BAFTA to host first-ever Inside Games showcase

New pre-awards event will give consumers an early-look at the latest releases.

Taking place on the same day as the British Academy Games Awards on Wednesday, 12 March, the event is the first of its kind by BAFTA and will be a public showcase of the newest games on the horizon.

Consumers can look forward to early hands-on sessions with the likes of Titanfall and Dark Souls II, in addition to some of the most popular current releases including Deep Silver’s Metro: Last Light, RuneScape, Football Manager, Company of Heroes 2 and Sonic the Hedgehog.

Valve will also be in attendance with its first-ever Secret Shop – a pop-up store offering merchandise and exclusive digital in-game items for the publisher’s titles including Dota 2, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Team Fortress 2 and Portal.

In addition to these hands-on sessions, Inside Games will also host BAFTA-curated talks with developers and the Inside Games Arcade – a showcase of upcoming indie games.

Harvey Elliott, Chair of BAFTA’s Games Committee, said: "After a review of last year’s Awards activity, the committee believed it was time to broaden the ways in which BAFTA celebrates games and to enable the industry to engage more directly with gamers."

"Our Inside Games event has been curated by BAFTA to give gamers unprecedented access to the developers behind some of the best new titles of 2014. Also opening our Awards to the public for the first time is another way in which we are helping them have a better connection with the industry.”

Tickets for this year’s British Games Academy Awards, which includes access to the Inside Games showcase are available now at the BAFTA website.