New community program and a free indie games showcase headline Australia's biggest games festival, running 2 to 11 October across Melbourne.
Melbourne International Games Week (MIGW) is set to take over the city from the 2 to 11 October 2026, with ACMI at the helm for the first time as delivery partner. This year’s festival will be anchored across three major hubs: ACMI & Fed Square, the Melbourne Convention Centre (MCEC) & South Wharf and an exciting, third new space, to be announced soon.
Games are now the world's largest entertainment industry, generating more revenue each year than film and music combined, and 82 per cent of Australians play video games, according to Australia Plays 2025 (IGEA and Bond University). Recent data also shows that Victoria has the largest percentage of both digital games studios and workforce in Australia (ABS).
New for MIGW 2026 is Discover Local Community (DLC), a program inviting venues, collectives and organisations across Greater Melbourne to put their own events and promotions on the official Games Week calendar. From pub trivia in Brunswick to family game days in Narre Warren, DLC is designed to connect audiences with community-led organisations and small businesses across the CBD and outer suburbs. Eligible events – ticketed or free – will feature on the Games Week website and across the promoted calendar of events. Expressions of interest are open now and close 20 September 2026.
Also new to MIGW is the Games Week Showcase, a free pop-up exhibition at ACMI featuring more than 100 indie games from Australia and around the world, including South East Asia and Latin America, with new titles added daily across the festival’s run. Visitors can vote for their favourite game on-site as part of the Australian Game Developer Awards (AGDAs) with the ACMI Audience Award, which recognise the achievements of Australian game developers.
ACMI will also present the inaugural Games Week Film Program, a four-day season of screenings at ACMI and on the Fed Square main stage exploring the shared creative ground between games and cinema. The program spans genres and generations, from cult 1990s game adaptations to documentaries and game-inspired horror titles. A featured session, The Design of DREDGE, includes a post-screening Q&A with Black Salt Games' Nadia Thorne and Joel Mason.
These events sit alongside the return of MIGW's backbone: PAX Aus and IGEA’s Games Connect Asia Pacific (GCAP) and the AGDAs headline a program that also includes Freeplay’sParallels, VicScreen’s Play Now Melbourne, VMDO’s High Score, along with Games For Change Summit and Showcase, Taking Up Space and the Careers + Frontiers Games Education Symposium.
Established by the Victorian Government in 2015, MIGW has grown to become the largest digital games event in the Asia-Pacific. This year, as an initiative of the Victorian Government’s Creative State 2028 strategy, ACMI takes the lead on the event, working in partnership with the games industry.
The Hon Vicki Ward MP, Minister for Creative Industries, said:
“We're proud to be backing our games industry through Melbourne International Games Week - supporting local jobs and connecting Victorian developers with global partners. Whether you're a developer, a fan, or just curious about games – there's something for everyone at this year's event.”
Seb Chan, ACMI Director and CEO, said:
“Videogames have always been part of ACMI's program, alongside our long history of running considered film festivals and seasons, and Games Week is where those two strands finally meet. As Australia’s museum of screen culture, backing videogames with the same rigour and care we bring to film is exactly where we belong, and this year's program is the clearest expression of that yet and we hope it continues to consolidate Victoria as the natural home of the games industry.”
Luke Lancaster, Head of Melbourne International Games Week, ACMI, said:
“We’re honoured to be able to build on the ten-year history of Australia’s biggest games event. Games Week has grown every year since it launched in 2015. This year's program reflects that ambition at every level with new ways for the public to get involved and stronger support for the industry that's built this festival's reputation.”
In 2025, MIGW drew more than 135,000 in-person participants from around the country with over 1,300 presenters across major conferences including GCAP, the region's largest games industry event.