GREAT INDOORS, MEET GREAT OUTDOORS… AGAIN!
What
Featuring talent from down the street and around the world, Game Invest West will bring together startups and their founding teams with the investors, publishers, licensing partners and corporate funds that are looking to move into this exciting and unique industry.
When
October 22nd & 23rd, 2025
Why
Right now, the global game industry is entering what will be a rocket-powered rebuilding phase… and some of the best new prospects will be found here in the Western Canada. Game Invest West is the only major investment conference specifically focused on the game industry in this region.
Speakers
Where
The Game Invest West summit is taking place as part of this year’s Banff Venture Forum. This epic new event will go down in an equally epic setting: the amazing mountains of Banff, Alberta.
Accommodation will be at the industry-acclaimed Banff Centre. Nestled on the side of Tunnel Mountain and just five minutes from downtown, the Banff Centre hotel features newly renovated rooms and (truly) breathtaking vistas.
How
To find out more, send us your information and we’ll get you the details. Spaces at the conference will be limited, but if you belong there we will bend over backwards to make it happen.
Our Members
In collaboration with the Federal and Provincial Governments, the Scaffold Institute is working to double the number of game studios in Alberta, building a new, dynamic industry. The profiles of our studios span the following:
%
Solopreneurs
%
Indie Studios
%
Established Studios
Our Impact in Alberta
Million Funding Facilitated
Mentor Hours
FTE Created
Pitch Sessions
Scaffold Institute is excited to announce a collaboration with Alberta Games Series, organized by Digital Alberta, for our pitch competition on October 7th!
🏨 The winner and runner-up will each receive a full prize package to attend Game Invest West in Banff on October 22nd and 23rd – including a $1,500 ticket plus hotel covered! This is a huge opportunity to connect with hundreds of investors and publishers at one of Canada’s most important game industry events.
✏ Submit your pitch: Google Form
💡 Learn more about AGS: https://www.alberta.games/
🎫 Grab your AGS tickets here: Eventbrite
Other Sessions
Networking Arcade
See the best games being launched by the best studios in Alberta in a throwback retro arcade environment.
City-based Events
More details available soon!
Who
John Polson
Director Of Business Development
Tencent Americas
John Polson has worked in games for over 15 years. Currently, John is in charge of gaming investments and partnerships in West Canada and Pacific Northwest at Tencent. Prior to that, he built Humble Bundle’s publishing arm and its award-winning portfolio, which went on to become a Top 10 Metacritic publisher for 3 years until my departure in 2022. Earlier in his career, John worked at Nintendo as an account manager and Indie Fund as a game scout. John is therefore knowledgeable in a wide range of go-to-market strategies, project financing, and equity investment for studios in any point in their life cycle.
Noah Decter-Jackson
Director
New Media Manitoba
24+ year Videogame Entrepreneur & Creative Director who grew an awarding-winning work-for-hire business from $0 to a team of 55 in a city with no pre-existing videogame industry, community or support when they started. In 2015 Noah made the shift to driving our own creative projects, launching top-selling Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters in 2022.
In the same year Noah sold that company, Complex Games inc., to their publisher Frontier Developments PLC and spent the next 2 years leading the studio into a new era of growth as it strives to become a world-leader in Tactical RPGs.
Joshua Nilson
Angel Investor
Maskwa Investments
Joshua Nilson, Metis and from Willow River, BC, founded Maskwa Investments to focus on early-stage seed funding and advisement, particularly for Indigenous tech businesses. Previously, he co-founded East Side Games (ESG), which produced popular mobile games like Trailer Park Boys, The Office, and RuPaul’s Drag Race Superstar. With over two decades of tech experience, Joshua has been named one of BC’s most influential business leaders in the BC500 for three consecutive years and was awarded BC Tech’s Person of the Year in 2022. When not shaping the tech world, he’s always happy to stop for a pug!
Josh Waite
Director of Partnerships
McKenna Institute
Josh Waite is a strategy and innovation leader operating at the intersection of digital transformation, economic development, and community impact. With two decades of experience spanning public and private sectors, he specializes in building programs, partnerships, and ecosystems that drive meaningful change — particularly in regions like Atlantic Canada. As a strategic leader at the McKenna Institute, Josh spearheads initiatives focused on critical technology enablers including AI, cybersecurity, and digital twinning that help industries grow and adapt to evolving markets. He brings deep expertise in co-creating solutions that unite government, academia, and business stakeholders to scale talent pipelines, attract investment, and build resilient, future-ready economies.
Stewart Guenther
Managing Partner
vc-pert
Stewart Guenther is a seasoned venture coach and mentor with extensive experience in developing and analyzing business opportunities, as well as creating effective revenue-generating strategies across diverse technology sectors globally. As an engaging speaker and recognized authority on venture capital and early-stage corporate development, he has cultivated extensive contacts in VC, government labs, and industry sectors. Stewart currently serves as the Managing Partner at vc-pert, bridging Silicon Valley insights with international entrepreneurship and innovation. Additionally, he is a Managing Director at Viaduct Ventures, focusing on early-stage investments in Big Data, AI, and IoT sectors that offer meaningful market disruptions.
John Nguyen
Regional Vice President – Canada
Xsolla
John brings over 14 years of leadership across gaming, entertainment, and tech startups. His empathy-driven approach stems from experience building games and designing systems before moving into executive leadership, helping startups anticipate player needs and build resonant products.
Shane Mang
Head of Licensing & Merchandising
WEBTOON
Shane Mang is an accomplished executive licensing leader with over 12 years of expertise in directing global brand partnerships and licensing strategies. He has spearheaded business development initiatives for major franchises including Rubik’s Cube, A Little Spot, and Paw Patrol, driving revenue growth across brands that generate over $100M annually. Shane brings extensive experience in business development, consulting, and collaboration with VC teams to transform emerging brands into global market leaders.
A skilled negotiator of multimillion-dollar deals with global brands such as H&M, McDonald’s, and General Mills, Shane has built and scaled businesses across the evolving media landscape — from traditional broadcast and streaming platforms to TikTok, Instagram, Meta, Web3, YouTube, and gaming. His portfolio of globally managed brands includes Paw Patrol, Hatchimals, Teletubbies, Bakugan, Dark Crystal, Slugterra, Serena Williams’ Qai Qai, Rubik’s Cube, and Etch-A-Sketch, among many others. Shane is a trusted thought leader and sought-after speaker at industry panels, with insights featured in License Global Magazine.
Stephen Wu
RBC Wealth
Stephen runs a wealth practice with his team downtown in Calgary under RBC Dominion Securities. For over a decade, Stephen has worked with entrepreneurs and professionals to help them reach their unique financial goals. He currently acts as his clients’ Chief Financial Officer with a family office approach to cover all their financial needs.
Stephen’s ikigai and passions are finance, gaming, and charitable giving. His next venture is to combine those passions into an esports tournament in Calgary. Aside from work and when he has the time, Stephen enjoys playing MOBAs and was a Mobile Legends Canada-ranked player.
Michael Liebe
Kickstarter Outreach Games EU
Michael Liebe is CEO and founder of Booster Space, the company behind games week Berlin, QUO VADIS conference, Gamefest, VR NOW Con & Awards, Womenize! and many other events driving to connect business, technology and culture of games, VR and other media. In the times before Booster Space, he was Advisor – New Media at the Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg and responsible for marketing and networking for the German capital region.
Isaac Otway
CEO of Crimson Herring
Isaac Otway is the Chief Executive Officer and founder of Crimson Herring Studios, a narrative-focused video game developer and publisher. With over two decades of leadership experience, Isaac has built a global team and established two offices in Canada, leading the studio to the upcoming release of its debut game, Sovereign Syndicate, in 2024. Known for his strategic vision and collaborative leadership, Isaac excels at aligning talent, capital, and technology to meet market demands, while fostering a supportive environment that drives innovation and organizational growth.