If I’m honest, I’m still trying to process the last week…
After two years of trying to deliver Scotland’s Games Action Plan – running workshops, pulling together over a thousand data points, separating the practical and achievable from the aspirational, and finding ways to work with the country’s existing infrastructure – we finally handed Level Up Scotland over to the country last Wednesday.
The impact was immediate, and frankly, a little overwhelming.
80 People, Two Cities, One Voice
We held two events in one day. In the morning, we filled a room at CodeBase Edinburgh with MSPs, media, and industry leaders like Mark Logan. By the afternoon, we were in the Abertay CyberQuarter in Dundee, surrounded by the developers and educators who are the heart and soul of this sector.
In total, over 80 of you showed up. Seeing those rooms full didn’t just mean a lot to me personally; it sent a real message to the people in parliament: This isn’t just a report. This is a unified community demanding a different future.
The World is Watching
The media response has been equally powerful. We didn’t just get a mention; we started a national conversation. From the front page of the Sunday Herald to deep-dives in the global industry press, the message that Scotland’s games sector is a ‘secret weapon’ with a £151k GVA per head is now impossible to ignore.
Scotland’s Games Action Plan: Press Coverage
- Sunday Herald (front page and 4 x pages inside)
- Scotland On Sunday
- PocketGamer.biz
- GamesIndustry.biz (REALLY in-depth. They read the whole thing!)
- DIGIT.FYI
- STV News (scroll in to 10m 15s)
- The National
- White Nights Hub
- Holyrood Magazine
- Videogames Industry Memo
- Gamespress
- The Courier
Help Needed: Scotland’s Games Action Plan Debate In Holyrood
When we started this two years ago, the goal was to end the fragmentation of our sector. Looking at the “Wall of Support” and the names supporting that Parliamentary motion, I think we can say we’ve made a strong case. However, we’re not quite there yet. I need your help one more time.
We need the debate in parliament. We need the government to understand how important games could be to Scotland’s creative and economic future. If you want something more tangible and a reason to get in touch with your MSP, consider that the Action Plan has direct funding for game developers (for new IP and Co-development), dedicated and expert business support for games companies and representation within the government.
Share The Love – Tell The World
Let’s keep the pressure on. Please share any and all of the above stories from the media on your social media channels. Get in touch with your local MSPs and ask them directly to support Motion S6M-20521.
You can find your MSPs using your postcode here. I’ve created a draft template to send to your MSP here (Google Docs link). Most of the MSPs have social media links (usually Twitter/X) on their individual pages. There’s even a directory of 72 x MSPs on Bluesky). So do please tag them on there as well and share one or two of the above media stories, or link directly to the Action Plan itself.
With one last push, we can make sure games are not just part of the national agenda, but an integrated and important part of our shared digital future.
Thank you,
B