On January 29, the Department of Broadcasting, Television and Electronic Information (Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) cooperated with VnExpress Newspaper, FPT Online Services Joint Stock Company, and the Vietnam Game Alliance to organize a program announcing activities within the framework of the Vietnam Game Festival – Vietnam GameVerse 2026.
First held annually in 2023, Vietnam GameVerse has continuously expanded in scale, content, and influence, affirming its position as the leading event in the Vietnamese gaming industry. Gathering all publishers, production units, investors, and the gaming community, Vietnam GameVerse is not only a space to honor achievements and gaming experiences but also a strategic bridge between the community, businesses, developers, and investors from both domestic and international markets.
Entering its fourth year of organization, the Vietnam Game Festival – Vietnam GameVerse 2026, themed “Together Reaching for the Big Sea – Do Local, Go Global,” clearly demonstrates a sustainable development orientation: using Vietnamese internal strength as a foundation, thereby connecting, integrating, and reaching out to the international market. With this overarching theme, Vietnam GameVerse 2026 aims to spread the story of the Vietnamese gaming industry: from content creation, product development, community building to exporting intellect and Vietnamese brands to the world. Participants will have the opportunity to experience new products, services, and technologies; connect and interact with experts, publishers, esports teams, and leading units in the gaming industry.
The series of activities within the framework of this year’s Vietnam GameVerse will kick off in February and conclude in May 2026 with the Vietnam Game Festival event in Ho Chi Minh City. The program includes four main activity groups:
Vietnam Game Awards 2026
Honoring products, services, communities, and individuals with outstanding achievements and contributions to the gaming ecosystem. The awards will take place from January to May 2026 in three phases: Nomination, Preliminary, and Final rounds.
This year, the Vietnam Game Awards 2026 will continue to refine its award system compared to previous seasons, expected to include 21 awards divided into four main categories: The Golden Galaxy (Category for games released in Vietnam), The Golden Sun (Category for Vietnamese games), The Golden Star (Category for Esports in Vietnam), and The Golden Gear (Category for devices, products, and services related to the gaming field).
Vietnam Game Forum 2026
Continuing and developing the topics discussed from the previous three seasons as well as updating current issues, the Vietnam Game Forum 2026 and Game Talks continue to be a space for in-depth exchange. Here, management agencies, businesses, experts, and the domestic and international gaming community will discuss the current critical topics of the gaming industry.
The program is also a place to propose ideas for the development of the Vietnamese gaming industry, such as building a sustainable Vietnamese gaming ecosystem, strategies to bring Vietnamese games to the world, developing professional esports, training human resources, and applying new technologies in the gaming industry.
GameHub Competition and Collaborative Investment Activities
Based on the positive results from previous seasons, the collaboration and investment connection activities within the Vietnam GameVerse 2026 will continue to expand in both scale and depth. Many networking spaces are designed to support Vietnamese studios, developers, and businesses in accessing international partners and investors, gradually realizing the goal of “go global.” Highlighting this activity group is the GameHub Competition – a program to seek and support potential Vietnamese game projects and products.
Officially entering its third season, the GameHub Competition aims to connect individuals, studios, and businesses developing game projects with investors, publishers, and strategic partners both domestically and internationally. The GameHub registration portal is expected to open in March 2026, with three rounds including: Preliminary – Evaluation – Final, featuring exciting presentation activities within the framework of the Vietnam Game Festival.
During the two days of the event, the series of B2B connection activities and thematic workshops on developing the gaming ecosystem will focus on analyzing market trends, development – publishing models, fundraising strategies, and expanding into international markets, providing in-depth insights and practical collaboration opportunities for participating units. Notably, Vietnam GameVerse 2026 is expected to continue receiving the interest and support of many major global technology corporations, contributing to providing more impetus for the sustainable development and integration of the Vietnamese gaming ecosystem.
Entertainment and Esports Competitions
In addition to the game exhibition and products and services in the gaming industry, the Cosplay Contest continues to be a highlight for the community, providing a creative playground for young people to embody their favorite characters from comics, movies, video games, and anime. Besides the competition, the program will continue to promote additional activities such as parades and exchanges, meetings with famous cosplayers from both domestic and international scenes, and musical performances, contributing to creating a vibrant and colorful atmosphere for the event. Especially, this year’s game exhibition will be expanded to welcome international units and businesses to participate, promising to bring a lot of excitement to the leading event in the gaming industry in Vietnam.
New Highlights of Vietnam GameVerse 2026
Vietnam GameVerse 2026 marks a strong transformation with a series of “first-time” milestones. In addition to friendly matches between players, KOLs, and participants, the Organizing Committee, in collaboration with publishers, will officially introduce professional esports tournaments into the program, prominently featuring the Southeast Asian Esports Cup, gathering top teams in the region competing in various exciting disciplines.
At the same time, a series of fan meetings with top Vietnamese esports teams will also be introduced into the program for the first time, creating a direct interaction space between players and the community of fans.
Additionally, Vietnam GameVerse 2026 will for the first time enhance B2B activities in a specialized direction, with the participation of businesses, developers, and game publishing units both domestically and internationally, opening up many opportunities for connection and collaboration.
This year, Vietnam GameVerse 2026 officially begins ticket sales, allowing the Organizing Committee to invest more deeply into content, experiential spaces, and exclusive activities to enhance the experience of participants, contributing to building a sustainable, professional event model that approaches major gaming – esports events in the region and globally. Ticket holders will have the opportunity to fully access the event ecosystem, including exhibitions, industry forums, entertainment activities, and fan meetings with esports teams.
With an expanded scale and an exciting series of activities, the Vietnam Game Festival – Vietnam GameVerse 2026 is expected to attract around 60,000 participants, reaffirming its status as a leading game event that positively impacts the development of the gaming industry in Vietnam, receiving support and attention from management agencies, experts in the field, producers, publishers, and the domestic and international gaming community.