If you happen to’ve been following the information and market developments (and studying our tales!) then you definitely’ve in all probability already received greater than a bit of FOMO about exploring the MENA market. With Pocket Gamer Connects Jordan (4-Fifth November) we’re going to show the dial as much as 11.

Not solely is the nation dwelling to one of the crucial vibrant gaming ecosystems in your entire area, (because of long-term initiatives like the Jordan Gaming Lab), boasting 1000’s of indie builders and rising studio success tales like Tamatem, Babil, Jawaker and Maysalward, it’s additionally received an unparalleled cultural heritage filled with typically world-class vacationer points of interest.

And while you go to Pocket Gamer Connects Jordan 2023, it received’t simply be our normal fringe occasions on provide, but additionally a once-in-a-lifetime likelihood to expertise a few of these highlights first hand. All visiting delegates can be part of a completely hosted day-trip to Petra, one of many fashionable wonders of the world (additionally immortalised by Indiana Jones!) – complimentary for VIPs and audio system, a small additional charge for others. Some could select to increase the journey additional with an evening in a desert camp within the legendary valley of Wadi Rum!

Then once more, if exploring antiquities sounds a bit of an excessive amount of like hard-work you may at all times get pleasure from a bit of winter solar in your downtime on the seaside resort lodge the place the occasion takes place and take a dip within the legendary Lifeless Sea, or no less than a ‘float’. You may take a couple of years off with a rejuvenating mud pack! Beneath we’ve added a bit of extra info on a number of the extra-curricular alternatives from attending PG Connects Jordan.

Petra

It’s possible you’ll recognise the traditional metropolis of Petra from well-known blockbuster Indiana Jones & The Final Campaign because the resting place of the holy grail. And whereas that’s not the position it performed in historical past, the real-life story of this metropolis is not any much less attention-grabbing.

Hewn partially out of rock, identical to the well-known treasury is (the constructing on the finish of the canyon you’ll see in just about all images of the situation), Petra is in-fact the ruins of an enormous metropolis. Inhabited for the reason that Paleolithic interval, the town was first based in one thing near its present state by the Nabataeans – an Arabic tribe.

Over the centuries the town was conquered and dominated by quite a few teams, most notably it grew to become a part of the Roman Empire in 106 CE. Town had beforehand been a nexus of commerce from locations as far afield as China and India, however as routes started to alter the prosperity of Petra declined considerably.

Pure disasters, earthquakes primarily, left the town uninhabited for hundreds of years. A crusader outpost was established within the metropolis within the twelfth century, and will have been the historic inspiration for the town being the resting place of the holy grail in Indiana Jones.

Town was rediscovered in 1812 and is now a preferred vacationer vacation spot. It’s a improbable place and a terrific spot to expertise historic tradition in addition to to study extra about Jordan itself and the arabic historical past behind the rising gaming market on this nation.

Be a part of Us: All guests to PG Connects Jordan get the choice to affix a visit on Monday sixth with a subsidised ticket.

Wadi Rum

Whereas Petra is a improbable place to expertise the traditional structure and historical past of Jordan, Wadi Rum is a spot to find simply how wealthy and vibrant the panorama of this nation is. Located in a dense valley the time period “Wadi” refers to each a valley area and one which floods throughout occasions of extreme rainfall.

You in all probability don’t want to fret concerning the latter nevertheless as Wadi Rum solely experiences three days of rainfall yearly. The house, concerning the dimension of a giant metropolis, is without doubt one of the most sparsely populated in Jordan and is thought for its reddish sand and archaeological discoveries of pre-historical significance.

Wadi Rum is an space of lush sand-dunes, rocky cliffs and excessive plateaus that additionally type Jordan’s highest level, Jabal Umm advert Dami. The realm is well-known for its climbing expertise for devoted middle-eastern travellers, and a few nomadic bedouin tribes nonetheless make their dwelling within the historic panorama.
Be a part of Us: We’re providing a choose group of PGC Jordan delegates an opportunity to affix us for an unforgettable night time below the celebrities in a Wadi Rum desert camp

Lifeless Sea

On the lowest level on earth sitting practically 500 metres beneath sea stage. Its excessive salinity – or salt ranges – are the rationale that you’ll be able to float within the water; it has virtually 10 occasions extra salt content material than atypical seawater. It’s because water flows into the Lifeless Sea from one principal tributary, the River Jordan, then has no option to get out of the lake and is pressured to evaporate.

The Lifeless Sea has been mentioned to have therapeutic powers since biblical occasions with Herod the Nice constructing one of many first well being spas on its shores, whereas Cleopatra used lifeless sea merchandise as a part of her magnificence regime. Lifeless Sea mud has a number of well being advantages and supposedly can enhance the situation of your pores and skin in addition to bettering muscular and joint pains. The method is to cowl your self in mud, let it do its work for quarter-hour to half an hour while you bake within the solar after which wash it off within the sea.

While the Lifeless Sea is one in all Jordan’s hottest vacationer locations, it’s disappearing at an alarming fee. Its floor stage is dropping by a couple of metre yearly and it’s solely half the size it was only a century in the past, so don’t miss the possibility to go to this pure surprise whilst you can!

Be a part of Us: The lodge resort the place the occasion takes place is positioned on the Lifeless Coastline, so all PGC Jordan attendees can pop all the way down to the seaside, attempt a mud-pack and take a dip!

Discover Amman, the Jordan Path and far, rather more!

The nation presents numerous different alternatives to study extra concerning the Center East and historic civilisations, with statues within the historic metropolis of Amman relationship again to 7500 BC. It attracts in pilgrimage typically as nicely, as it’s a part of what’s globally generally known as the Holy Land and options some unimaginable excessive factors within the metropolis that will let you oversee spectacular panoramic views of surrounding unmissable sights such because the Jordan Valley, the cities of Bethlehem and Jerusalem on a transparent day on Mount Nebo. It additionally affords a useful start line for additional journeys into the area.

Don’t have any FOMO – be part of us in Jordan!
All of those experiences are on provide for guests to PGC Jordan, but it surely’s not all leisure, we’ve got two packed days of talks, networking meets, expo exploration and fringe occasions in retailer too as you join with most of the largest names within the MENA market. Join tickets or sponsorship alternatives right here.