One of the most famous Mexican holidays in the world is approaching: May 5th, the day that commemorates the Battle of Puebla, when the Mexican army defeated the French. To celebrate this 1862 event, Mexican developers will showcase 200 video games at the Mexican Entertainment System event, which will take place on the Steam platform.
Thus, gamers from around the world will have the opportunity to enjoy Mexican video games from May 5 to 12.
This is what Blas Castañeda, a video game developer from Guadalajara, Jalisco, told Mexican Press Agency. In addition to inviting everyone to enjoy these great works, he has done a tremendous job of promoting and recognizing Mexico’s talent in the field.
“If I don’t do it, no one will. No one did it in the past,” Blas Castañeda said about the responsibility of giving all Mexican artists and programmers the opportunity to gather at this major event.
With the exception of a celebration of Latin American video games, Steam didn’t have a space that allowed consumers to explore products of Mexican origin, much less an event that offered discounts and celebrated the origins of the developers in question.
Thus, 2023 was the year in which this event, affectionately named the Mexican Entertainment System, was launched for the first time in honor of the Nintendo console, which was the first contact with the world of video games for many.
Blas has also managed to gain Steam’s trust to organize this event due to his work as the developer of the game “The End Is Nahual: If I May Say So,” which received funding from Microsoft and won awards from various organizations.
If the pen is mightier than the sword, an Excel spreadsheet is even more powerful.
“Work is what makes everything possible, and it’s the most important thing,” commented Blas, who, given the adverse conditions facing the Mexican video game industry, emphasized that perseverance is the most crucial component for overcoming all obstacles.
Just as this event is self-organized by the developer community itself, Mexican video games are, for the most part, independent and self-funded. Given this, Blas acknowledged that the small team behind Mexican Entertainment System has other jobs, aside from organizing this celebration, that allow them to pay off their debts.
“Sometimes an Excel spreadsheet is more powerful than thousands of dollars in marketing,” Blas noted, recalling that not all problems can be solved with money. He said there must be a clear goal and purpose to make these resources yield results.
Without the initiative of people like Blas, who begin making calls, contacts, organizing people, and donating their time to this cause, these initiatives would never exist.
It’s worth mentioning that Steam has a permanent offering that can be found under the Mexican Entertainment System umbrella, featuring 14 Mexican games ready for consumers. You can find them here:
Save 17% on Mexican Entertainment Bundle Pa’ La Banda on Steam
Related: PopSlinger: the Mexican video game that won Japanese hearts
Mexican Press Agency is part of ALMA, which is dedicated to news and information about Mexico and Mexicans in the United States and is a fiscally sponsored project of Social Focus, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Redwood City, California.
