Jakarta, 25 February, 2026 – The Ministry of Creative Economy / Creative Economy Agency, in collaboration with Garena Indonesia, presents the Creative Economy | Garena Booth at the Harmoni Imlek National Bazaar 2026, held from February 22 to March 1, 2026 at Lapangan Banteng, Jakarta. The presence of this booth serves as a platform for Indonesian game developers to showcase their work directly to the public, while highlighting the potential and creativity of national game talents.
The Deputy Minister of Creative Economy, Irene Umar, reviewed the Creative Economy | Garena Booth at the Harmoni Imlek National Bazaar 2026 during the National Chinese New Year Festival 2026 at Lapangan Banteng, Jakarta, Sunday (02/22/2026).
Deputy Minister of Creative Economy Irene Umar emphasized that the game subsector holds significant potential in generating economic value added while creating opportunities for Indonesian digital talents.
“The participation of local game talents in public spaces such as the National Chinese New Year Festival demonstrates that Indonesia’s creative works are becoming increasingly inclusive and closer to the community. Collaboration with industry partners such as Garena is a strategic step to strengthen the national game ecosystem, enhance talent capacity, and expand market access for Indonesian developers,” said Irene.
Meanwhile, Country Head of Garena Indonesia, Hans Saleh, stated that the Creative Economy | Garena collaboration is part of a shared commitment to support the development of Indonesian game talent and strengthen the national game industry ecosystem.
Doc. Bureau for Communication Ministry of Creative Economy / Creative Economy Agency
“Through the Creative Economy | Garena Booth, we present games developed by Indonesian creators who are supported by the Ministry of Creative Economy and Garena, allowing visitors to directly experience and play the works of local talents,” said Hans.
At the Creative Economy | Garena Booth, seven games developed by Indonesian creators were showcased, representing a combination of titles supported by the Ministry of Creative Economy and Garena. Three games under the Ministry’s development program included Need For Seat, a unique casual racing game that uses office chairs as the main vehicles, offering a non-conventional racing experience; Barongsway, a cooperative game that allows two players to take on the role of a barongsai and move in sync to overcome various challenges, developed through the Global Game Jam 2026 Malang program; and Cats & Osaka, an interactive exploration game that invites players to discover hidden cat characters within an Osaka-themed city environment, featuring appealing visuals and a relaxed gameplay approach.
Doc. Bureau for Communication Ministry of Creative Economy / Creative Economy Agency
In addition, four other games were winners of Garena Game Jam 3, namely Let Neigh Out! by a team from the University of Indonesia as 1st place winner, Fall Through by a team from the University of Indonesia as 2nd place winner, Get Flagged by a team from the Bandung Institute of Technology as 3rd place winner, and No Cats Work as Expectations by an individual developer from the State Polytechnic of Malang as Most Creative Team. These games carry the theme Nothing Works as Expected, presenting unique and creative gameplay experiences with unconventional approaches, enriched with visual elements inspired by Chinese New Year celebrations.
Looking ahead, Hans expressed hope that such collaborations will continue to grow. He is therefore optimistic that Indonesia’s game industry has significant potential to compete at the global level, further supported by the government through the Ministry of Creative Economy’s backing of the game industry.
“Based on our observations, Indonesian game developers possess potential and creativity that are on par with those of other countries. This means that locally developed games have the opportunity to gain recognition at both regional and global levels."
Doc. Bureau for Communication, Ministry of Creative Economy / Creative Economy Agency
“We hope that Indonesia’s digital talent, particularly in the game industry, will become increasingly competitive at the global level. With a stronger ecosystem, cross-sector collaboration, and enhanced talent capacity, we are optimistic that the national game industry has a bright future ahead,” he concluded.
Kiagoos Irvan Faisal
Head of Bureau for Communication
Ministry of Creative Economy / Creative Economy Agency
