8Bit/Digi

Organizers of the Game Developers Conference have revealed the finalists for the 2025 Independent Games Festival Awards.

Consume Me by developers Jenny Jiao Hsia, AP Thomson, Jie En Lee, Violet W-P, and Ken “coda” Snyder, lead the pack with five nominations. It has been nominated for Excellence in Design, Excellence in Narrative, Excellence in Visual Arts, Nuovo Award, and the Seumas McNally Grand Prize. Despelote, from developers Julián Cordero and Sebastian Valbuena, has been nominated for four awards.

The Nominees

The following are the nominees for the 2025 Independent Games Festival Awards, organized based on their respective categories:

Best Student Game

• A Dual Ascent (Mountain Toad Entertainment /  Rubika Supinfogame)
• DisplaceMen (Eversea Club / leafaleaves)
• Growth Spurt: A Meandering Intermission into the Afterhours of a Miscalculation (Games for my Computer)
• Slot Waste (Vinny Roca / pickpanpuck productions)
• The WereCleaner (Howlin’ Hugs / USC Games)
• Year Unknown (Julian Heuser)

Excellence in Audio

• Anger Foot (Free Lives / Devolver Digital) 
• Despelote (Julián Cordero, Sebastian Valbuena / Panic) 
• INDIKA (Odd Meter / 11 bit studios)
• ODDADA (Sven Ahlgrimm, Mathilde Hoffmann, Bastian Clausdorff)
• Thank Goodness You’re Here! (Coal Supper / Panic)
• Utopia Must Fall (Pixeljam)

Excellence in Design

• Balatro (LocalThunk / Playstack)
• Blue Prince (Dogubomb / Raw Fury) 
• Caves of Qud (Freehold Games / Kitfox Games) 
• Consume Me (Jenny Jiao Hsia, AP Thomson, Jie En Lee, Violet W-P, Ken “coda” Snyder) 
• Pacific Drive (Ironwood Studios / Kepler Interactive)
• Tactical Breach Wizards (Suspicious Developments)

Excellence in Narrative

• Caves of Qud (Freehold Games / Kitfox Games) 
• Closer the Distance (Osmotic Studios / Skybound Games)  
• Consume Me (Jenny Jiao Hsia, AP Thomson, Jie En Lee, Violet W-P, Ken “coda” Snyder) 
• Despelote (Julián Cordero, Sebastian Valbuena / Panic) 
• INDIKA (Odd Meter / 11 bit studios)
• No Case Should Remain Unsolved (Somi)

Excellence in Visual Arts

• Children of the Sun (René Rother / Devolver Digital) 
• Consume Me (Jenny Jiao Hsia, AP Thomson, Jie En Lee, Violet W-P, Ken “coda” Snyder) 
• Hauntii (Moonloop Games / Firestoke) 
• Judero (Talha and Jack Co, J. King-Spooner, Talha Kaya) 
• Nine Sols (RedCandleGames) 
• Thank Goodness You’re Here! (Coal Supper / Panic)

Nuovo Award

• Consume Me (Jenny Jiao Hsia, AP Thomson, Jie En Lee, Violet W-P, Ken “coda” Snyder) 
• Despelote (Julián Cordero, Sebastian Valbuena / Panic) 
• Extreme Evolution: Drive to Divinity (Sam Atlas) 
• Ginger (Kevin Du / lizu ktap)
• individualism in the dead-internet age: an anti-big tech asset flip shovelware rant manifesto (alienmelon) 
• Starship Home (Creature) 
• tapeçaria (tapestry) (mut/moochi (with help from plunderludics working group))
• The Exit 8 (KOTAKE CREATE / Active Gaming Media Inc)

Seumas McNally Grand Prize

• Caves of Qud (Freehold Games / Kitfox Games) 
• Consume Me (Jenny Jiao Hsia, AP Thomson, Jie En Lee, Violet W-P, Ken “coda” Snyder) 
• Despelote (Julián Cordero, Sebastian Valbuena / Panic) 
• INDIKA (Odd Meter / 11 bit studios)
• Thank Goodness You’re Here! (Coal Supper / Panic)
• UFO 50 (Mossmouth)

The 2025 Independent Games Festival Awards will take place alongside the Game Developers Choice Awards on March 19th at the Moscone Convention Center during the Game Developers Conference. The award is open to anyone who has a GDC pass.

8Bit/Digi is an independent media outlet that provides insight into the video game community and industry of the San Francisco Bay Area.