- Name
- IGF Awards
- Aliases
- Independent Games Festival Awards
IGF Awards
IGF is the Independent Games Festival, an annual gathering of Indie developers. The term also refers to the associated awards.
Concept Images Related Pages
Overview
The Independent Game Festival was set up in 1998 by Think Services. It was created as a means to promote indie games and encourage innovation in the developers who make them. The event is held concurrently with the Game Developers Conference in Moscone Center, San Francisco.
The main highlight of the festival is the IGF Awards, which is held on the third night of the GDC. It puts a spotlight on the best independent games of the year and gives them a cash prize ($10,000 for the Seumas McNally (Person) Grand Prize and $2,000 for all other awards, as of 2022.)
In 2004 and 2005 the awards were split into two sections - Open Category (OC) and Web/Downloadable (WD).
Current Awards
Seumas McNally Grand Prize
Excellence in Visual Art
Nuovo Award
| Year | Game | Developer |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Memory Card | Lily Zone |
| 2021 | Blaseball (Game) | The Game Band (Company) |
| 2020 | The Space Between (Game) | Chrstphfr (Company) |
| 2019 | Black Room | Cassie McQuater |
| 2018 | Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy (Game) | Bennett Foddy (Person) |
| 2017 | Oiκοςpiel, Book I | David Kanaga (Company) |
| 2016 | Cibele (Game) | Star Maid Games (Company) |
| 2015 | Tetrageddon Games | Nathalie Lawhead |
| 2014 | Luxuria Superbia (Game) | Tale of Tales BVBA (Company) |
| 2013 | Cart Life (Game) | Richard Hofmeier (Company) |
| 2012 | Storyteller | |
| 2011 | Nidhogg (Game) | Messhof (Company) |
| 2010 | Tuning | Cactus |
| 2009 | Between (Game) | Jason Rohrer (Person) |
| 2008 | World of Goo (Game) | 2D Boy (Company) |
| 2007 | Everyday Shooter (Game) | Queasy Games (Company) |
| 2006 | Braid (Game) | Number None |
| 2005 (OC) | Gish (Game) | Edmund McMillen (Person) |
| 2005 (WD) | Wik andamp;amp;amp; the Fable of Souls | Reflexive Entertainment |
| 2004 (OC) | Bontago | |
| 2004 (WD) | Oasis | |
| 2003 | Wild Earth | |
| 2002 | Insaniquarium | |
| 2001 | Shattered Galaxy | |
| 2000 | Tread Marks | |
| 1999 | Resurrection |
Excellence in Audio
Excellence in Design
Excellence in Narrative
Best Student Game
| Year | Game | Developer |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Live Adventure | Live Adventure Team |
| 2021 | Vessels (Game) | Local Space Survey Corps, LLC |
| 2020 | N/A | N/A |
| 2019 | after HOURS | Bahiyya Khan, Claire Meekel, Tim Flusk, Abi Meekel |
| 2018 | Baba is You | Hempuli |
| 2017 | Un Pas Fragile | PAF Team |
| 2016 | Beglitched (Game) | Hexecutable (Company) |
| 2015 | Close Your | GoodbyeWorld Games |
| 2014 | Risk of Rain (Game) | Hopoo Games (Company) |
| 2013 | Zineth (Game) | Arcane Kids (Company) |
| 2012 | Way | |
| 2011 | FRACT | |
| 2010 | Continuity | |
| 2009 | Tag: The Power of Paint | |
| 2008 | Synaesthete (Game) | |
| 2007 | Toblo (Game) |
Audience Award
The audience award is the only IGF Award not chosen by judges. Instead, it is chosen by the general public via online voting.
alt.ctrl.GDC Award
| Year | Game | Developer |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Hot Swap | |
| 2018 | Puppet Pandemonium | |
| 2017 | Fear Sphere |
Retired Awards
Technical Excellence Award (1999-2013)
| Year | Game | Developer | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Little Inferno (Game) | Tomorrow Corporation (Company) | |
| 2012 | Antichamber (Game) | Demruth (Company) | |
| 2011 | Amnesia: The Dark Descent | Frictional Games (Company) | |
| 2010 | Limbo (Game) | Playdead (Company) | |
| 2009 | Cortex Command (Game) | Data Realms (Company) | |
| 2008 | World of Goo (Game) | 2D Boy (Company) | |
| 2007 | Bang! Howdy | Three Rings Design, Inc. | |
| 2006 | Darwinia | Introversion Software | |
| 2005 (OC) | Alien Hominid (Game) | The Behemoth (Company) | |
| 2005 (WD) | RocketBowl (Game) | ||
| 2004 (OC) | Savage: The Battle of Newerth | ||
| 2004 (WD) | Yohoho! Puzzle Pirates | Three Rings Design, Inc. | |
| 2003 | Reiner Knizia's Samurai | ||
| 2002 | Ace of Angles | ||
| 2001 | Shattered Galaxy (Game) | ||
| 2000 | Tream Marks | ||
| 1999 | Terminus (Game) |
Prize Money (in 2012) - $3000
On the 8th of August 2013, (now former) IGF Chairman Bradon Boyer announced that the Technical Excellence category was being removed from competition. As a result of this, the other main categories would now feature six finalists instead of five.
Best Web Browser Game (2006-2008)
| Year | Game | Developer |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Iron Dukes | |
| 2007 | Samorost 2 (Game) | Amanita Design (Company) |
| 2006 | Dad 'N Me |
This award replaced the need for having separate Web/Downloadable sections for each category. It was later removed in 2009.
Prize Money (in 2008) - $2,500
Best Mobile Game (2011-2012)
| Year | Game | Developer |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Beat Sneak Bandit (Game) | Simogo (Company) |
| 2011 | Helsing's Fire |
Prize Money (in 2012) - $2,500
Records
Most Awards for a Developer
Most Awards for a Game
| Awards | Game | Categories | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Inscryption (Game) | Grand Prize, Narrative, Design, Audio | 2022 |
| 3 | Papers, Please | Grand Prize, Narrative, Design | 2014 |
| - | Cart Life (Game) | Grand Prize, Nuovo, Narrative | 2013 |
| - | Darwinia | Grand Prize, Visual Art, Technical | 2006 |
| - | Alien Hominid (Game) | Audience, Visual Art, Technical | 2005 |
| - | Wik andamp;amp;amp; the Fable of Souls | Grand Prize, Visual Art, Nuovo | 2005 |
Games view all →]
- 140 (Game)
- 80 Days (Game)
- A Short Hike (Game)
- Alien Hominid (Game)
- Amnesia: The Dark Descent (Game)
- Antichamber (Game)
- Aquaria (Game)
- Audiosurf (Game)
- Baba Is You (Game)
- Bad Milk (Game)
- Bang! Howdy (Game)
- Beat Sneak Bandit (Game)
- Beglitched (Game)
- Between (Game)
- Bit.Trip Complete (Game)
- Bit.Trip RUNNER (Game)
- Blaseball (Game)
- Blueberry Garden (Game)
- Bontãgo (Game)
- Botanicula (Game)
- Braid (Game)
- Brainpipe: A Plunge To Unhumanity (Game)
- Cart Life (Game)
- Castle Crashers (Game)
- Celeste (Game)
- Chuchel (Game)
- Cibele (Game)
- Closure (Game)
- Cortex Command (Game)
- Crayon Physics Deluxe (Game)
- Crime Cities (Game)
- Darwinia (Game)
- Dear Esther (Game)
- Desktop Dungeons (Game)
- Device 6 (Game)
- Dinner Date (Game)
- Dofus (Game)
- Dr. Blob's Organism (Game)
- Ethereal (Game)
- Everyday Shooter (Game)
- FTL: Faster Than Light (Game)
- Fez (Game)
- Frozen Synapse (Game)
- Genesis Noir (Game)
- Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy (Game)
- Gish (Game)
- Gonner (Game)
- Gorogoa (Game)
- Hammerfight (Game)
- Heaven's Vault (Game)
- Helsing's Fire (Game)
- Her Story (Game)
- Heroes of Newerth (Game)
- Hyper Light Drifter (Game)
- Insaniquarium Deluxe (Game)
- Inscryption (Game)
- Jamestown: Legend of the Lost Colony (Game)
- Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes (Game)
- Kentucky Route Zero (Game)
- King of Dragon Pass (Game)
- Knights and Bikes (Game)
- Limbo (Game)
- Little Inferno (Game)
- Luxuria Superbia (Game)
- Machinarium (Game)
- Metamorphabet (Game)
- Minecraft (Game)
- Mini Metro (Game)
- Mini Motorways (Game)
- Mirror Drop (Game)
- Monaco: What's Yours Is Mine (Game)
- Musaic Box (Game)
- Mutazione (Game)
- Nidhogg (Game)
- Night in the Woods (Game)
- Opus Magnum (Game)
- Osmos (Game)
- Outer Wilds (Game)
- Oxenfree (Game)
- Papers, Please (Game)
- Papetura (Game)
- Paratopic (Game)
- Patrick's Parabox (Game)
- Pontifex 2 (Game)
- Puzzle Pirates (Game)
- Quadrilateral Cowboy (Game)
- Reiner Knizia's Samurai (Game)
- Return of the Obra Dinn (Game)
- Risk of Rain (Game)
- RocketBowl (Game)
- Samorost 2 (Game)
- Savage: The Battle for Newerth (Game)
- Shattered Galaxy (Game)
- Spelunky (Game)
- Synaesthete (Game)
- TRAUMA (Game)
- Tag: The Power of Paint (Game)
- Teardown (Game)
- Terminus (Game)
- The Bridge (Game)