Swedish Game Awards
Encyclopedia
Swedish Game Awards is Sweden
's largest video game development competition. It has been held annually since 2002 and is organized by the student-driven, non-profit entrepreneurship association at the Royal Institute of Technology
, Excitera. The competition's audience is students at Swedish universities, particularly those studying game development
and software engineering
. Funding is handled through partnerships with various software and game development companies, e.g. Digital Illusions CE
and Sun Microsystems
.
area. In 2004, KTH Game Awards was merged with another competition organized by Excitera, called the Excitera Mobile Award. This led to the creation of special class for mobile phone
games, which has remained during subsequent runs. At the same time, the name was changed to Swedish Game Awards to reflect the increase in scope from local to national competition, as well as the fact that the competition had grown to be the largest of its kind in Sweden.
The competition has gradually gained recognition from Swedish game development companies and universities as a way for students to show their game development capabilities and thus increase their chances of getting employment within the game industry. Traditionally, the winners of Swedish Game Awards have gone on to compete in the Independent Games Festival
.
In the early months of the competition, the SGA Tour also occurs. During the tour, representatives from the Swedish Game Awards visit universities and technical schools across the country to engage with competition participants.
Easy Studios Junebud
Gamers Gate Swedish National Defence College
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
's largest video game development competition. It has been held annually since 2002 and is organized by the student-driven, non-profit entrepreneurship association at the Royal Institute of Technology
Royal Institute of Technology
The Royal Institute of Technology is a university in Stockholm, Sweden. KTH was founded in 1827 as Sweden's first polytechnic and is one of Scandinavia's largest institutions of higher education in technology. KTH accounts for one-third of Sweden’s technical research and engineering education...
, Excitera. The competition's audience is students at Swedish universities, particularly those studying game development
Game development
Game development is the software development process by which a video game is developed. Development is undertaken by a game developer, which may range from a single person to a large business. Mainstream games are normally funded by a publisher and take several years to develop. Indie games can...
and software engineering
Software engineering
Software Engineering is the application of a systematic, disciplined, quantifiable approach to the development, operation, and maintenance of software, and the study of these approaches; that is, the application of engineering to software...
. Funding is handled through partnerships with various software and game development companies, e.g. Digital Illusions CE
Digital Illusions CE
EA Digital Illusions Creative Entertainment AB is a Swedish video game developer, wholly owned by Electronic Arts, best known for the Battlefield video game series and Mirror's Edge.-History:...
and Sun Microsystems
Sun Microsystems
Sun Microsystems, Inc. was a company that sold :computers, computer components, :computer software, and :information technology services. Sun was founded on February 24, 1982...
.
History
Swedish Game Awards started in 2002 as a PC-only game competition under the name KTH Game Awards, and was targeted mainly at students in the StockholmStockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
area. In 2004, KTH Game Awards was merged with another competition organized by Excitera, called the Excitera Mobile Award. This led to the creation of special class for mobile phone
Mobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
games, which has remained during subsequent runs. At the same time, the name was changed to Swedish Game Awards to reflect the increase in scope from local to national competition, as well as the fact that the competition had grown to be the largest of its kind in Sweden.
The competition has gradually gained recognition from Swedish game development companies and universities as a way for students to show their game development capabilities and thus increase their chances of getting employment within the game industry. Traditionally, the winners of Swedish Game Awards have gone on to compete in the Independent Games Festival
Independent Games Festival
The Independent Games Festival is an annual festival at the Game Developers Conference, the largest annual gathering of the indie video game industry. It was founded in 1998 to assist and inspire innovation in video game development and to recognize the best independent video game developers...
.
Game of the Year
- 2011 : Dead Meets Lead
- 2010 : Dwarfs
- 2009 : Bloodline ChampionsBloodline ChampionsBloodline Champions is an arena-based free to play PvP game developed by the Swedish company Stunlock Studios and distributed by Funcom using Microsoft XNA. Bloodline Champions won both "Game of the Year" and "Winner XNA" in the Swedish Game Awards 2009...
- 2008 : MagickaMagickaMagicka is an action-adventure video game based on Norse mythology and developed by independent developer Arrowhead Game Studios. It was released via Steam for Microsoft Windows on January 25, 2011. A free demo was also made available for download...
- 2007 : PuzzlegeddonPuzzlegeddonPuzzlegeddon is a puzzle/strategy video game, made by Swedish developer Pieces Interactive. It was released for Microsoft Windows on November 27, 2008, for Xbox Live Arcade on December 16, 2009, and for PlayStation Network on December 17, 2009.-Gameplay:...
- 2006 : Dawnspire: Prelude
- 2005 : CrazyBall
- 2004 : Saga of Ina
- 2003 : Xazzon
Best Innovation
- 2011 : Zap the Bugs
- 2010 : Block Tower Wars
- 2009 : Carpet Wrestling
- 2008 : Blueberry Garden
- 2007 : Fret Nice
- 2006 : Sumo
- 2005 : Promqueen
- 2004 : War, Siege & Conquest
Best Mobile Game
- 2011 : Block Breaker
- 2010 : Phoenix Spirit
- 2008 : Swarm
- 2007 : Magnotix
- 2006 : Quantum
- 2005 : Ice Cakes
Miscellaneous Awards
- 2011 : Jury honour nomination: Unmechanical
- 2010 : Gamer's Choice : Eggnappers
- 2010 : Best Web Game : Continuity
- 2009 : Best XNA game: Bloodline ChampionsBloodline ChampionsBloodline Champions is an arena-based free to play PvP game developed by the Swedish company Stunlock Studios and distributed by Funcom using Microsoft XNA. Bloodline Champions won both "Game of the Year" and "Winner XNA" in the Swedish Game Awards 2009...
- 2009 : Best Java FX: Imperii
- 2009 : Gamer's Choice: Conquer the Hood
- 2008 : Gamer's Choice: Boingo
- 2007 : Best XNA game: Gravitron Ultra
- 2007 : Jury honour nomination: Streambolt Desero, Boiler, Raven Tale
- 2007 : Best PC game runner up: Harvest: Massive EncounterHarvest: Massive EncounterHarvest: Massive Encounter is a real-time strategy indie video game developed and published by Oxeye Game Studio. It was released on March 5, 2008...
- 2007 : Best mobile game runner up: Heximon
- 2006 : Jury honour nomination: Deadbolt
- 2005 : Sony Ericsson Mobile Java 3D Award: 3D Cube
- 2004 : Jury honour nomination: Hockey
Current Competition
The 2010-2011 competition is organized by an international team of Stockholm-based university students in various fields related to game design. In its 9th year, the Swedish Game Awards continues annually to draw greater numbers of entries from student-development teams across Sweden.Event Timeline
The process of the Swedish Game Awards spans the majority of each academic year. Beginning in October with the SGA Kickoff, previous winners, current jury members, and corporate sponsors are invited to present their perspectives of the game industry and the Swedish Game Awards in particular to the upcoming year's participants. Also at this time, the various award categories are announced. The competition submissions are developed by independent teams during the year, culminating in a Jury Weekend and Grand Finale party in late May.In the early months of the competition, the SGA Tour also occurs. During the tour, representatives from the Swedish Game Awards visit universities and technical schools across the country to engage with competition participants.
Partners
AutodeskAutodesk
Autodesk, Inc. is an American multinational corporation that focuses on 3D design software for use in the architecture, engineering, construction, manufacturing, media and entertainment industries. The company was founded in 1982 by John Walker, a coauthor of the first versions of the company's...
Easy Studios Junebud
Junebud
Junebud AB is a Swedish video game company that specializes in browser games and Web3D technology. The company's target focus is console quality, highly accessible 3D browser games, available through web portals and social networks...
Gamers Gate Swedish National Defence College
Rules
The parameters to the competition have remained relatively stable over the years, aimed toward providing a launching pad for talented, independent, student game developers to develop new and marketable games. The official rules are available at http://gameawards.se/competition/rules.External links
- Swedish Game Awards - Official Site
- Swedish Game Awards Concept Art Challenge - Mini-challenge, Concept Art Challenge, Official Site
- Swedish Game Awards Warmup Competition - Mini-challenge, Warmup Competition, Official Site
- SGA TV - Videos, Interviews, and More