You sometimes forget just how many great games have been released during the last 12 months. Helldivers 2 has become one of the best multiplayer experiences in recent years, Baldur’s Gate 3 will go down in history as the RPG that transformed the genre, and Balatro, the indie and roguelike game from LocalThunk, is the surprise megahit that just keeps giving. Alan Wake 2, Dave the Diver, Dead Island 2 – all of these and more will be honored at the upcoming Develop:Star Awards, as part of Develop:Brighton, in July. You can find the full nominees list right here.
Across 22 different categories, some of the best PC games of the past year are all up for awards, including Helldivers 2, Cocoon, Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty, and dozens more. The voting is now open, and any previous Develop:Brighton attendees can cast a ballot.
The awards will take place at a new venue, the Brighton Dome, and there are two new award categories – Best Creative Lead and the Supporting Star Award, which recognizes companies and organizations that have provided funding, direction, and other forms of support to burgeoning game developers. From RPGs to FPS and story games, you can find the full Develop:Star Awards nominees list below:
Develop:Star Awards nominations list
Best Game
- Alan Wake 2
- Balatro
- Baldur’s Gate 3
- Dave the Diver
- Helldivers 2
- Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Best Studio
- Arrowhead Game Studios
- d3t
- Futurlab
- Larian Studios
- nDreams
- Playground Games
- Remedy Entertainment
Best Small Studio
- Bytten Studio
- Geometric Interactive
- inkle
- Interflix Media
- Noun Town
- Rogue Sun
- Sketchbook Games
Publishing Star
- Curve Games
- Kepler Interactive
- nDreams
- No More Robots
- Playstack
- Secret Mode
- Team17
Best Mobile Game
- Cityscapes: Sim Builder
- Football Manager 2024 Mobile
- Lost Words: Beyond the Page
- Monopoly Go!
- Sonic Dream Team
- The Queen’s Gambit Chess
Best Creative Lead
- AJ Grand-Scrutton, Dlala Studios
- Andria Warren, Rare
- Helen Andrzejowska, Secret Mode
- Kostas Zarifis, Rogue Sun
- Naoki Yoshida, Square Enix
- Sam Lake, Remedy Entertainment
Best Game Design
- Balatro
- Baldur’s Gate 3
- Dave the Diver
- Helldivers 2
- Jusant
- Viewfinder
Best Audio
- A Highland Song
- Alan Wake 2
- Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora
- Baldur’s Gate 3
- Cocoon
- Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
- Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League
Best Visual Art
- A Highland Song
- Alan Wake 2
- Baldur’s Gate 3
- Chants of Sennaar
- Cocoon
- Final Fantasy XVI
Best Narrative
- A Highland Song
- Alan Wake 2
- Baldur’s Gate 3
- Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
- Final Fantasy XVI
- Starfield
Best Original IP
- American Arcadia
- Balatro
- Classified: France ’44
- Dave the Diver
- Jusant
- Viewfinder
Tomorrow’s Star
- Ackeem Durrant, Surgent Studios
- Alif Trevathan, Sumo Group
- Amy Elliott, Sumo Leamington
- Charlotte Pang, Chirashi Games
- Dora Vasiliou, Dlala Studios
- Jazeena McCallum, Surgent Studios
- Rach Macpherson, Neonhive
Marketing Star
- Claire Sharkey, Freelance
- Dan Allman, Kepler Interactive
- FuturLab
- Hannah Flynn, Failbetter Games
- ICO Partners
- nDreams
- Neonhive
Best Technical Innovation
- Audiomob
- Cocoon
- Dead Island 2
- Helldivers 2
- Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
- Noun Town: VR Language Learning
- Viewfinder
Best Creative Provider
- Atomhawk
- Flix Interactive
- Liquid Crimson
- PitStop Productions
- Room 8 Group
- SIDE
- TrailerFarm
Diversity Star
- Adam Clewes-Boyne, BetaJester
- Fida Zourob, Games for Love
- Danielle Udogaranya, Evolotu
- Leon Hijazi-Killin, Sumo Group
- Liz Prince, Amiqus, G Into Gaming and Empower-Up
- Moo Yu, POC in Play
- Sara Machado, Sumo Digital and Bird’s Eye View
Supporting Star
- Barclays Games and Creative
- Coutts and Co.
- Fourth Floor Group
- Game Republic
- GG Insurance Services
- Urban Ledgers
Talent Development Star
- Dlala Studios
- Flix Interactive
- NaturalMotion Games
- nDreams
- REALTIME
- Ripstone
- Sumo Group
Best Technology Provider
- GameMaker
- Genba Digital
- i3D.net
- PopcornFX
- Speech Graphics
- Unity
- Unreal Engine
Recruitment Star
- Aardvark Swift
- Amiqus
- Avatar
- Datascope Recruitment
- mustard jobs
- Skillsearch
Sustainability Star
- Green Game Jam
- nDreams
- Rhea Loucas
- Smartdc
- Sports Interactive
- YRS TRULY
Best QA and Localization
- Keyword Studios
- Player Research
- PTW
- Testronic
- Universally Speaking
- Warlocs
BG3 developer Larian, Alan Wake 2 creator Remedy, and Sony Interactive Entertainment, which publishes Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, are all tied for the most awards with six each. Alongside the 22 central categories, the Develop Star Award will be presented in recognition of the success of an individual or studio, and the winner will be announced in the coming weeks.
The Develop:Star Awards will take place on Wednesday July 10 as part of Develop:Brighton 2024. To purchase tickets, or for more information on how to vote, just head right here.
You can also check out the best new PC games, if you want something fresh to play after all of last year’s greatest hits, or maybe clap eyes on some rising stars with the best upcoming PC games you can expect throughout 2024 and beyond.
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