GOONL!NE

We’ve just been a sent a press release which, on paper sounds like nothing, but this confirms (we think) the first public UK showing of Heavy Rain that aint behind closed doors.

Quantic Dream’s Guillaume de Fondaumière, who is co-CEO of the studio as well as excutive producer of the game, will be in Gateshead on June 23rd-24th to show off Heavy Rain at GameHorizon, speaking about the game as well as show a behind the scenes look at the game itself.

As well as that, PlayStation Home boss in Europe Peter Edward, Epic Games’ Mark Rein and former GDC director Jamil Moledina, who stepped down after GDC 2008, will also appear at the conference over the two days.

Press release after the jump.

PLAYSTATION HOME, EA AND QUANTIC DREAM TO SPEAK AT GAMEHORIZON CONFEFRENCE

– Industry heavyweights will be joined by BBC boss at June event –

The head of the PlayStation Home platform, Quantic Dream’s co-CEO and the former executive director of the Game Developers’ Conference (GDC) are amongst the latest leading games industry figures who have signed up to speak at June’s GameHorizon Conference.

Peter Edward, director of PlayStation Home Platform group, Quantic Dream’s Guillaume de Fondaumière and Jamil Moledina – who left his role in GDC to become outreach director for EA Partners in a shock move last year – will talk at the event on June 23-24 at The Sage Gateshead in North East England. The trio will be joined by Marc Goodchild, the head of interactive and on-demand for BBC Children’s.

An exclusive audience of around 300 games industry executives are expected at the conference, which takes a look at the high-level issues facing the industry now, and where the business opportunities will lie in the near future.

Carri Cunliffe, director of the GameHorizon Conference, said: “We are thrilled to have representatives of EA, Sony, Quantic Dream and the BBC speaking at the conference.

“The diversity of the line-up we’ve put together for the GameHorizon Conference reflects the growing scope of the games industry and its market. With presentations from a mix of established players, up-and-coming organisations, analysts and business leaders from outside the industry, delegates at the conference will get a unique insight into where we are today and where the business opportunities will lie around the corner.”

Sony’s Peter Edward will talk about the opportunities for developers and other games companies to strengthen and develop their IP’s using PlayStation Home, and reveal some of the exciting new content already on the horizon.

Quantic Dream’s Guillaume de Fondaumière will give an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the ideas and technology behind their hugely anticipated upcoming title, Heavy Rain, which is billed as an ‘interactive film noir’.

And Jamil Moledina – who was editor-in-chief of the US’s biggest games industry magazine, Game Developer, before taking charge of the multi-million dollar GDC – will head up a panel session on ‘The Survival of the Fittest’, which will look at whether businesses in the games industry can cope and even thrive during the recession. Also on the panel will be Mark Rein of Epic Games, Darren Jobling of Eutechnyx and Robert Bond of games specialist law firm Speechly Bircham.

A full list of speakers is available at www.gamehorizonconference.com/speakers

For more information and to book a place at the GameHorizon Conference go to www.gamehorizonconference.com

ENDS