Europe's biggest trade fair devoted to computer gaming opens its doors Thursday in the eastern German city of Leipzig to fans as well as trade buyers looking for top sellers for the Christmas gift-giving season, dpa reported today. The GC Games Convention from August 18 to 21 is an obligatory event for hard-core gamers in Germany, where a newspaper, the Hamburger Abendblatt, notes that annual 1-billion-euro (1.25-billion- dollar) spending on games surpasses cinema ticket sales. The annual Leipzig fair showcases games for both consoles and personal computers and is a major draw for youngsters trying out the "shoot-'em-up", role-play, race-car and simulated-sports games. Vast quantities of brochures and free items are passed out, reflecting the strong revenues generated by sales of single game disks that cost up to 50 euros apiece. The GC features the first European showing of the Xbox 360, the new console from Microsoft, while Konami is to unveil its "Pro Evolution Soccer 5" for the first time worldwide. Electronic Arts has another premier release, its "Need for Speed: Most Wanted" car-race game. Lara Croft, the most celebrated heroine of gaming, will feature in a new game on the Eidos stand. "The GC offers players a unique opportunity to get to know our titles months before they actually come into the shops," explains Ubisoft general manager Odile Limpach. Away from all the game sound effects, merchants will meet with suppliers in the fairground business centre to line up orders. Economists say the gaming business keeps right on expanding in Germany regardless of the slump hitting most other consumer products. --mor 1256 Local Time 0956 GMT
