The IGF (Independent Games Festival) has announced the finalists for their 21st annual awards ceremony that will take place Wednesday March 20, 2019 during the week of GDC.
Meg Jayanth, writer of 80 Days, will be hosting the ceremony. With more than 300 judges and 500 entries for the awards, the IGF has narrowed down its awards to a selection of just 30 games spread across seven categories with numerous honorable mentions added on. Return of the Obra Dinn is nominated for five of the seven categories. Noita, Hypnospace Outlaw, and Do Not Feed the Monkeys all have three nominations each. The IGF awards will take place prior to the Game Developers Choice Awards that are not restricted to only independent games. The developer who wins the Seumas McNally Grand Prize will take home $30,000 with other financial awards being given to other winners.
In addition to the IGF awards there is an alt.ctrl.GDC award given to "the most engaging, intriguing, and well-executed game using unconventional, accessible or alternative physical controls" and that winner receives $3,000. Nominees will be playable on the GDC show floor from March 20-22.
The Game Developers Conference is an annual convention held in San Francisco during a week of March every year that allows game developers from all over the world to convene and spend time attending talks from other developers about their work and show off current projects. The New York Video Game Awards nominees have also been announced today, with Red Dead Redemption 2 taking the most nominations for those award categories. You can find the full list of nominees below.
SEUMAS MCNALLY GRAND PRIZE
Minit (Kitty Calis, Jan Willem Nijman, Jukio Kallio & Dominik Johann)
Opus Magnum (Zachtronics)
Noita (Nolla Games)
Return of the Obra Dinn (Lucas Pope)
Hypnospace Outlaw (Jay Tholen, Mike Lasch, Xalavier Nelson Jr., Corey Cochran)
Do Not Feed the Monkeys (Fictiorama Studios)
Honorable Mentions: Wandersong (Greg Lobanov & A Shell in the Pit); Subnautica (Unknown Worlds Entertainment); Mirror Drop (Ian Lilley); Moss (Polyarc); Unavowed (Wadjet Eye Games); Iconoclasts (Joakim Sandberg); Virtual Virtual Reality(Tender Claws); Beat Saber (Beat Games)
EXCELLENCE IN VISUAL ART
Forgotton Anne (ThroughLine Games)
Alto's Odyssey (Team Alto)
Hypnospace Outlaw (Jay Tholen, Mike Lasch, Xalavier Nelson Jr., Corey Cochran)
Just Shapes & Beats (Berzerk Studio)
Mirror Drop (Ian Lilley)
Return of the Obra Dinn (Lucas Pope)
Honorable Mentions: Beat Saber (Beat Games); Wandersong (Greg Lobanov & A Shell in the Pit); Subnautica (Unknown Worlds Entertainment); Moss (Polyarc); Iconoclasts(Joakim Sandberg); Guildlings (Sirvo Studios); Paratopic (Arbitrary Metric)
EXCELLENCE IN AUDIO
ETHEREAL (Nonsense Arts - Nicolás Recabarren and Tomás Batista)
Hypnospace Outlaw (Jay Tholen, Mike Lasch, Xalavier Nelson Jr., Corey Cochran)
Moss (Polyarc)
Return of the Obra Dinn (Lucas Pope)
Alto's Odyssey (Team Alto)
Paratopic (Arbitrary Metric)
Honorable Mentions: Creaks (Amanita Design); Holedown (grapefrukt games); Pikuniku (Sectordub); The Messenger (Sabotage); Distance (Refract Studios); Wandersong (Greg Lobanov & A Shell in the Pit); Wattam (Funomena)
EXCELLENCE IN DESIGN
What the Golf? (Triband)
Do Not Feed the Monkeys (Fictiorama Studios)
Noita (Nolla Games)
Return of the Obra Dinn (Lucas Pope)
Dicey Dungeons (Terry Cavanagh, Chipzel, and Marlowe Dobbe)
Opus Magnum (Zachtronics)
Honorable Mentions: Subnautica (Unknown Worlds Entertainment); Carto (SunheadGames); Black Room (Cassie McQuater); JUMPGRID (Ian MacLarty); Mirror Drop (Ian Lilley); Hypnospace Outlaw (Jay Tholen, Mike Lasch, Xalavier Nelson Jr., Corey Cochran); Beat Saber (Beat Games)
EXCELLENCE IN NARRATIVE
Wandersong (Greg Lobanov & A Shell in the Pit)
Genital Jousting (Free Lives)
Unavowed (Wadjet Eye Games)
Seers Isle (Nova-box)
Watch Me Jump (Jeremy Gable)
Return of the Obra Dinn (Lucas Pope)
Honorable Mentions: Do Not Feed The Monkeys (Fictiorama Studios); The Hex (Daniel Mullins Games)
Speed Dating for Ghosts (Copychaser Games); after HOURS (Bahiyya Khan, Claire Meekel, Tim Flusk, Abi Meekel); Fortune-499 (AP Thomson); Marie's Room (like Charlie); Tango: The Adventure Game (Gualicho Games)
NUOVO AWARD
Circle0 (yesyes)
eCheese Zone (Seemingly Pointless)
Noita (Nolla Games)
Mirror Drop (Ian Lilley)
Black Room (Cassie McQuater)
Paratopic (Arbitrary Metric)
Do Not Feed the Monkeys (Fictiorama Studios)
Nth Dimension[al] Hiking (Zachariah Chandler)
Honorable Mentions: All Our Asias (Sean Han Tani); Hypnospace Outlaw (Jay Tholen, Mike Lasch, Xalavier Nelson Jr., Corey Cochran); Cyberpet Graveyard (alienmelon); levedad (solimporta); Subserial Network (Aether Interactive); macdows 95(gamebra.in); The Norwood Suite (Cosmo D); Nerve Damage (Dennis Carr)
BEST STUDENT GAME
It's Paper Guy! (Paper Team)
Grace Bruxner Presents: The Haunted Island, a Frog Detective Game (Grace Bruxner)
After HOURS (Bahiyya Khan, Claire Meekel, Tim Flusk, Abi Meekel)
En Garde! (En Garde! Team)
levedad (solimporta)
Sole (Gossamer Games)
Honorable Mentions: We Should Talk (HeartBeetStudio); Coffin Rot Brewing Co.(Rosser-McGraw Studio); Fling to the Finish (SplitSide Games); Indecision. (Bilge Kaan); Seasons (David Su and Dominique Star); supertype (Philipp Stollenmayer); Atlas' Fate: Between Light and Darkness (Baby Robot Games); Marbloid (Supyrb)