Best Student Game (Awarded $3,000)
The Best Student Game Award recognizes games made by independent designers and developers who are new to the scene and are just starting out.
Finalists:
Ape Out Beglitched Chambara Circa Infinity orchids to dusk Pitfall Planet
Winner: Beglitched
Excellence in Narrative (Awarded $3,000)
More and more, games are becoming about storytelling. Games like Life is Strange, The Last of Us, and anything by Telltale have become wildly popular. This award recognizes this newfound importance in the games industry.Finalists:
Black Closet Her Story That Dragon, Cancer The Beginner’s Guide The Magic Circle UNDERTALE
Winner: Her Story
Excellence in Audio (Awarded $3,000)
Sound is what makes entertainment, like movies and TV, come to life and games are no different. Indie games tend to have a unique challenge when it comes to audio, due to limited resources, but these finalists found a way to pull through regardless.
Darkest Dungeon Lumini Mini Metro PANORAMICAL That Dragon, Cancer UNDERTALE
Winner: Mini Metro
Excellence in Design (Awarded $3,000)
Some of the most innovative game design can be found in indie games, so naturally there’s an IGF award that recognizes it. This year’s finalists were all strong contenders:
Her Story Infinifactory Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes Kingdom Mini Metro SUPERHOT
Winner: Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes
Excellence in Visual Art (Awarded $3,000)
Beautiful art in games is certainly not exclusive to indie games, but some of the most interesting and outside-of-the-box art can be found in indies. In independent games, it’s not about what’s most realistic and uses the most pixels - often it’s quite the opposite.
Armello Darkest Dungeon GNOG Mini Metro OXENFREE PANORAMICAL
Winner: OXENFREE
Nuovo (Innovation) Award (Awarded $5,000)
The Nuovo Award is given to games that stand out among the rest. They bring a fresh perspective to gaming that has not yet been explored.
Cibele Fantastic Contraption Her Story Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes orchids to dusk PANORAMICAL Progress The Beginner’s Guide
Winner: Cibele
Seumas McNally Grand Prize (Awarded $30,000)
The biggest accolade at the IGF Awards is the Seumas McNally Grand Prize. Not only is it highly revered in the gaming industry, it also gives the developers a monetary prize that is significant for small teams (or, often, one person).
Darkest Dungeon Her Story Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes Mini Metro SUPERHOT UNDERTALE
Winner: Her Story
Other Winners:
Audience Award ($3,000) - Undertale[email protected] Rising Star Award - Girls Make Games
For more information on the finalists and honorable mentions, check out IGF’s official page.
What do you think of this year’s IGF Awards winners? Did any of your favorites win? Will you be checking out any of the finalists? Let us know in the comments!
