PAX Australia 2019 isn’t far off now. If you didn’t already have enough of a reason to go, it’s recently been announced that ex BioWare and Beamdog developer David Gaider is the keynote speaker. And that’s not all, Gaider has recently announced that he’s opening his very own Melbourne-based studio, Summerfall Studios.
Gaider has worked on Baldur’s Gate 2, Knights of the Old Republic, Dragon Age: Origins and more. At PAX Aus, Gaider will be “talking about his illustrious career working at BioWare and Beamdog.”
He will also be discussing “plans for his newly announced Melbourne-based game development studio, Summerfall Studios.”
David Gaider PAX Aus
Summerfall Studios is the collaboration between Gaider and GX Australia and Beamdog alumni Liam Esler. The studio’s first title will be unveiled during Melbourne International Games Week which coincides with PAX Aus.
Speaking to Kotaku, Gaider said;
We’d actually each been thinking of starting a new studio independently. I’d spoken about it a bit to friends, talking about what sorts of projects I’d want to make and the kind of studio I’d want to run, but I felt like it was something I couldn’t do alone.
As for having it based in Melbourne, Gaider told Kotaku that both he and Esler wanted to be based in Melbourne for a number of reasons. Chief among them, knowing the local talent pool.
“There could certainly have been advantages to starting the studio in Canada instead, but both of us really wanted to have it based here, where we know the people and the depth of the talent pool,” Gaider explained.
I’ll still be based in Canada for a while, so technically it’ll be a cross-Pacific production even if most of the work will be getting done here in Melbourne.”
Storytime with David Gaider will commence at 10.30 am AEST on Friday, October 11. He will also appear on a few other panels across the three-day event.
PAX Aus 2019 runs from October 11-13 at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre.
