About us
The Christchurch Game Developers Association frequently offers events in person or digitally to create conversations and share stories, encourage community growth, connection-building and the sharing of knowledge and expertise.
A typical meetup includes:
- A Guest Speaker or Panel presenting on a core topic
- An opportunity for Q&A with our Guest Speakers
- Games Industry News and Events from around New Zealand
- Screen & Games Industry Job Opportunities
- Casual networking over pizza
Originally founded in 2015, the Christchurch Game Developers Association (CGDA) is an organisation dedicated to supporting the local Ōtautahi Christchurch Game Development Community.
CGDA works with local sponsors and tertiary institutes to provide monthly Meetup Events, featuring a wide variety of Talks from local and international guest speakers. We also facilitate Canterbury sites for Game Jams (weekend-long collaborative game creation events) and Playtest Exhibitions, with the goal of showcasing local talent and illuminating pathways into the Game Development Industry.
Check us out on:
Web: https://chch.gamedev.co.nz
Discord: https://discord.gg/68YqqFZ
Facebook: fb.me/CHCHGameDev
Twitter: @CHCHGameDev
Help us grow on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/CHCHGameDev
Upcoming events
2
October CGDA Meetup - Keegan Gibson
EPIC Innovation Center, 78-100 Manchester St, Christchurch, NZWelcome to the October 2026 Christchurch Game Developers' Meetup!
Location:
EPIC Innovation, 106 Manchester St, Christchurch 8011The meetup will also be streamed online at:
[Link to be added on the night!]Don't forget to check us out at:
Website: chch.gamedev.co.nz
Bluesky: bsky.app/profile/chchgamedev.bsky.social
Linkedin: linkedin.com/company/christchurch-game-developers-new-zealand
Discord: discord.gg/68YqqFZ
If you like our meetups, consider supporting us on Patreon:
patreon.com/CHCHGameDev
***This Month's Speaker: Keegan Gibson
Keegan has been in game development for over 15 years, specialising in Unreal Engine, networking, performance, and AI. Throughout his career, he has worked on a diverse range of projects, including mobile, console, PC, indie, and AAA titles, as well as making some short contributions to film.5:30 PM - Playtesting
BYO devices and get some hands-on feedback from other game developers!6:00 PM - Community Micro-Talks
Hear updates from local developers' projects, and casual presentations on topics of interest by the community, in a short format with Q&A.You can submit your Micro-Talk here:
https://forms.gle/CLeLAc5Ma8J5bx4C96:30 PM - Pizza
Enjoy some refreshments (AKA pizza) and catch up with/meet other game dev enthusiasts.6:45 PM - KICK OFF
Welcome to the Christchurch Game Developers Meetup, with news from around New Zealand!6:50 PM - Same Game / Different Language: Transitioning to Unreal Engine
You've shipped games. You understand render pipelines, game loops, entity-component systems, and the particular joy of tracking down a one-frame desync at 3am. You don't need someone to explain what a delta time is. What you do need is someone to tell you where Unreal hid everything you already know, and warn you about the places where your hard-won instincts will quietly lead you astray.This session is an on-ramp for experienced developers making the jump to Unreal Engine. Whether you're coming from Unity, Godot, a proprietary in-house engine, or something with a name that no longer appears on any company's LinkedIn page, the fundamentals you've built your career on absolutely transfer. The vocabulary just got a lot more dramatic. We'll walk through Unreal's core architecture: Actors, Components, the GameFramework hierarchy, and the asset pipeline. Not as a beginner's tour, but as a map for someone who already knows the territory. You'll see where Unreal's abstractions line up with what you already know, where they diverge in interesting ways, and where the engine has strong opinions you'll want to understand before you find yourself arguing with it at compile time.
A big part of transitioning successfully to a new engine isn't learning new things, it's unlearning the assumption that your old patterns will slot straight in. Unreal rewards developers who take the time to understand its grain: how it wants you to structure gameplay logic, where it expects things to live, and when to reach for Blueprints versus C++. Fight that grain and you'll spend your days in a low-level war with a framework that was never going to blink first. Work with it and you'll find a surprisingly coherent system underneath the surface area.
By the end of this session you'll have a mental model for navigating Unreal's architecture with confidence, a practical feel for where to start on a real project, and a shortlist of the exact moments where experienced developers most often get tripped up, so you can skip the three weeks of confusion and get straight to being productive. If you've ever opened an Unreal project, stared at the folder structure, and thought I know what this is supposed to be, I just can't find it, this talk is for you.
This talk was originally given at NZGDC 2026.
Event Photography Notice: The CGDA occasionally takes photos and/or videos at our events for promotional purposes. If you would prefer not to have your image recorded for marketing purposes, please make your wishes known to the photographer, and/or reach out to a committee member, and we will accommodate your request. Thank you!
***Massive thanks to all our supporters for making our meetups possible!
Our Corporate Supporters:
Yoobee College of Creative Innovation - a tertiary institute committed to developing creative and technical talent across New Zealand.
https://www.yoobee.ac.nz/courses/CerebralFix - a Christchurch-based game development studio specializing in work for hire from some amazing companies.
https://cerebralfix.com/Screen Canterbury NZ - a Canterbury-based film office helping creatives get their projects delivered to the screens of their choice, providing fantastic resource-sharing & advocacy for our screen production industry.
https://www.christchurchnz.com/screen-canterburynzAnd our awesome Patreon Supporters:
Matt Barton
Leigh Beattie
Leith Caldwell
Samantha Cook
Robert Oram
Nik Scarr
Ian Shephard
Alexander Swords
Carl de Visser12 attendees
November Game Playtest Event
Turanga (Central Library), 60 Cathedral Square, Christchurch, al, NZWelcome to the November 2026 Game Playtest Event!
Come play-test some amazing games (digital and table top) that are being developed right here in Christchurch at this casual, free public event!
Meetup Location:
Auahatanga | Creativity, Level 4, Tūranga - Computer Labs
2 PM - Doors Open
4 PM - Event EndsFor play-testers:
- Feel free to show up and have fun playing some games, and be prepared to give feedback to the game creators!
- You can confirm your interest by RSVP-ing here on Meetup.com!
- Bring some friends!
Big, BIG thanks to our Patreon supporters for making our meetups possible!
Our Corporate Supporters:
Yoobee
Check out their Diploma in Game Art and Development: https://www.yoobee.ac.nz/courses/game-art-development/diploma-in-game-art-developmentCerebralFix
Christchurch-based game development studio specializing in work for hire from some amazing companies.
https://cerebralfix.com/Screen Canterbury NZ
Canterbury-based film office helping creatives get their projects delivered to the screens of their choice, providing fantastic resource-sharing & advocacy for our screen production industry.
https://www.christchurchnz.com/screen-canterburynzAnd our Patreon Supporters:
Matt Barton
Leigh Beattie
Leith Caldwell
Samantha Cook
Robert Oram
Nik Scarr
Ian Shephard
Alexander Swords
Carl de Visser
Y'all are amazing!17 attendees
Past events
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