Tandem Events has announced that nominations are now open for the Develop:Star Awards taking place during Develop:Brighton 2019 on Wednesday 10 July at the Hilton Brighton Metropole.

The Develop:Star Awards are split into 15 categories, for which nominations are open until Friday 29 March 2019.

In addition to these categories the Develop:Star Award will honour an extraordinary industry figure for their outstanding achievements and contribution to the industry.

“The Develop:Stars will bring together members of the game development community to celebrate incredible individuals, the teams they’re a part of and the very best of the stellar work  produced over the past year,” said Andy Lane, managing director of Tandem Events.

“It’s important to recognise the achievements of hard-working game devs and celebrate the successes of our vibrant and exciting industry. We’re going to make sure the night will be one to remember for all involved.”

The qualifying period for entries is from 1 April 2018 - 31 March 2019. Only games released during this period are eligible for nominations in the appropriate categories, and any supporting evidence or testimony included in the nomination must fall within the same timeframe. 

Following the deadline for nominations, entries will be evaluated by panels of games industry experts who will decide shortlists of five finalists for each award.

The finalists will be announced in early May, after which voting will open to the development community, ensuring the winners are chosen by developers themselves.

The details for each of the 15 awards open for nominations. 

• Best Visual Art

Recognising a game which demonstrates exceptional achievement in visual art and/or animation, across any genre.

• Best Narrative

Rewarding a team who have far exceeded expectation in their storytelling to create an outstanding player experience – through innovative or ground-breaking writing.

• Best Game Design

This award recognises a team responsible for exceptional and creative game design via the use of controls, level design, pacing and mechanics.

• Best Audio

Rewarding a game that demonstrates distinction in the use of sound or music to improve player experience.

• Best Original IP

This award will recognise the creation of the best new intellectual property in a game.

• Best Innovation

The award which recognises any game, studio or organisation that has created something ground-breaking within the games industry. This could be a technical advance, a pioneering gameplay experience or anything showing true innovation.

• Diversity Star

This award celebrates an individual who has shown a commitment to promoting diversity and inclusivity within the games industry.

• Best Supplier

Recognising the organisation that has provided the highest quality of service and contributed most to success within the game developer community – across any and all disciplines.

• Recruitment Star

Recognising an organisation that has shown outstanding support helping development studios successfully recruit and retain new team members.

• Best Use of a Game Engine

For this award a panel of game engine professionals will shortlist the games that they feel maximise the full potential of their engines.

• Publishing Star

Recognising an organisation that has shown outstanding support helping developers get their game published. This can include via funding, discoverability, research or anything else that helped secure a successful route to market for new games. 

• Best Mobile Game

This award will be given to the game that offers best overall player experience on a mobile phone or tablet.

• Game of the Year

Rewarding the game that stands out above all others in terms of gameplay, storytelling, art style, character development, creativity and overall player experience - across all genres and platforms.

• Best Micro Studio

This award will go to a studio with four or fewer employees who’ve achieved exceptional critical and commercial success during the qualifying period.

• Best Studio

This award celebrates any studio with five or more employees who’ve achieved exceptional critical and commercial success during the qualifying period.

For more information on Develop:Star Awards and how to submit nominations, please visit: www.developstarawards.awardstage.com

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About The Develop:Star Awards

Taking place alongside the conference, the new Develop:Star Awards will recognise the very best of the game development community. The achievements of developers and success of great games and creativity will be celebrated across 15 categories, including one ultimate ‘Develop Star’. This award will honour an extraordinary game developer for outstanding achievement and contribution to the industry.

About Develop:Brighton conference & expo

The Develop:Brighton conference is where the European developer community comes together to learn from each other and share experiences, be inspired by world renowned experts and gurus, get up-to-date with the latest development tools and techniques, make new contacts and catch up with old ones.

With a programme that is shaped by some of the industry's key figures, the conference touches all levels of the development community from the largest studios to the smallest indies; from development directors to programmers.

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