Judging Panel Chair: Alistair Aitcheson - Indie Developer, Alistair Aitcheson Games  

Judges:

• Bruce Slater - Indie Developer, Radical Forge
• Phil Gaskell - Director, Ripstone
• Korina Abbott - Indie Videogame Marketeer, KAGames
• Andrew Smith - Indie Developer,  Spilt Milk Studios 
• Romana Ramzan - Lecturer in Games Design, Glasgow Caledonian University  
• Katie Goode - Director, Triangular Pixels

Finalist Selection Process

Submitted games will be evaluated by a panel of games industry professionals appointed by Develop:Brighton. The judging panel will review all entries and select 10 finalists. Successful finalists will be notified the w/c 18 June 2018.

The judging panel will use the following criteria to rate each submitted game:

• Originality
• Gameplay
• Aesthetics
• Technical Achievement –  Extra consideration will be given to developers who have written their own game engine and/or tools (level editors/ rendering engines/ physics engines)

The 10 finalists will receive a three-day pass to Develop:Brighton, up to five Expo passes, pre-event publicity and a profile on the event website. Most importantly however, the finalists will be able to show off their game to all the developers, press and publishers at the event.

Winner Selection Process

The 10 finalist games will be further evaluated at Develop:Brighton by the judging panel. Each judge will then select their top 3 from the Indie Showcase. Points will be awarded based on these votes, and the game with the most points is the Indie Showcase Winner.

Conference attendees will have the chance to select their favourite game from the Showcase by voting onsite. The game with the most votes will be announced as the People's Choice Winner.

When are the winners announced?
The Indie Showcase and People's Choice winners will all be announced to press and delegates at Develop:Brighton on Thursday 12 July 2018. 

Deadline for Game Submissions is 18 May 2018

• Anyone can enter as long as you’re an independent game developer with no more than 15 people in the studio, the entered game is not publisher funded and is not published by a third party, the development budget for the game must be less than £1million and your game has been created in the “indie spirit”.
• More than one game can be entered per developer.
• All games must be a Release Candiate, Beta or have been released after July 2017.
• If your game is complicated and you want to make sure that judges understand and play it correctly then you can attach a video link and any other background information to your submission form.
• Once you’ve submitted your game we cannot accept any updates.
• Your submitted game can run on any of these platforms: PC, console, web, mobile/tablet/handheld or VR platforms.
• Games for the following VR platforms can be submitted: Gear VR, Google Cardboard (or equivalent), HTC Vive, Oculus Rift DK2 and consumer Rift , PlayStation VR, OSVR and Google Daydream.
• If your game is to be released on both iOS and Android, then all being equal Android submissions would be preferred.
• For iOS games, Testflight is the preferred method of submission. For distribution via Apple Testflight please direct an invite to each of the following:

games@alistairaitcheson.com
bruceslater452@gmail.com
phil@ripstone.com
korina@kagames.co.uk
andrew.smith@spiltmilkstudios.com 
romana.ramzan@gcu.ac.uk
katie@triangularpixels.com

• The submissions deadline is final – nothing received after 18 May 2018 will be considered for the Indie Showcase.
• If your game is shortlisted you will be required to demo your game within the Showcase area during Expo hours on 11 and 12 July. We will provide a table and chairs, monitors and supply Internet connections (if required), but you will need to bring your own PC/console.

The Indie Showcase is only open to businesses and individuals who are 18 years or older

• The submitted game must be created in the 'indie spirit' by an independent game developer, Develop:Brighton reserves the right to refuse any game at its sole discretion.
• All entered games must be in a "beta" state or better (i.e. games must be feature-complete). At least 1 level of each game must be complete and fully playable.
• The entered game must not be published by a third party at the time of submission.
• Before submitting a game, the entrant must have obtained the written permission of all persons or entities having any rights in the entered Game.
• If submitting via a download link, studios are responsible for the security of the link and password protection of files.
• Game updates are not permitted once a game has been submitted.
• All entrants must have acceptable licenses in place for all middleware, game engines, software and technology utilized in the games creation.
• By completing an entry form all entrants thereby agree that all information supplied can be used for promotional purposes.
• Each finalist will be responsible for their own travel costs, meals, accommodation, and any other associated costs.
• Any individual finalist who is unable to attend may officially nominate a proxy attendee.
• Develop:Brighton reserves the right to cancel, terminate, modify, or suspend the Indie Showcase Submissions at its sole discretion.
• The Judges decision is final and cannot be appealed against.
• Any information or materials submitted via the entry form may be used for promotional purposes if your game is shortlisted.