The city of Busan (Mayor Jeon Jae-soo), the Busan IT Industry Promotion Agency (Acting President Lee Jae-deok), and the Busan Indie Connect Festival Organizing Committee (Chairman Joo Sung-pil, hereafter BIC Organizing Committee) have announced a diverse lineup of offline events for the Busan Indie Connect Festival 2026 (BIC Festival 2026, hereafter BIC 2026), which will take place at BEXCO in Busan for three days from August 14 to 16.

This year's event is centered on participatory content that allows attendees to take the lead in shaping the festival experience. The exhibition hall will be divided into four zones based on the game development lifecycle: DEMO, BETA, COMING SOON, and RELEASED.

Visitors can intuitively grasp the growth process of indie games as they navigate the segmented exhibition route. Additionally, the 'Buff Tracker' event will allow attendees to collect stickers by completing missions, such as playing exhibited games or adding them to their wishlist on Steam. Completing the tracker grants entry into the daily 'Lucky Draw.'

The main stage will host a variety of programs throughout the three-day event, culminating in the 'BIC Awards' on August 16, which will honor outstanding indie games. Attendees can also participate in ongoing activities like the 'OX Quiz' and '3-Way Split Screen Quiz' on stage. Meanwhile, the dedicated 'Live Indie' studio will broadcast real-time sessions where creators play their own games and share behind-the-scenes stories.

The 'Main Road' will also welcome visitors as a special space dedicated to sharing the development stories behind finished works. In the 'Behind Indie' section at the start of the Main Road, visitors can explore the development journeys of titles like SANABI and Ogu and the Secret Forest, as well as the production history of Blue Archive, which has established itself as a popular IP. Visitors can collect free 'Behind Cuts' that capture the journey of each title, bringing them closer to the creative process.

As visitors walk through the exhibition, they will encounter the 'Developers Wall,' decorated with colorful illustrations of this year's selected entries, and the 'Inventory Indie' space, which features photo displays of merchandise prepared by the creators themselves. Throughout the venue, various interactive zones will be in operation, including 'Inside Buff' for leaving guestbook messages, 'Buff Stepper' for filling up a gauge by stepping on a platform, and 'BIC Photo Box' for taking commemorative photos.

Joo Sung-pil, Chairman of the BIC Organizing Committee, stated, "We have prepared the BIC 2026 offline festival to be more than just a viewing experience; it is a stage where visitors can "buff" their own indie spirit and engage deeply with developers." He added, "We look forward to gamers and developers from around the world fully experiencing the vibrant energy unique to indie games at a venue where discovery, connection, and growth intersect." The offline event will run for three days from August 14 to 16, while the online festival will be held for 22 days from August 7 to August 28 via the official BIC website (bicfest.org).