Senator's Roundtable: Hamburg

Key insights

4 slides

The forum

Hamburg convened a strategic roundtable for the games industry.

The Senator’s Roundtable was held on February 5, 2026, at Hamburg City Hall.

Policy focus

Stakeholders prioritized tax credits and the Digital Fairness Act.

Participants emphasized the necessity of reliable, level playing fields regarding tax credits. They also highlighted the implementation of the EU’s Digital Fairness Act as a critical priority.

Critical priorities. Industry stakeholders identified the implementation of the EU’s Digital Fairness Act and the establishment of competitive tax credits as critical priorities.

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Summary

The Senator's Roundtable 2026 is an annual exchange format that brings Hamburg's games industry into direct contact with local politics. Held on February 5, 2026 at Hamburg's City Hall, it was hosted by Culture and Media Senator Dr. Carsten Brosda and Gamecity Hamburg, with State Secretary Jana Schiedek also attending. The aim was to review current conditions and challenges facing the sector and to give participants an overview of Gamecity Hamburg's activities.

Managing directors and representatives of leading Hamburg-based companies and organizations took part, including 4Players, AviaGames, Bigpoint, Daedalic Entertainment, Fishlabs, gamigo, Goodgame Studios, InnoGames, Rocket Beans TV, Tiny Roar, and HAW Hamburg, among roughly twenty participants. The discussion centered on topics that occupied companies over the previous year.

Portside Game Assembly, Polaris Convention, and Gamesforum Hamburg were cited as successful events that raised Hamburg's international visibility. Links to Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft events such as the German Creative Economy Summit and AI Media Leaders connect games with other creative-industry sub-markets. A CEO Meetup planned for 2026 is among new regular formats intended to expand year-round networking for local firms.

On policy, companies stressed that reliable, level playing fields are essential to the location's competitiveness, specifically in the context of tax credits and the EU's Digital Fairness Act. No quantitative data or formal conclusions were published; the coverage is a qualitative summary of the meeting.

Surrounding site content points to an active local ecosystem in 2026, including the Games Lift incubator (five teams receiving 15,000 euros each plus coaching), Prototype Funding, Road to gamescom, Portside Game Assembly on June 25–26, and recent Hamburg releases such as Star Trek: Voyager – Across the Unknown and MENACE.