PRIZE POOL OVER $140,000
DevGAMM
Awards 2026
Competition for the developers
of AA & indie games
Ceremony in Lisbon: November 18
Sponsored by
Official Streaming Partner
UNTIL THE CEREMONY IN LISBON
WHAT IS DEVGAMM AWARDS
DevGAMM Awards is an annual competition for small studios and indie developers, re-established in 2024.
With a $100,000+ prize pool and additional sponsor awards, winners are selected by a panel of 191 industry experts, making it a remarkable opportunity for emerging gamedev talent.
The competition culminates in a grand ceremony at DevGAMM Lisbon 2026 on November 18, streamed live on IGN, the official streaming partner.
1,001
Games accepted
80
Countries represented
542
unique cities
top 10 countries
🇺🇸 USA
🇩🇪 Germany
🇬🇧 UK
🇪🇸 Spain
🇨🇳 China
🇵🇱 Poland
🇨🇦 Canada
🇵🇹 Portugal
🇫🇷 France
🇰🇷 South Korea
team size
1 person
338
2-5 people
426
6-10 people
159
11-20 people
53
21-50 people
25
MAIN CATEGORIES
The full prize pool for winners in these categories is $100,000, provided by Scorewarrior.
Grand Prize
$20,000
The main category, with all submitted games eligible, whether they’re designed for desktop or mobile.
Winner
Nominees
Excellence in Game Design
$10,000
Awarded to the game with the most innovative design solution or the most engaging gameplay.
Winner
Nominees
Excellence in Visual Art
$10,000
Awarded to the game with the most unique art style, featuring coherent art direction and outstanding graphic solutions.
Winner
Nominees
Excellence in Narrative
$10,000
Awarded to the game with the most compelling and well-crafted storyline and storytelling.
Winner
Nominees
Excellence in Audio
$10,000
Awarded to the game with the best sound direction, music, audio clarity, dubbing, and acting.
Winner
Nominees
Best Mobile Game
$10,000
Awarded to the strongest competition entry designed for mobile devices.
Winner
Nominees
Most Anticipated Game
$5,000
Awarded to the unreleased game with the highest potential to become a future standout in gaming.
Winner
Nominees
Best Game in Early Development
$5,000
Awarded to the most promising game in the early stages of development: demos or vertical slices that show strong potential and creativity.
Winner
Nominees
Best Small Team Game
$5,000
Awarded to the best game created by a small independent team of up to 10 developers, without external publisher or investor support.
Winner
Nominees
Meaningful Game
$5,000
Сelebrates games that create emotional, cultural, educational, social, political, or personal engagement through play.
Winner
Nominees
Best Game from Portugal
$5,000
This category, part of DevGAMM Lisbon 2026, celebrates the best game created by Portuguese developers.
Winner
Nominees
DevGAMM Choice
$5,000
A special award selected by the DevGAMM organizing team, recognizing a standout game that left a lasting impression during the competition.
Winner
Nominees
SPONSORED CATEGORIES
In addition to the main categories, we invite publishers and game companies to participate in the competition by offering special prizes, allowing them to select their own winners from all the submitted entries.
Epic Games Store
Indie Spotlight
$15,000
This category honors the most outstanding indie title currently available on the Epic Games Store.
Winner
Nominees
BEST UNREAL
ENGINE GAME
$10,000
This category celebrates the most outstanding game created with Unreal Engine, recognizing excellence in technology, creativity, and overall game quality.
Winner
Nominees
BEST
GODOT GAME
$10,000
This category awards the best games made with Godot, a free open‑source game engine.
Winner
Nominees
Best Indie Game
by tinyBuild
$5,000
+ a comprehensive consultation package in production, marketing, or console porting, based on the team’s needs.
Winner
Nominees
BEST MADE
WITH UNITY GAME
$3,000
This category awards the best indie games made with Unity engine.
Winner
Nominees
JOIN AS A SPONSOR
Support the competition as a sponsor and gain access to the game catalogue featuring all entries from the competition
JUDGES
In 2026, we have 191 game industry professionals to evaluate all entries. Among them are artists, game designers and developers, producers, publishers, CEOs of gaming companies, and more.
Rami
Ismail
Gamedev Advisor
Kyle
Billings
Epic Games
Anran
Li
Riot Games
Mike
Geig
Unity Technologies
Vladimir
Tolmachev
tinyBuild
Elena
Lobova
Burny Games
Ryan
Sim
Warner Bros.
Tom
Gilchrist
Netflix
RULES
Submission requirements
playable build
Game platforms
Game platforms eligible for the competition:
PC or Mobile
Release date
not earlier than September 7, 2025
Team size
Team size:
up to 50 people
If nominated
TIMELINE AND DEADLINES
SEP 7
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS
SEPT 11 – NOV 9
THREE JUDGING ROUNDS
OCT 22
NOMINEES ANNOUNCEMENT
NOV 18
DEVGAMM AWARDS
CEREMONY IN LISBON
PAST WINNERS OF DEVGAMM AWARDS
Lost In Play
Best Indie Game
DevGAMM Fest 2022
Cairn
Most Anticipated Game
DevGAMM Awards 2024
Drop Duchy
Excellence in Game Design
DevGAMM Awards 2025
Solasta – Crown of the Magister
Excellence in Game Design
DevGAMM Fall 2021
EVERSPACE 2
Best Desktop Game
DevGAMM 2020
Manor Lords
Grand Prize
DevGAMM Awards 2024
Keep Driving
Grand Prize
DevGAMM Awards 2025
Promise Mascot Agency
Epic Games Store Indie Spotlight
DevGAMM Awards 2025
Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands
Best Desktop Game
DevGAMM Fest 2022
The Wandering Village
Grand Prize
DevGAMM Fest 2022
Against the Storm
Excellence in Game Design
DevGAMM Fest 2022
Yes, Your Grace: Snowfall
Excellence in Narrative
DevGAMM Awards 2024
