Gamers in the capital have the chance to show off their skills when Yas Gaming Month comes to Yas Mall in July.
After two successful runs in 2018 and 2019, the free Yas Gaming Festival is back. The immersive event, which takes place from July 7 to 17, will have Yas Mall's Sports Boulevard area transformed to include gaming stations, hands-on play, tournaments and esports.
Visitors can expect the latest titles from PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo (such as Elden Ring, Halo Infinite, WWE 2k22 and Mario Kart 8) alongside a retro gaming section, which will offer the chance to play throwback games such as Pac-Man, Asteroids or Street Fighter.
There will also be a cosplay competition, welcoming lovers of all things film, TV, games or books and the outfits to match.
Coinciding with the end of the festival will be the V10 R-League, which will have its semi-finals, bronze medal match and final of the racing league season played on July 22 and 23.
Teams will battle it out for a prize pool of £100,000 (Dh450,000). Sim racing teams competing include Mercedes AMG Esports, Red Bull Racing Esports, Aston Martin Esports and the UAE's own Yas Heat.
Even for those who aren’t participating, there will also be plenty to do. Visitors can donate old games and consoles or buy pre-owned ones from Gaming4Good, with all proceeds going to the Emirates Autism Centre.
The event is being held in collaboration with AD Gaming, which was launched in 2021 to support Abu Dhabi's drive to build a thriving gaming and esports ecosystem.
The gaming industry has continued to thrive globally and is one of the sectors being prioritised in the UAE's 10-year National Strategy for the Cultural and Creative Industries.
Scroll the gallery below to see cosplay from this year's Middle East Film and Comic Con:
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A woman in cosplay poses with Batman at the Middle East Film & Comic Con 2022 in Abu Dhabi. All photos by Antonie Robertson / The National, unless specified otherwise -
The judging panel of the cosplay competition. -
A woman in cosplay performs on stage. -
A cosplayer with a horse head mask. -
The audience turned out in full force to watch the cosplay competition. -
A cosplayer as the Marvel superhero Iron Man. -
Symbiote x Chainsaw Man. -
A young girl participates in the cosplay competition. -
The event took place at the MEFCC Mainstage, which is outdoors. -
A girl cosplays as DC superhero Wonder Woman. -
The judging panel featured regional and international cosplayers. -
Even though not everyone entered the competition, there was still plenty of cosplay on display on day two of the Middle East Film & Comic Con. -
A cosplayer in a menacing outfit. -
The children who competed in the Kids Cosplay competition were all winners and received swag bags. -
Sylar Serag, as Bazelgeuse Armor from 'Monster Hunter', won first place in the Best Craftsmanship category. Photo: Middle East Film and Comic Con -
Ashwani Kapoor as Samurai Vegito Blue from 'Dragon Ball Z' took second place in Best Craftsmanship. Photo: Middle East Film and Comic Con -
Mohamed Farahat as Banbaro from 'Monster Hunter World' took third place in Best Craftsmanship. Photo: Middle East Film and Comic Con -
Sabie Cipriani as Nico Yazawa from 'Long Live! School Idol Project' was first in Best Performance on Stage. Photo: Middle East Film and Comic Con -
Mohammed Hasan, who goes by the cosplay name Themed Injection, won third place for Best Performance on Stage as Heath Ledger’s The Joker. Photo: Middle East Film and Comic Con
