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2nd Annual IGF Mobile Awards Debut, Call For Submissions
Submissions are now open for the second Independent Games Festival Mobile, celebrating creativity and innovation on handheld platforms from the iPhone through the cellphone, PSP, and DS - with finalists being showcased at GDC 2009, and a new 'Next Great Mobile Game' live pitch category added.
Following the success of the first IGF Mobile, a sister event to the main IGF competition, the second year of the festival will feature independently developed handheld games for all mobile devices including cell phones, Apple's iPhone, Nintendo DS, Sony PSP, and Windows Mobile devices.
The competition will include a new category for developers to pitch new ideas at the GDC Mobile-hosted award ceremony. IGF Mobile submissions are being accepted at the official website through November 17, 2008; finalists will be announced in January 2009.
NVIDIA, manufacturer of the Tegra family of applications processors for mobile devices returns this year as a Founding and Platinum Sponsor. In keeping with the company’s philosophy of encouraging and fostering innovation in mobile game development, the company will support "The Next Great Mobile Game" competition.
This prize category, in a change from the traditional awards, will be accepting five finalists on the basis of a written pitch and an in-progress prototype. The finalists will pitch their product in detail and show completed prototypes at the IGF Mobile Awards, where an audience of peers will select the winner.
The new award joins returning categories such as the $10,000 Best Game award, Innovation in Mobile Game Design, and the awards for audio, art direction, design and technology.
Finalist games, displayed in the IGF Mobile Pavilion at the Game Developers Conference in March 2009, will compete for $20,000 in prizes, including awards for innovation and execution in mobile game development, as well as the coveted $10,000 Grand Prize. Winners will be announced at a ceremony during GDC Mobile, and will also be showcased during the main IGF Awards, presented at the Game Developers Choice Awards ceremony.
“The rise of rich 3D mobile devices such as the iPhone and smartphones – as well as the PSP and DS - are starting to make all kinds of intriguing independent gaming possibilities possible,” said Mathew Kumar, Content Director, IGF Mobile. “We look forward to seeing some of the top indie handheld content that the festival will draw.”
Submissions to the competition are now open to all independent developers working on mobile platforms, including game development for cell phones, iPhone, PSP, DS, and other handheld devices. The important dates for IGF Mobile in 2008-2009 are as follows:
August 11th, 2008: Submissions Open
November 17th, 2008: Submission Deadline
January 26th, 2009: Finalists Announced
March 23rd-27th, 2009: Game Developer's Conference 2009
March 24th, 2009: IGF Mobile Awards Ceremony
March 25th-27th, 2009: IGF Mobile Pavilion @ GDC
March 25th, 2009: IGF Awards Ceremony
For a complete list of IGF Mobile 2008 information, please visit the official IGF Mobile submission page.
IGF Mobile Awards Winners Announced
CMP Game Group has announced the winners of the inaugural Independent Games Festival (IGF) Mobile awards. IGF Mobile is the sister event to the Independent Games Festival, held at the 2008 Game Developers Conference, taking place February 18-22 at San Francisco's Moscone Convention Center.
The IGF Mobile showcases innovation in handheld and cell phone gaming, including the Sony PlayStation Portable and the Nintendo DS platforms, in addition to mobile handsets.
Among the winners for this first-of-its-kind event are KnowledgeWhere's PhoneTag Elite, winner of the Innovation in Augmented Design Award, Presented by NVIDIA. PhoneTag Elite is an elaborate version of "hide-and-seek," using the GPS built into the user's cell phone. Capybara Games' Critter Crunch, winner of both the IGF Mobile Best Game and Audio Achievement awards, takes on the puzzle genre with refined graphics, animation and addictive gameplay.
The finalists for the IGF Mobile Competition will be showcasing their games at the IGF Mobile Pavilion alongside the tenth annual IGF Main Competition and Student Showcase, taking place February 20-22, 2008. All finalists will be featured in playable form within the special pavilion on the Game Developers Conference 2008 show floor.
Out of a distinguished field of 20 nominees, from an overall field of 50 entries, the following winners were selected:
* IGF Mobile Best Game: Critter Crunch
* Innovation in Mobile Game Design: EGO
* Innovation in Augmented Design - Presented by NVIDIA: PhoneTag Elite
* Achievement in Art: Kodo
* Technical Achievement: Steam Iron: The Fallen
* Audio Achievement: Critter Crunch
The Platinum and Founding Sponsor for the IGF Mobile competition is NVIDIA. The IGF was established in 1998 by the CMP Game Group to encourage innovation in game development and to recognize the best independent game developers, in the way that Sundance Film Festival honors the independent film community. IGF Mobile likewise serves as a venue to highlight the bourgeoning talents of the mobile and handheld game industry, rewarding and recognizing the innovation and advancement of the space.
"When the IGF first opened 10 years ago, few could have seen the impact that the festival would have on the future of gaming," said Mathew Kumar, IGF Mobile Content Director, "Years later, we’re seeing the explosion of the downloadable content and online distribution, and with it, IGF-alums-turned-mainstream titles like Fl0w, N+ and Everyday Shooter have become commercial hits. We've now seen that the mobile IGF has further ignited this same drive for innovation, creativity and craftsmanship. We congratulate all the winners, as well as the talented developers behind all the amazing nominees and entries."
IGF Mobile Awards Ceremony Announced
 The IGF Mobile organizers have announced the location and time of the awards ceremony for the inaugural Independent Games Festival (IGF) Mobile during GDC Mobile 2008 (February 18th-19th). The event is to be held on Tuesday, February 19 between 10:00am and 10:30am in Room 134, North Hall, directly after Anssi Vanjoki (Executive Vice President, Markets, Nokia) delivers his morning keynote.
GDC Mobile's Founding Chairman, Robert Tercek is to hand out almost $20,000 in prizes to winners from a selection of 12 finalists in categories including IGF Mobile Best game and the Innovation in Augmented Design award, presented by platinum sponsor Nvidia.
In the brief but illuminating session, Tercek will note the importance of independent game developers in the mobile industry, highlighting the stellar work of the IGF Mobile finalists, and winners will be on hand to pick up their awards and deliver acceptance speeches.
Finalist games will be on show at the IGF Mobile Pavillion in the exhibit hall during GDC Expo (February 20th-22nd).
Inaugural Independent Games Festival Mobile Announces Finalists
  The IGF Mobile organizers have announced the finalists for the inaugural Independent Games Festival Mobile from a field of over 50 entries, with nominations led by titles including Punch Entertainment's social networking game Ego and Singapore-MIT GAMBIT Game Lab's waste disposal strategy puzzle game Backflow.
The Independent Games Festival Mobile website now includes a full list of finalists, including screenshots and links to videos and demonstration versions where available.
As well as Ego and Backflow, both nominated for the Innovation in Mobile Game Design category and the $10,000 IGF Mobile Best Game award, other multiple nominees included Capybara Games' food-chain based puzzler Critter Crunch, the technologically remarkable mobile RTS Steam Iron: The Fallen, and Nintendo DS drawing-RPG Drawn to Life.
Other notable nominees for 2008 prizes include nominees for the Innovation in Augmented Design Award, presented by Nvidia, IGF Mobile Platinum/Founding Sponsor. They include 3D Lawn Darts, which uses the device camera to simulate throwing a dart, Anna's Secret, a GPS driven, location-based learning adventure game based in the city of Weimar, Germany, and PhoneTag Elite, a location-tracking mobile game of "hide-and-seek."
The full list of finalists for the IGF Mobile Competition, all of whom
will be showing their games at the IGF Pavilion during Game Developers
Conference in February 2008, are available here.
The organizers of the inaugural Independent Games Festival Mobile have revealed over 50 entries for the first-ever IGF Mobile Competition event, with innovative entered titles spanning mobile phones, DS, PSP, Windows Mobile, and even iPod and GP2X.
The event (organized by the CMP GameGroup, as is Gamasutra) has seen a host of notable independent Java, Nintendo DS and Windows Mobile games entering the contest - for which almost $20,000 prizes will be given out at GDC 2008 next February. Nvidia is Platinum and Founding Sponsor for the event.
A full list of IGF Mobile 2008 entries is now available, including screenshots and details on each of the entries. As always, many of the top IGF Mobile games will only come to the fore during the judging process - and there are many high-quality titles not listed below.
However, a diverse set of entries have come from many different mobile formats and multiple continents, with the diversity of mobile platforms being reflected in some of the following entries:
 - Anna's Secret [Pocket PC] (Jan Ulrich Schmidt)
("Anna's Secret is a GPS driven, location-based learning adventure game for cultural content in the city of Weimar (Germany).")
- Critter Crunch [Java, BREW] (Capybara Games)
("In Critter Crunch, take control of Biggs, a hungry little guy with a special talent that keeps him on top of the food chain; Biggs uses his long, sticky tongue to grab critters that hang from the tree above and then feeds them to each other till they burst, dropping tasty jewels which Biggs loves to eat!")
- Drawn to Life [Nintendo DS] (5TH Cell Media LLC)
("Draw and customize heroes, weapons, tools, animals, plants, and almost anything in the game! Swap and share your drawings with friends. Play as your creations and watch them come to life!")
- Heli Strike Advanced Combat [Java] (Zeetoo, Inc. / FISHLABS Entertainment GmbH
("Fight as a reckless pilot in your combat helicopter behind the lines against a vast count of enemies at the sea, on land and in the air. With the innovative integration of the Zeemote Controller, a true analog joystick controller, the user has superior control of the battle experience.")
 - Hexaxis XXI [Sony PSP] (Darksoft.net)
("Hexaxis XXI is an addictive dice based puzzle game. Line up the dice by the number of the sides, 2 two's, 3 three's, all the way to 6 sixes. Combos 'wipe out' when the wipe line crosses over them.")
- musika [iPod] (NanaOn-Sha Co., Ltd.)
("From Masaya Matsuura, the creator of PaRappa the Rapper and vib-ribbon, comes musika, a groundbreaking music visualizer game for your iPod! musika uses the songs on your iPod to create original game play. A character will appear on screen through a broad variety of visual effects. If you see a character that is in the song title, hit the center button! Faster reactions will earn you more points! Special icons can be hit for bonus effects. Hitting correctly without error increases your score, multiplier and level bar. Reaching new levels will reveal new effects!")
 - Nom 3 [WIPI] (Gamevil)
("The revolutionary rotating game is back with its sequel, Nom 3! This time Nom travels through the realms of the mind as he runs, leaps, and fights his way through a wide range of obstacles and enemies. Rotate your phone as Nom reaches vertical boundaries at the edge of your screen!")
- PhoneTag Elite [Java] (KnowledgeWhere Inc.)
("PhoneTag Elite turns hide and seek into a radical group sport across North America by using the mobile phone as a console for chatting and location-tracking. Available exclusively to Sprint customers across America, taggers can shop in-game at their favourite brand stores for tools to help evade capture and pursue targets.")
- PlayDetective: Heartbreakers [Windows Mobile] (Kayo Games)
("PlayDetective: Heartbreakers puts you in the gumshoes of a private investigator as he investigates a series of infidelity cases. Conduct surveillance using a range of tools and gadgets, collect and analyze evidence, and solve mind-bending puzzles. Anything to make sure you get your man... or woman.")
 - wifight [Palm OS] (Brennan Underwood)
("wifight is an online game designed for PalmOS cellphones. A single downloadable client plays a variety of multiplayer turn-based games, including Chess. Play unlimited simultaneous games against multiple opponents.")
- Wind and Water: Puzzle Battles [GP2X] (Yuan Works)
("W&W is an arcade-action puzzle battle game featuring three skill levels, more than 30 hours of Story Mode with hundreds of dialogs, anime-style intro sequence, cutscenes, extensive tutorials, studio-recorded soundtrack, minigames, and hundreds of extras including art galleries and making of.")
Finalists in the inaugural IGF Mobile competition will be announced on December 10th.
  Organizers of the Independent Games Festival have named the judges for the inaugural IGF Mobile, a first-of-its-kind event, celebrating innovation in games for cellphones and other mobile devices, including Sony’s PlayStation Portable and the Nintendo DS.
A panel of high-profile executives and journalists within the mobile gaming industry have been confirmed to help award nearly $20,000 in prizes at this sister event to the IGF, and to take place at Game Developers Conference 2008 next February in SanFrancisco.
Confirmed judges for the first ever IGF Mobile event are:
- Mike Yuen, Senior Director, Gaming Group, Qualcomm
- David Gosen, CEO, I-play
- Arjan Olsder, Writer, Mobilegamesblog.com
- Darryl Williams, Senior Director of Content, Playphone
- Justin Davis, Editor-in-chief, Modojo
- Demetri G. Detsaridis, Creative Director, Massively Mobile
- Stuart Dredge, Writer, Pocket Gamer
- Neil Trevett, Vice President Mobile Content, NVIDIA
- Monty Munford, Business Development Director, Player X
- Steve Wetherill, President, Uztek Games
- Matthew Hawkins, Writer, zedgeHeadz
- Michael Chang, CEO, Greystripe
- John Walker, Writer, Rock Paper Shotgun
Like the main IGF competition (part of the CMP Game Group, as is Gamasutra), the IGF Mobile will have its own pavilion featuring the finalists on the show floor at the Game Developers Conference 2008 next February, and all finalist games will be available to play at the pavilion.
Winners will be announced at a ceremony during the GDC Mobile conference and honored during the main IGF Awards on Wednesday February 20, 2008. In addition, submissions for the IGF Mobile competition close October 26, 2007.
 Talking in a new weblog post on CMP's editor weblog GameSetWatch.com, overall IGF Chairman Simon Carless has been explaining what the new IGF Mobile competition means to him, explaining:
"There are two or three angles from which this sister IGF competition should be good for indie developers. Firstly, there really are some great overlooked cellphone games out there - from developers like Capybara Games and others - which these awards should highlight in the context of GDC and the Independent Games Festival. Secondly, there's the DS, PSP and other handhelds angle - and there are plenty of prototypes or homebrew-like games out there which deserve honoring..."
He continued: "Finally - and this is the particularly interesting 'augmented' angle - there are all kinds of cool game design things you can do if you have a handheld device and other add-ons such as GPS, a camera, Internet connectivity and so on. A few examples from games big and small - Final Fantasy: Before Crisis for cellphones had a camera-based materia collecting feature, in which: "The goal is to photograph something that contains the predefined colors that will produce new materia. For example, photographing something that is predominantly red will yield a Fire materia."
"Elsewhere, there's other neat concepts like the solar sensor in Konami's Boktai and even Gizmondo's (!) augmented reality project, using the camera and overlaying computer-generated art based on a grid."
Carless concluded: "Encouraging innovative projects like these - which actually take advantage of the fact that you're holding the game device and carrying it around - is why NVIDIA signed up to be a multi-year sponsor and help give out the money to deserving games - who knows, maybe games like these will be created just so they can enter IGF Mobile in subsequent years? Hopefully so!"
The Independent Games Festival is proud to present the first-ever IGF Mobile competition, a brand new contest set up to promote innovation in handheld games, from cellphone games through other mobile devices from Windows Mobile to Palm and beyond, all the way to PSP and DS titles.
We believe that there are great, innovative indie games out there which use the unique advantages of handheld hardware, from Gamevil's Nom and Skipping Stone for cellphones through DS games such as 5th Cell's Drawn To Life or even group games such as Pac-Manhattan, and we're delighted to set up a new awards to help promote titles such as these.
This sister event to the IGF itself will have its own IGF Mobile Pavilion featuring the finalists, positioned next to the IGF Pavilion at Game Developers Conference 2008 next February, and the winners will be announced at a ceremony during GDC Mobile (and again honored during the main IGF Awards on the Wednesday night).
IGF Mobile is launching with NVIDIA, creator of the GoForce family of GPUs for handheld devices, as the Founding and Platinum Sponsor. In keeping with the company’s philosophy of encouraging and fostering new technology innovation, NVIDIA is particularly supporting the ‘Innovation in Augmented Design’ category as part of its sponsorship. The prize specifically honors mobile games that were developed using GPS, camera, motion sensing, and WiFi elements, along with other unique and differentiating features.
Submissions to the competition are now open to all independent developers working on mobile platforms (focused on cellphone game development as well as PSP, DS, and other handheld devices) and the important dates for IGF Mobile in 2007/2008 are as follows:
August 30th, 2007 |
Submissions Open |
October 26th, 2007 |
Submission Deadline |
December 10th, 2007 |
Finalists Announced |
February 18th-22nd, 2008 |
Game Developer's Conference 2008 |
February 19th, 2008 |
2008 IGF Mobile Awards Ceremony |
February 20th-22nd, 2008 |
IGF Mobile Pavilion @ GDC |
February 20th, 2008 |
2008 IGF Awards Ceremony |
The prizes for the competition total $20,000, with a $10,000 Grand Prize and a host of other major prizes for innovation and great execution in mobile game development. The deadline to enter the competition is Monday, October 22nd 2007, and judges will be trying playable version of all games submitted.
The IGF has appointed Mathew Kumar as Content Director of IGF Mobile. Kumar is also the editor of the CMP Game Group’s Games On Deck website, the mobile game industry's leading source of news, features and information, and will work closely with the IGF organizers to launch this new venture. In addition, the IGF Mobile judge panel, including leading journalists and industry personalities, will be announced in the near future.
If indie developers out there have any queries about the competition this year, please don't hesitate to contact us with your questions, suggestions, or concerns - the IGF Mobile staff can be reached collectively at the mathew@gamesondeck.com email address. |
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