This improved ecosystem should make it more appealing for gaming businesses to establishes themselves in the area.

The video game sector is the largest entertainment industry in the world, demand for knowledge regarding applied video game technology is high. After all, many other fields increasingly use technologies such as Virtual & Augmented Reality, simulations and digital twins. BUas offers one of the best video game programmes in the world and therefore there are many talented graduates with this technological expertise, both for recreational games as well as for serious gaming.

One important part of the ecosystem will be the Video Game Accelerator 2.0 located on the BUas campus: a building offering state-of-the-art production facilities. Students work in labs on their own games which they subsequently market to become gaming start-ups. Researchers are able to work there using applied research for the further development of video game technology. Furthermore, there will be facilities which can be used for demonstrations and the Accelerator will also be a meeting place for local, regional and international businesses from the gaming industry or for those with the wish to use the knowledge and expertise from this sector.

Next to the physical Accelerator building, the collaborating parties also aim to build an international gaming ecosystem. This means that they will start work on attracting international studios and strategic parties and that students and other talents are encouraged to continue to work on their own games and start-ups. The Breda Game City Foundation will work, together with its partners, to enhance the video gaming culture in the local area through events, marketing and exchanging knowledge. Next to that a physical hub will make the industry more accessible to the public, providing workshops and events which are relevant to society.

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Martijn van Gruijthuijsen, Province of North Brabant minister for Economic development, Finance, Knowledge and Talent development, states: 'Hidden in North Brabant there is one of the best ga-ming programmes in the world. The gaming industry is the largest entertainment industry in the world, larger than the film and music industries put together. On top of that, technologies such as Virtual and Augmented Reality can play in important part in other areas such as health care, the manufacturing industry, logistics and education. As the province of North Brabant, we cannot let the opportunity slip away to expand on this gem by creating a place for world players in the realm of gaming and to become a breeding ground for young talented individuals.'

Jorrit Snijder, president of Breda University of Applied Sciences' Executive Board: 'Recently our gaming was declared the third best in the world by GAMEducation (www.gameschools.com), ahead of various renowned institutions. We are pleased that we can continue to strengthen our programme's quality and impact through this initiative.'

Carla Kranenborg-van Eerd, Alderman for Economic development, Labour market, Mobility and Finance of the municipality of Breda agrees: 'Our goal is to work on smart technologies to cope with societal challenges as part of strengthening Breda's position as an international hotspot for Applied Technology and Creativity. The Breda Video Game Ecosystem and the Video Game Accelerator 2.0 significantly contribute to this.'

Ubisoft Europe, on the largest game developers in the world, supports this initiative as one of its signatories. Vice-president Olivier Dauba: 'The quality of BUas's game development education is widely known. Therefore, we like to be engaged in the implementation of Video Game Accelerator 2.0 and we will look into how we can contribute to this.'

The plans will be developed in greater detail at the start of the next year together with various expert partners such as for instance Breda Game City Foundation and with partners focused on the acquisition of (applied) video game businesses for the West Brabant area. The goal is to build on existing initiatives in an intelligent manner.