Belgium has a population of little over 11 million people, around 6 million of which live in Flanders. But don’t let population size fool you, the local gaming market is comparatively big. According to marketing intelligence agency Newzo, Belgium is home to 4.2 million active gamers, who will spend an estimated USD 332 million on gaming in 2018. As such, the country ranks #31 on the list of the world’s largest games markets.

Flanders is where the lion’s share of the gaming action in Belgium takes place. Published by imec, the region’s strategic research center for nanotech and digital innovation, the 2017 Digimeter report reveals that:

• nearly 50% of Flanders’ population plays digital games at least once per month, half of which report gaming on a daily basis;
• a quarter of the gamers in the region can be called ‘frequent gamers’, which means they game at least 1 hour a day;
• a variety of devices are used for gaming in Flanders, the most popular being mobile (29%), desktop (24%), tablet (18%) and TV-connected console (13%).

While this domestic market of loyal gamers is impressive considering Belgium’s small size, it’s the country’s export capacities that truly stand out. As Belgium’s northern region, Flanders is part of the world’s 3rd-most open economy according to the 2017 KOF Index of Globalization. It should therefore come as no surprise that game studios in Flanders achieve export figures of up to 99% of their total revenues, utilizing the local economic infrastructure for international trade to the fullest.

Several sector-dedicated incubators help new game developers or middleware providers find their feet in Flanders. To give just three examples: C-Mine (Genk), The Level (Kortrijk) and De Hoorn (Leuven) provide ambitious game studios with affordable office space, administrative services, development tools, access to talent and gaming education programs, and the like.

The government of Flanders also actively supports the gaming industry on a financial level. Starting from 2018, for example, the Flanders Audiovisual Fund (VAF) will be providing EUR 1.73 million in subsidies in the coming 4 years. This amount will be funneled entirely into the Game Fund to further support the development of games in the region. The Flanders Audiovisual Fund is only one of various examples of grants and incentives for new and innovative businesses in Flanders.

As a business, game development has professionalized rapidly over the past several years. In Flanders, various organizations have taken the lead in representing the young and dynamic industry and its professionals. FLEGA, for instance, is Flanders’ official games association. It unites and supports all individuals and companies active in or related to the gaming industry in Flanders: from developers and service providers to researchers, resellers, local publishers and educational institutes.

Meanwhile, Flanders DC represents the region’s creative industry as a whole. Short for Flanders District of Creativity, this organization aims to enhance the competitiveness of creative businesses, such as game studios, by boosting entrepreneurship, research and internationalization.

And Flanders’ efforts have clearly been paying off, as various game studios are taking their success to new international heights. In 2017, for example, Larian Studios launched its most ambitious game ever: Original Sin II. In 3 years’ time, the Flanders-based firm developed the game with a team of 135 people who work at 4 production sites around the globe.