Sales of video games grew 26 percent during 2008, yet thousands of development staff lost their jobs. Why? Peter Tamte has the answer. The Triangle Game Conference (TGC), scheduled for April 29-30, 2009 at the Raleigh Convention Center and Marriott City Center, announces that day two of the conference will feature a keynote address by Peter Tamte, president of Atomic Games, which is now developing the hotly debated game Six Days in Fallujah.

Tamte is also the founder and president of Destineer, one of the country’s fastest-growing publishers of casual games for consoles and handhelds. The topic of Tamte’s address will be the forces re-shaping the video game industry and its unique impact on advancement.

His presentation, entitled Brave New World: The Three Forces Re-shaping the Video Game Industry, will provide insights into the evolving economics of video game development and how the forces of economics, relevance and accessibility are driving which games will be made, which studios will be successful, how games will get distributed and the jobs that will be created.

As previously announced, Epic Games President Dr. Michael Capps will deliver a keynote address on the event’s opening day. Capps’ presentation, entitled What Makes Us Epic?, will delve into how Epic has harnessed its frenetic energy to grow from 25 developers to 400 across three continents, not to mention win dozens of technology and Game of the Year Awards along the way. Attendees will learn how Epic turns the challenges of independent game development into opportunities and keeps its employees happy and motivated. Takeaways will include proven tips for maximizing success in the gaming business.

Reserve your seat now for these dynamic lectures by visiting http://www.trianglegameconference.com/apps/register/.

Prior to his role as president of Atomic Games, a Raleigh-based development studio for 3D action games, and as founder of Destineer, Tamte was executive vice president for Halo developer Bungie Software. He was also previously senior director of consumer marketing for Apple Computer, reporting to Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs. Before joining Apple, Tamte started MacSoft and built it into the world’s top publisher of Macintosh consumer software during the early 1990s.

"The Triangle Game Conference will be a gathering of the best and brightest in the industry and will give students and professionals access to leading developers, publishers and innovators," said Alexander Macris, president and CEO of Themis Group and TGC program director. "We want this event to be a true learning exchange, and having such industry luminaries as Peter Tamte and Michael Capps share their insights will be extremely valuable for both current and aspiring game developers."

In addition to the two keynotes, the conference will offer attendees 35 lectures and panels from industry leaders such as:

• Chad Dezern - Studio Director, Insomniac Games
• Jerry Heneghan - Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Virtual Heroes
• John Austin - Vice President, Emergent Game Technologies

To view a full listing of confirmed speakers and the final conference schedule, visit http://www.trianglegameconference.com/content/conference.

TGC will also feature an Expo, Career Lounge and Game Development University, a student-oriented exhibition to help aspiring game developers tap into educational resources and make connections with industry leaders.