The third edition of Expo Gamers has successfully concluded at the Marino Cvetković Sports Hall in Opatija, which brought together gaming professionals, international experts, developers, students, influencers, esports competitors, and numerous video game enthusiasts over two days. This year's edition featured more than 70 program contents and over 50 international participants through keynote speeches, panels, workshops, gaming zones, esports competitions, and a rich exhibition space.
We were particularly thrilled by the Indie zone, where visitors could try out upcoming indie titles from local and foreign developers, talk to the authors, and win some promotional gifts. The Ritech racing team zone was also one that you couldn't miss; visitors had the opportunity to sit in a race car and experience driving through a racing simulator. What is especially interesting is that this experience was available for free, while racing simulators in other zones of the Expo Hall charged 7 euros for ten minutes of use.
There was great interest from visitors in the meet & greet with guests connected to the title Baldur’s Gate 3. The meet & greet featured Tim Downie and Andrew Wincott, actors known for their roles as Gale and Raphael in the globally successful game Baldur’s Gate 3, who brought the audience closer to the motion capture acting process, character development, and experiences working on one of today's most recognizable gaming titles. The lecture by Borislav Slavov, the composer responsible for the music in Baldur’s Gate 3, also generated significant interest, as he spoke about the role of music in creating the emotional identity of video games and storytelling through interactive worlds. However, as a downside, I would point out the additional charges for the meet & greet content, where photographs and autographs with the guests were charged at 20 and 30 euros, while the prices for exclusive posters reached 60 euros. For part of the audience, especially younger visitors and families, such amounts represented a significant expense and left the impression that certain contents were financially difficult to access in the context of the Croatian standard. Let's also consider that entry to the event itself was charged.
The retro zone stood out as it created nostalgia, especially among the older audience, through iconic consoles and classic video games, while the younger audience was more interested in the eSports and Console zone where more contemporary games were played, as well as competitions in titles like Trackmania, Fortnite, Valorant, League of Legends, FC26, and Tekken 8. Fans also had the opportunity to meet influencers and content creators Pabs and Gallasandalla, and challenge them in Fortnite and Trackmania. On the eSports stage, we could follow tournaments in League of Legends and Valorant, which also had its audience.
In addition to entertainment and competitive content, Expo Gamers offered a rich educational and industry program over the two days. Visitors had the opportunity to attend panels, keynote speeches, and workshops dedicated to video game development, the role of artificial intelligence in the industry, creative entrepreneurship, project financing, international cooperation, and the challenges faced by developers and creatives in the gaming world.
The Expo Hall further enriched the festival experience through various exhibitors, technological content, simulators, merch, and gaming equipment. Although there were plenty of reasons for criticism, especially regarding the additional costs of certain content, Expo Gamers 2026 left the impression of an event that successfully combined gaming, education, esports, and community experience, and once again confirmed that Opatija has the potential to become an important regional meeting point for video game enthusiasts and industry professionals.
