Off Kilter Walking Simulator, Baby Steps, Leads List of Finalists for the 28th Annual Independent Games Festival With Five Nominations

Live-Action TV Channel Surfing Simulator Blippo+ and Titanium Court Each Earn Four Nominations

Winners Will Be Announced March 11 at the IGF Awards Ceremony During the GDC Festival of Gaming

SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Today, the organizers of the GDC Festival of Gaming have announced the finalists for the 28th annual Independent Games Festival (IGF) awards ceremony, the longest-running festival, summit, and showcase celebrating independent games and their creators. The IGF is part of the GDC Festival of Gaming, which will be held in person at San Francisco’s Moscone Convention Center from March 9 – 13. The winners will be announced during the IGF Awards, taking place at the GDC Festival of Gaming on Wednesday, March 11, 2026, at 6:30pm PT.

This year, Baby Steps, a quirky puzzle game developed by Gabe Cuzzillo, Maxi Boch and Bennett Foddy, and published by Devolver Digital, has a (shaky) leg up on the competition with five total nominations in the Excellence in Audio, Excellence in Design and Excellence in Narrative categories as well as the Nuovo and Seumas McNally Grand Prize Awards, which honors experiences that make the awards jurors think differently about games as a medium. Blippo+ and Titanium Court are each nominated for four awards. Blippo+, a live-action channel surfing TV simulator developed by YACHT, Telefantasy Studios and Noble Robot, is up for Excellence in Audio, Excellence in Visual Arts and the Nuovo Award. Titanium Court, developed by AP Thomson and published by Fellow Traveller, is a surreal strategy game for clowns and criminals that’s a contender for Excellence in Design, Excellence in Narrative and the Nuovo Award.

The finalists for this year’s coveted Seumas McNally Grand Prize are Angeline Era, Baby Steps, Blippo+, HORSES, Perfect Tides: Station to Station and Titanium Court. Each title brings something unique and inspiring to the games medium. In addition to the titles mentioned above, Grand Prize nominee Angeline Era is a moody, narrative-focused experience that blends personal drama with surreal or unsettling elements. Next, HORSES is an offbeat, experimental game that leans into tone and texture over traditional gaming mechanics. Finally, Perfect Tides: Station to Station is a character-driven adventure that explores young adulthood, relationships, and self-discovery through grounded storytelling and everyday moments.

After an initial assessment completed by hundreds of judges, almost 800 entries for the 2026 IGF Awards were distributed to a diverse set of expert jurors from across the games industry for final consideration. The IGF Awards is a peer-awarded celebration of the best independent games of the year, where professionals in the gaming industry vote on each category (Audio, Visual, Student, Nuovo, Design, Narrative and the Seumas McNally Grand Prize), then select the finalists after playing, discussing and meticulously evaluating them.

In addition to the categories listed below, the Audience Award invites all GDC Festival of Gaming attendees and members of the public to cast their vote for their favorite game of the year from all of this year’s GDCA finalists. The public can cast their vote from the Audience Award ballot here. Voting will take place between Monday, January 12 and Sunday, January 25.

The winners will be announced during the Independent Games Festival Awards, taking place at the GDC Festival of Gaming on Wednesday, March 11, 2026, at 6:30pm PT. The Game Developers Choice Awards (GDCA), which immediately followed the IGF award ceremony in previous years, will now take place the following day, Thursday, March 12, 2026 at 6:30pm PT. The GDCA recognizes the best games of the year across all sections of video game development. Both the IGF and GDCA awards will be hosted at a new location this year, taking place at the Moscone Center North Hall rather than Moscone West.

All GDC Festival of Gaming passholders can attend both the IGF and Game Developers Choice Awards ceremonies in person at San Francisco’s Moscone Center. Both awards ceremonies, in addition to many other activities from the GDC Festival of Gaming, will be streamed live via the official GDC Twitch channel.

The full list of finalists for each category of the 2026 Independent Games Festival, along with “honorable mentions,” is as follows:

Best Student Game

• BubbleBeast DigiDungeon (EchoLane)

• Kiloton (Jack Morehart)

• Poco (Whalefall, Micah Boursier)

• Prší (Herdek)

• Sip Fisher (Syphon Software)

• SPRKLS.exe (PesiiDom)

Honorable Mentions:

Myth of Lumi (Luminara Games, USC Games), Candellum (ISART DIGITAL), Summit Drive (Luke Kim), Grindset T.V. (Michael Overton Brown)

Excellence in Audio

• Baby Steps (Gabe Cuzzillo, Maxi Boch, Bennett Foddy, Devolver Digital)

• BALL x PIT (Kenny Sun & Friends, Devolver Digital)

• Blippo+ (YACHT, Telefantasy Studios, Noble Robot, Panic)

• Eclipsium (Housefire, CRITICAL REFLEX)

• Morsels (Furcula, Annapurna Interactive)

• Wheel World (Messhof, Annapurna Interactive)

Honorable Mentions:

The Drifter (Powerhoof), Angeline Era (Analgesic Productions), Skate Story (Sam Eng, Devolver Digital), Demonschool (Necrosoft Games, Ysbryd Games), Skin Deep (Blendo Games, Annapurna Interactive)

Excellence in Design

• Angeline Era (Analgesic Productions)

• Baby Steps (Gabe Cuzzillo, Maxi Boch, Bennett Foddy, Devolver Digital)

• Öoo (NamaTakahashi, tiny cactus studio, Tsuyomi)

• Skin Deep (Blendo Games, Annapurna Interactive)

• Titanium Court (AP Thomson, Fellow Traveller)

• Time Flies (Playables, Panic)

Honorable Mentions:

Strange Jigsaws (FLEB), Below The Crown (Misfits Attic, Shochiku), Is This Seat Taken? (Poti Poti Studio, Wholesome Games Presents), Henry Halfhead (Lululu Entertainment, popagenda), Type Help (William Rous)

Excellence in Narrative

• Baby Steps (Gabe Cuzzillo, Maxi Boch, Bennett Foddy, Devolver Digital)

• Perfect Tides: Station to Station (Three Bees)

• Promise Mascot Agency (Kaizen Game Works)

• Titanium Court (AP Thomson, Fellow Traveller)

• Type Help (William Rous)

• Wednesdays (The Pixel Hunt, ARTE France)

Honorable Mentions:

Blippo+ (YACHT, Telefantasy Studios, Noble Robot, Panic), HORSES (Andrea Lucco Borlera, Santa Ragione), The Roottrees Are Dead (Evil Trout Inc.), Sorry We’re Closed (à la mode games, Akupara Games)

Excellence in Visual Arts

• Blippo+ (YACHT, Telefantasy Studios, Noble Robot, Panic)

• CARIMARA: Beneath the forlorn limbs (Bastinus Rex, CRITICAL REFLEX)

• Eclipsium (Housefire, CRITICAL REFLEX)

• Loco Motive (Robust Games, Chucklefish)

• Morsels (Furcula, Annapurna Interactive)

• Skate Story (Sam Eng, Devolver Digital)

Honorable Mentions:

Sol Cesto (Antoine Druaux, Géraud Zucchini, Chariospirale, Goblinz Publishing), Is This Seat Taken? (Poti Poti Studio, Wholesome Games Presents), The Drifter (Powerhoof), Demonschool (Necrosoft Games, Ysbryd Games), Henry Halfhead (Lululu Entertainment, popagenda), PBJ – The Musical (kamibox)

Nuovo Award

• Baby Steps (Gabe Cuzzillo, Maxi Boch, Bennett Foddy, Devolver Digital)

• Blippo+ (YACHT, Telefantasy Studios, Noble Robot, Panic)

• HORSES (Andrea Lucco Borlera, Santa Ragione)

• Mini Mini Golf Golf (Three More Years)

• Plum Road Tea Dream (Reveal Game Studio)

• Titanium Court (AP Thomson, Fellow Traveller))

• kevin’s PLAYING in berlin (Kevin Du)

• Wednesdays (The Pixel Hunt, ARTE France)

Honorable Mentions:

The End of Gameplay (droqen), No Players Online (Beeswax Games, Black Lantern Collective), The House Dreams Along With Them (Jeffrey Nordin), Type Help (William Rous), _ΩMEGA_POINT (cathroon), Dreamcore (Montraluz, Tlön Industries), Threshold (Julien Eveillé, CRITICAL REFLEX)

Seumas McNally Grand Prize

• Baby Steps (Gabe Cuzzillo, Maxi Boch, Bennett Foddy, Devolver Digital)

• Angeline Era (Analgesic Productions)

• Blippo+ (YACHT, Telefantasy Studios, Noble Robot, Panic)

• HORSES (Andrea Lucco Borlera, Santa Ragione)

• Titanium Court (AP Thomson, Fellow Traveller)

• Perfect Tides: Station to Station (Three Bees)

Honorable Mentions:

Eclipsium (Housefire, CRITICAL REFLEX), Time Flies (Playables, Panic), Skate Story (Sam Eng, Devolver Digital), Skin Deep (Blendo Games, Annapurna Interactive), BALL X PIT (Kenny Sun & Friends, Devolver Digital), Demonschool (Necrosoft Games, Ysbryd Games), The Drifter (Powerhoof)

Additionally, in partnership with the 28th annual IGF Awards, WINGS Interactive is excited to announce the nominees for the WINGS Award. This prestigious award highlights outstanding games where women and other gender-marginalized developers hold key positions and will be presented during the IGF ceremony.

The full list of finalists for the WINGS Award is as follows:

Ambrosia Sky (Soft Rains)

• Ambrosia Sky is a first-person action and “clean-’em-up” game about cleaning up after a deadly, sentient contamination. Take on the role of Dalia as she returns to her home in the outer rings of Saturn to investigate strange deaths and the alien contamination that caused them.

Backpack Battles (PlayWithFurcifer, IndieArk)

• A PvP inventory management auto battler! Buy and craft powerful items, then carefully arrange them in your backpack.

The Wandering Village (Stray Fawn Studio, Stray Fawn Publishing, Whisper Games)

• The Wandering Village is a city-building simulation game on the back of a giant, wandering creature. Build your settlement and form a symbiotic relationship with the colossus. Will you survive together in this hostile, yet beautiful post-apocalyptic world, contaminated by poisonous plants?

Yes, Your Grace 2: Snowfall (Brave at Night)

• Yes, Your Grace: Snowfall is a cinematic kingdom management game. Take on the role of a King, manage resources, support your loved ones, and make difficult decisions to see your kingdom prosper or fail.

13Z: The Zodiac Trials (Mixed Realms Pte Ltd)

• Fight to be the 13th Zodiac in this action roguelike packed with fast combat, innovative locomotion, vibrant artstyle and a lore steeped in Eastern fantasy lore.

The Independent Games Festival has served as a springboard for breakthrough independent titles. Previous IGF prize winners include CONSUME ME, Venba, Anthology of the Killer, Mediterranea Inferno, Cryptmaster, Phonopolis, and many more critical and cultural hits.

For a deeper dive into what attendees can expect at the GDC Festival of Gaming, please visit the GDC Festival of Gaming website, or subscribe to regular updates via LinkedIn, Facebook, X or BlueSky. Official photos are available via the Official GDC Flickr account: www.flickr.com/photos/officialgdc/.

About GDC Festival of Gaming

GDC Festival of Gaming is the world’s largest professional game industry event with market-defining content for programmers, artists, producers, game designers, audio professionals, business decision makers and others involved in the development of interactive games and immersive experiences. GDC brings together the global game industry community year-round through events and digital media, including GDC Vault, GameDeveloper.com, Independent Games Festival, and the Game Developers Choice Awards.

GDC is organized by Informa PLC, a leading B2B information services group and one of the leading B2B Events organizers in the world. To learn more and for the latest news and information visit www.informa.com.

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