Gaming
Nominations announced for first-ever Scottish Games Awards
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The longlist covers achievements in Art and Animation, Audio, Best Small Budget Game, Best Big Budget Game, and many more!
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Winners will be announced on Thursday 27th October, as part of Scottish Games Week
The long list of nominees for the first-ever Scottish Games Awards has been released, celebrating the best games talent in Scotland. The awards – taking place at the Malmaison in Dundee on the 27th of October – will bring together a wide range of disciplines and specialities from across the games ecosystem and beyond, acting as a show of appreciation for those leading the charge across the growing and thriving sector.
The Scottish Games Awards ceremony is the culmination of the first ever Scottish Games Week, a first of its kind suite of events that will take place across Scotland from the 24th – 27th of October. Winners will be announced at the ceremony on Thursday 27th of October, tickets are available now via Citizen Ticket.
The award nominees are as follows:
Art and Animation
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Just Take Your Left (Mehrdad Rezaei)
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Cloudpunk (ION LANDS)
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Galaxy Fight Club (Interference Pattern)
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Train Sim World 2: Island Line 2022 (Rivet Games)
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Autonauts vs Piratebots (Denki)
Audio
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SOLAS 128 (Amicable Animal)
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Train Sim World 2: Island Line 2022 (Rivet Games)
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A Bonnie Odyssey (Astrodreamer Studio)
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Agatha Christie – Hercule Poirot: The First Cases (Blazing Griffin)
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Autonauts vs Piratebots (Denki)
Best Educational Programme
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Glasgow Caledonian University: 3D Art and Animation
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University of the West of Scotland Games Development Programme
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Robert Burns’ Farm at Ellisland in Minecraft
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Dundee & Angus College: HN Games Development
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Glasgow School of Art: MSc Visualisation
Best Educator
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Daisy Abbott
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Dr Thomas Methven
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Jane Draycott
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Erin Hughes
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Dr Lynn Love
Best Large-Budget Game
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From the Depths (Brilliant Skies Ltd.)
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Cloudpunk (ION LANDS)
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Mystery Match Village (Outplay Entertainment Ltd)
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Autonauts vs Piratebots (Denki)
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Island Saver (Stormcloud)
Best Small-Budget Game
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Temple of Snek (Aetheric Games)
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The Black Iris (Jamie Ferguson)
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SOLAS 128 (Amicable Animal)
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The Baby in Yellow (Team Terrible)
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Ultimate Supremacy (GameExplosion)
Creativity
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SOLAS 128 (Amicable Animal)
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Cloudpunk (ION LANDS)
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Playhead (Lowtek Games)
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Temple of Snek (Aetheric Games)
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Strange Sickness (Common Profyt Games)
Diversity Champion
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Joanne Lacey
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Searra Dodds
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Tanya Laird
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Lauren Aitken
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Charly Harbord
Lifetime Achievement
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Colin Anderson
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Tanya Laird
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Stuart Martin
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Dave Jones
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Chris Sawyer
Stewart Gilray Award (Community Spirit)
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Malath Abbas
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Colin Macdonald
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Colin Anderson
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Dr Amanda Ford
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Paddy Burns
Technical Achievement
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Conquest.eth (Etherplay)
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Monstrum 2 (Team Junkfish)
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Ultimate Supremacy (GameExplosion)
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A Bonnie Odyssey (Astrodreamer Studio)
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From the Depths (Brilliant Skies Ltd.)
Tools and Technology
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Dislectek
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Murder Mystery Machine
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Kythera AI
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Zappaty
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AdInMo
The long list of entries will now go to the judging panel, chaired by Chris Scullion, and comprising of:
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Brian Baird: Technical Director at Bethesda Games Studios Austin
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Joe Donnelly: Feature Writer at GamesRadar+
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Alisdair Gunn: Director at Glasgow City Innovation District
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Steven Hamill: COO at Scottish Edge
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Keza MacDonald: Video Games Editor at The Guardian
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Jim Trinca: Games journalist and video producer
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Jo Twist: CEO of UKIE
The judges will be tasked with picking a shortlist and winners from each of the categories.
Brian Baglow, Director of Scottish Games Week and Founder of the Scottish Games Network said: “As the founder and director of the Scottish Games Network, I am lucky enough to see on a daily basis, the incredible work being carried out in Scotland and meet the people, the pioneers and the games which are shaping the future of the games ecosystem.
“However, not every game – or person – doing this work gets the visibility they need or deserve. The Scottish Games Awards are designed to address this and showcase the people, the organisations and the games which make Scotland such a wonderful place to create, publish, teach, learn, love (or even play!) games.
“We were thrilled to get such a wide range of entries and such a high level of excellence across each of the categories. I don’t envy the judges trying to select the winners from such a superb range of entries.
“Good luck to every entrant!”
Gaming
THE BATTLE OF POLYTOPIA RELEASES NEW AQUARION SPECIAL SKIN IN LATEST UPDATE
Midjiwan, the award-winning independent studio behind The Battle of Polytopia has today released a new Aquarion Special Skin, additional language options and balance updates to the recently reworked Aquarion tribe. Players will dive deep into the Ritiki Marshlands encountering a lost Aquarion outpost with the new skin known as “The Forgotten”.
Long ago, when the Aquarion Empire vanished beneath the waves. One remote outpost in the swampy atolls lost all contact, leading its inhabitants to believe they were the last of their kind. This forgotten tribe evolved in isolation, adapting to the marshy landscapes with squid-like appendages and unique abilities to command the swamp and its creatures.
Using the unique abilities of “The Forgotten”, players can build on water, summon giant squids, create speed enhancing bubbles, ride crocodiles, tame toads, and traverse their marshy terrains with ease.
In addition, the latest update to the game now offers expanded language options: Hindi, Indonesian, Malay, Polish, Thai, Turkish & Vietnamese.
Christian Lövstedt, CEO of The Battle of Polytopia, commented: “I feel that this skin is one of the best we’ve created and has quickly become my personal favourite. Additionally, we have added Bubble Tech to the Aquarion Waterways, making that tribe even greater. With expanded language options and new gameplay mechanics, we’re inviting players to dive into the rich lore and strategy that make the Battle of Polytopia truly special.”
To celebrate the launch of the new update, Midjiwan hosted an exclusive livestream event, offering fans a unique look behind the scenes, live gameplay, and discussions with the development team – the livestream is available to watch now: The Forgotten livestrea m by Midjiwan.
Conferences in Europe
Gamecity Hamburg connects Decision Makers from International Studios with new “Portside Game Assembly” Conference Format
Gamecity Hamburg announces the premiere of the “Portside Game Assembly” (PSGA) for June 27, 2025. The new B2B conference format focuses on networking and the exchange of learnings between leading international indie game studios. Portside Game Assembly enables studio heads and decision-makers to exchange knowledge in a confidential setting in extraordinary locations of Hamburg, around the harbor – and on the water.
“The idea for Portside Game Assembly was born out of conversations with studio heads and managers from Hamburg and around Europe. Anyone navigating an indie studio through the games market benefits greatly from exchanging learnings with other decision-makers facing similar challenges. With a curated guest list and a focus on impulse talks and roundtables, PSGA will offer studio leads contacts and discussions which are highly relevant to their work and current developments in the industry,” explains Margarete Schneider, Project Manager at Gamecity Hamburg.
“The heart of PSGA is the conference, which will be held on a ship sailing through the Hamburg harbor and to which we welcome attendees from all over Europe and beyond. The conference will be complemented by a networking brunch and two evening events, which invite PSGA participants to meet the vibrant and diverse Hamburg games scene,” adds Dennis Schoubye, Head of Gamecity Hamburg.
The conference program for decision-makers at game studios
On June 27, 2025, the first Portside Game Assembly will kick off with a networking brunch.
Afterwards, the studio managers and decision makers will enter the conference ship, which offers three decks for keynote speeches, roundtables and networking, including a cruise through the famous Hamburg harbor.
Studio managers and decision-makers from the following studios are already attending:
- bippinbits (Dome Keeper, PVKK: Planetenverteidigungskanonenkommandant) / Germany
- Ghost Ship Publishing (Deep Rock Galactic) / Denmark
- Indoor Astronaut (Unrailed 1 & 2) / Switzerland
- Landfall Games (Content Warning, Totally Accurate Battle Simulator) / Sweden
- mooneye studios (Lost Ember) / Germany
- Maschinen-Mensch (Curious Expedition 1 & 2, Mother Machine, Codecks) / Germany
- Overhype Studios (Battle Brothers, Menace) / Germany
- Rockfish Games (Everspace 1 & 2) / Germany
- Torpor Games (Suzerain) / Germany
Leads and executives from established indie game studios can register to take part in the Portside Game Assembly via our registration form.
Networking events as part of the Portside Game Assembly
The evening closing event “Games Industry Party” brings conference guests and other members of the games industry together for networking with cool drinks and snacks. Tickets for the Indie Networking Brunch and the Games Industry Party are available separately for non-conference attendees and will go on sale at a later time.
On the evening before, June 26, 2025, there will be an “Opening Mixer” with a panoramic view over Hamburg’s famous St. Pauli district in the Astra Tower, at Bytro Labs office. Portside Game Assembly participants and contacts from the games industry in Hamburg will be invited.
Registration for studios and participants
The conference itself is aimed exclusively at studio managers and decision-makers from internationally successful indie game studios. To enable a curated selection of participants, there will be no direct ticket sales, but studios can register for participation here: registration form.
The conference ticket includes the Opening Mixer event the evening before, access to the Networking Brunch, the main Conference and the Games Industry Party for a total of 189 euros.
Asia
Nazara integrates with ONDC Network to Launch “gCommerce” in India, Unlocking a new era of In-Game Monetization
Nazara Technologies Limited, a leading diversified gaming and sports media platform, and Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) are proud to announce their integration to launch “gCommerce” – an innovative in-game monetization platform that seamlessly integrates e-commerce within games.
The integration aims to address a persistent challenge for Indian game developers: low in-app purchase (IAP) conversion rates and poor yields from advertising. Through gCommerce, Nazara and ONDC Network are reimagining game monetization by leveraging India’s thriving e-commerce landscape and providing developers with new, scalable revenue streams.
This strategic integration will allow game developers to monetize through an affiliate revenue-sharing model, earning a commission on every successful transaction initiated by players through the gCommerce platform.
Creating Value for Developers and Gamers
ONDC Network’s expertise in creating an open, interoperable network for digital commerce will enable Nazara’s gCommerce platform to connect with a wide range of sellers across more than 10 categories, ensuring a rich diversity of product offering for gamers. This integration enhances the user experience by allowing them to make informed purchases while they continue their gaming journey.
“We are excited to announce the upcoming launch of gCommerce by Nazara via integration with the ONDC Network, as it represents a significant step forward in our mission to empower game developers with effective and innovative monetization solutions,” said Nitish Mittersain, CEO of Nazara Technologies. “We are not only creating new revenue opportunities for developers but also enriching the overall experience for our gamers.”
T Koshy, CEO of ONDC, added, “Nazara coming on ONDC Network to launch gCommerce is a testament to the versatility of the Network in supporting various industries and use cases. By bringing e-commerce into the gaming ecosystem, we are paving the way for a seamless blend of entertainment and shopping that adds value for players, developers, and the broader digital commerce network.”
The gCommerce platform is currently in soft launch and will be rolled out to game developers starting Q1, FY26.
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