SAN JOSE, Calif. – Nexon, an independent game development company, stole the show at the third annual Independent Games Festival (IGF) taking home the $10,000 Seumas McNally Grand Prize and the Audience Award, a special honor granted by popular vote from the industry audience attending this year’s Game Developers Conference (GDC) for its video game project, Shattered Galaxy.
They also received the Best Game Design and the Technical Excellence awards. The IGF provides a forum for independent game developers to exhibit their work and receive recognition while celebrating its diversity.
Last year, the Gama Network (formerly CMP Game Media Group) publicly announced that it would rename the Independent Game Festival’s (IGF) Grand Prize in honor of Seumas McNally. McNally succumbed to Hodgkins Lymphoma shortly after last year’s ceremony at the age of 21. He was the president and lead programmer for Longbow Digital Arts, which won last year’s IGF Grand Prize.
The Shattered Galaxy team, located in both Korea and Silicon Valley, overcame the language and cultural barriers of being separated across the Pacific Ocean to create a sophisticated, carefully crafted and involving experience. Kevin Saunders, game and project director, Jongheum Park, lead client programmer and Omari Miller, executive manager, combined their creative
talents and innovative ideas to create the massively multi-player, real-time strategy game.
Shattered Galaxy comprises online warfare and tactical struggle with an emphasis on role-playing as well. The game’s BattleMetrics system, which uses many theoretical equations to evaluate the effectiveness of various items, units and synergistic effects, promotes a fluid, dynamic and evolving world.
Silver Creek Entertainment, one of last year’s IGF finalists for Hardwood Hearts, received the Best Visual Art award for Hardwood Spades, an online card playing game that lets the player
chat with their opponents during game play. Hardwood Spades’ impressive graphics extend from the customizable character portraits to thematic card decks. Best Audio went to Space Time Foam for Chase Ace 2.
Filled with fast-paced action and based on the popular Chase Ace, spaceships fight battles with other enemy spacecraft amidst explosions and gunfire.
“The IGF has once again proven to be a forum that nurtures new game development talent and showcases today’s brightest independent games,” said Alex Dunne, chairman, Independent Games Festival and executive producer, Gamasutra.com. “An integral part of the continued success of the interactive entertainment industry is the talent and creativity that lies with independent
game developers. We are proud to be able to highlight their achievements and award their ingenuity.”
www.nexon.net
www.hardwoodspades.com
www.chaseace.com
www.gamasutra.com
www.cmpnet.com
www.gamanetwork.com
www.igda.org
