Thinking about or planning to attend LOGIN in May? Each year attendees get something new and fresh out of one of the best conferences in the Seattle/Bellevue area.

We sit down with the LOGIN team and chat with them about the upcoming conference in this exclusive interview. Read on for details about this year's conference and what's in store for attendees.

E4G: LOGIN has been one of the most successful industry conferences. What makes it worth attending?

LOGIN: What makes LOGIN really unique is our attendees. LOGIN has become an industry staple for so many people because they know when they attend they are going to meet and network with people who are just as smart, interesting, and motivated as themselves. It’s extremely entrepreneurial. This is why you hear so many stories about games getting funded and businesses getting started LOGIN.

E4G: What does the Bellevue, WA and surrounding areas offer as asides to the conference itself?

LOGIN: Bellevue is the heart of Seattle’s “eastside”, and home to some of the biggest names in game development. You’ll find companies like Valve, Bungie, ArenaNet, Microsoft, and Hidden Path literally within a few blocks of the conference. Bellevue also has easy access to downtown Seattle, being situated between the two major corridors across Lake Washington.

For those looking to get out and explore, the greater Seattle area has something for everything: museums, whale-watching, hiking, sailing, kayaking, botanical gardens, and more. It’s a beautiful area and May is a great time of year to be outside in Washington.

E4G: What does it take to bring together the greatest minds in the video game industry?

LOGIN: Typically, free drinks. All kidding aside, it takes a lot of thought and determination to put LOGIN together, every year doing what we can to bring added value to the attendees. We’re not afraid to make changes to the conference so long as it doesn’t compromise the distinguishing strengths of the event. As we’re putting the event together, our attendees, speakers and sponsors do a lot to attract the best possible audience at the show, which contributes to the senior level, thoughtful game business and development community that LOGIN attracts.

E4G: What keynotes and speakers can attendees look forward to at LOGIN 2011?

LOGIN: Richard Garriott, Creative Director of Portalarium, will be our keynote speaker on Tuesday, May 17. Richard was the founder of Origin Systems back in 1983, and was behind the creation of Ultima Online in 1997, one of the first and most successful MMOs (still running today). He’s also noteworthy for his interest in commercializing space travel and tourism, becoming the worlds sixth citizen astronaut in October, 2008. He’s a brilliant speaker and has some incredible stories to tell.

We’ll also have speakers from across the spectrum of online games, from companies like Zynga, SOE, Gazillion, 6waves, Curse, Heatwave Interactive, Lolapps, RockYou, and others.

E4G: The game industry changes so fast, how has the conference been updated to adapt?

LOGIN: When we started the conference five years ago, the focus was really on massively multiplayer games. That’s still a vital part of the conference, but we also look at online social games as well as mobile games. This year a lot of the attention will be on Facebook games, and we’re dedicating an entire track-day as a Facebook Game Development Bootcamp -- essentially giving experienced game developers everything they need to know to make a successful Facebook game in a single day.

We also try to look beyond the current trends to pick up on the Next Big Thing before it happens. Last year Scott Dodson gave a Gamification talk before it became the latest buzzword. Two years ago we were covering viral distribution of social games.

E4G: Having a unique perspective on the industry, what important trends have you seen develop the past few years that everyone should be aware of?

LOGIN: The biggest single trend is the transition to digital distribution. This transition is still underway, and we haven’t seen all the changes it will bring about, even for companies that are already 100% digital direct to consumer. Big publishers are desperately trying to rethink their business strategies in a world where packaged goods distribution channels are gone and marketing is done through social media. More and more development studios are thinking of themselves as “indie” and learning how to directly build a relationship with their players. The barriers to entry for new studios have all but disappeared, and garage studios are springing up everywhere, bringing with them a multitude of new games and design ideas. We are experiencing a renaissance in game development -- this is truly an exciting time to be in the industry.

E4G: LOGIN seems to be an excellent conference for networking. What can attendees take advantage of, and how important is networking in your view?

LOGIN: We really focus on networking at LOGIN. This week we’re announcing all the features of our new Business Lounge. We’ve set aside this whole area -- about 3,000 square feet -- as a place where people can socialize dynamically or reserve private meeting rooms. Attendees will be able to book meeting rooms in advance or schedule them onsite. The area has WiFi, power drops, and snack and beverage service through the day. It’s a really amazing addition to the conference, and available to everyone with an Executive or VIP conference pass.

E4G: What social networking sites and other areas of the web can those interested in attending check out for the latest LOGIN news?

LOGIN: Back in February, we launched our new LOGIN News portal, which covers the entire online games industry, as well as the latest happenings about the conference. We publish a weekly newsletter for LOGIN News called LOGIN Beat which summarizes highlights from the news. We also encourage people to join us on Facebook and LinkedIn, as well as follow us on Twitter.

E4G: What can everyone look forward to for 2012's conference?

LOGIN: Each year LOGIN gets better and better, so even though we’re focused squarely on 2011 right now, we’ll take the best of what will make 2011 a great year, add to it, and we’ll carry it over into 2012. I think we can expect great and exciting things for next year.

E4G: Thanks for taking the time to chat with us about LOGIN! Our team will be at the conference and will follow-up then .

To keep updated on up to the minute news about the conference, visit LOGIN News.

Interview was conducted between Peter Freese, director of LOGIN, and Mathew Anderson, writer at Events For Gamers.