Game Developers Devastated By Gamescom Laptop Theft Spree

Game developer and consultant Ryan Laley traveled to Cologne, Germany from Essex, England to showcase his upcoming horror social deduction game Mimic at the annual Gamescom event. He paid "thousands of pounds" to get a booth at the show, where other game developers and press could try the game ahead of its October release. But Laley's Gamescom was cut short when he realized Friday morning that his brand new Alienware laptop, purchased for the event, was missing.

The laptop was stored in a cupboard in the booth, and Laley started asking nearby vendors to see if someone had moved it. That's when he realized it was stolen—and that he wasn't alone. Laley's booth in Gamescom's business area, specifically in the International Game Developers Association Lounge, had been hit in what appears to be a string of thefts at the convention center. The business area of the convention is not open to the public, only press and others with specific tickets. Laley said Gamescom advertised this area as having 24/7 security and limited access after hours.

"I'm a solo dev doing this all on my own," Laley told Aftermath. "I'm very, very tired and very, very stressed out."

Publisher and merchandiser iam8bit, in a nearby booth showcasing Escape Academy 2: Back 2 School and Petal Runner, had two laptops with game builds stolen Thursday night from its booth, a representative confirmed to Aftermath. The theft has "disrupt[ed] our very busy appointment schedule," iam8bit posted to X on Friday, and put in-progress game builds "at risk of being leaked."

Iam8bit has contacted authorities, which are "seeking anyone who may have relevant information," iam8bit Presents marketing and publishing manager Billy Shibley told Aftermath.

A Gamescom representative said in a statement to Aftermath that the impacted parties "followed the established procedure and notified security personnel." They continued: "The police were then notified. We have no influence over further police proceedings or findings."

Aftermath reached out to Cologne police, but has not heard back by publication time.

Laley is not only losing out on the cost of a brand new laptop, but the booth space that will go unused for the rest of the event, which runs through Sunday. It costs nearly €3,000 (roughly $3,500) for the smallest size booth in Gamescom's business area, according to its price calculator. Pricing only goes up from there. That's not to mention the cost of travel, hotels, and food for the week in which Laley expected to showcase Mimic. He posted an emotional video to social media to share the news that his Gamescom was over. "As an indie, solo dev, this shit's expensive and hard to do all by yourself," Laley said in the clip. "And to have this happen is beyond frustrating. It's heartbreaking."

Before posting that clip, Laley said he felt defeated.

"I felt like I was just wasting my time," Laley told Aftermath. "I thought, let's just give it in and walk away from this. Clearly, the gods had spoken and said I can't be doing this. Thankfully, that hasn't been the case. We've had a massive amount of support from everyone around us at the booth, and everyone in the industry has been, honestly, overwhelmingly supportive."

Laley's community immediately responded looking for ways to help after he posted the clip. CD Projekt Red offered equipment, posting a reply on X from the Cyberpunk 2077 account. "We are very sorry this happened to you," CD Projekt Red wrote." We hope you know you’re not on your own with this. And while it won’t help right this second, we’ll check the Arasaka hardware archives and see if we can send a few things your way. No choom should have to start from zero."

Laley said some people have supported him by signing up for his Patreon, but wishlisting Mimic is enough. "The most meaningful thing has been people just running up to me or messaging me and saying, 'hey, we're here for you if you need anything,'" he said, "'Come get a beer, let us know if you need anything.' It's been heartwarming." Later, Laley shared on X that consultant and Don't Scream game developer Joe Hensen had donated enough money for Laley to buy a new laptop.

Laley packed up his booth on Friday after the show and took it back to the hotel. He says he’ll stay in Cologne for the rest of the event and play some games. "This weekend, my brain and heart just need to decompress a little bit and take a chill for a second and just network and chat to people," he said.