relationships that have developed online over the last number of years.”
In similar recent news, Insomnia Gaming Festival organisers Player1 Events announced a new CEO.
Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
