The NLGD festival of games officially opened today in Utrecht, The Netherlands, with the Mayor of Utrecht challenging Ralph Baer to the game he invented, Pong.

The "father of games" swiftly demolished the Mayor in a crowd pleasing two to nothing victory. He followed up his predictable win with a keynote speech on the birth of games.

“The first day of the conference has set the tone for an exciting lineup over the next two days,” said Seth van der Meer, chairman of the NLGD. “Our goal is to show the world that The Netherlands is a key part of the global game industry and our contributions are increasing as we continue to grow.”

Other speakers at the conference, focused on the burgeoning Dutch games industry, include former Edge editor Margaret Robertson, Codemasters' Jurrie Hobers, Ubisoft's Cem Yildiz and independent writer Jeff Spock, who has the best name ever.