Austin Game Conference keynote speakers announced

The Game Initiative has announced the first confirmed speakers for the Austin Game Conference, revealing that Blizzard's VP of games design, Rob Pardo, will deliver the opening keynote address.

Pardo, who is lead designer on MMO phenomenon World of Warcraft, also supervises the development and progress of Blizzard's other PC and console games. The conference will officially begin with Pardo's keynote on September 6th.

Michael Dell, founder and chairman of the board of Dell Inc., will speak in a special "fireside chat" in the Technology Pavilion on day two of the conference, and award-winning sci-fi author Vernor Vinge will deliver the final keynote on Friday, September 8th.

Organisers recently announced an extension to the event, which will now span three days from 6th-8th September, featuring multiple conference tracks and focusing on MMOG development.

Christopher Sherman, executive director at The Game Initiative, commented: "We are extremely pleased to have so many visionaries and industry leaders join us at the fourth annual Austin Game Conference."

"With this year's theme of "Brave New Worlds" the Austin Game Conference hosts industry influencers, including game developers, technologists and business professionals from around the world."

A full list of confirmed speakers, keynote biographies and conference track information can be found by visiting the AGC website.