And The Indie Game Award Goes To…

The Indie Game Awards 2025 close out the year celebrating global indie excellence

The Indie Game Awards returned last night with their second annual awards-only ceremony, celebrating the developers and teams pushing independent games forward through creativity, innovation, and emotional storytelling.

The 2025 ceremony spotlighted standout achievements across a wide range of categories, recognising independent creators from around the world whose work continues to shape the future of the medium.

Alongside the ceremony, viewers can now watch the full awards presentation and browse the official Indie Game Awards Steam Sale, which features a curated lineup of titles from this year’s nominees, winners, and participating studios.

Game of the Year

The top honour of the night went to Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 from Sandfall Interactive, which also picked up the award for Best Debut Game, marking a major breakout moment for the studio.

Full List of 2025 Indie Game Awards Recipients

Achievement in Accessibility
PEAK – Team PEAK

African Indie Game Award (curated by Playtopia Festival)
Stick It To The Stickman – Free Lives

ANZ Indie Game Award (curated by Frosty Games)
The Drifter – Powerhoof

Bite-Sized Game
Time Flies – Playables

Black Voices in Gaming Award (curated by Black Voices in Gaming)
Altheia: The Wrath of Aferi – MarsLit Games

Community Management
PEAK – Team PEAK

Debut Game
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 – Sandfall Interactive

Emotional Impact
and Roger – TearyHand Studio

Gameplay Design
BALL x PIT – Kenny Sun

Industry Impact
Game Devs of Color

Innovation
Blue Prince – Dogubomb

Latin American Indie Game Award (curated by the Latin American Games Showcase)
Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo – Pocket Trap

The Mohammad Fahmi Storyteller Award
Maddy Thorson

Music
Rift of the NecroDancer – Danny Baranowsky, Alex Moukala, Jules Conroy, Josie Brechner, Sam Webster, and Nick Nausbaum

Narrative
Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector – Jump Over the Age

Solo Development
Tall Trails – Brady Soglin

Southeast Asian Indie Game Award (curated by the Southeast Asian Games Showcase)
Artis Impact – Mas

Visual Design
30 Birds – RAM RAM Games, Business Goose Studios

Women-Led Indie Game Award (curated by Women-Led Games)
Urban Myth Dissolution Center – Hakababunko

Indie Vanguard | Class of 2025

The Indie Vanguard programme also recognised individuals and studios making a lasting impact on the indie scene:

• Alice Bottino and Chancellor Wallin
• Cookiecrayon
• Crashable Studios
• Gabby DaRienzo
• Gortyn Code

The Indie Game Awards will return in 2026, with a date announcement expected shortly after the holiday period. As the event looks ahead, its mission remains unchanged: celebrating and supporting independent developers across the globe who continue to make games more inventive, inclusive, and personal.

More details on this year’s nominees, featured titles, and ways to get involved can be found on the official Indie Game Awards website.