About the Develop:Star Awards
Bringing together the game dev community to celebrate the very best games and talent.
The Develop:Star Awards recognise the very best games and talent within the industry with categories that enable studios of every size to shine. These awards are all about the game dev community celebrating the creative excellence of the game makers behind the best games of the previous 12 months.
The Develop:Star Awards winners will be announced during Develop:Brighton at a ceremony at The Dome on the evening of Wednesday 9 July.
How to Enter
How it works:
- The qualifying period for entries is from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025.
- Entry to the Develop:Star Awards is open to any companies working in the game dev industry with teams based in the UK, or Europe if they have a strong connection to the UK (e.g. a UK-based publisher or strong UK sales).
- You can enter yourself or your own organisation, or you can nominate a third party.
- Entries must be submitted via our online entry form. Any entries submitted via any other medium will not be considered.
- When reviewing entries for the shortlist, judges will only use the information provided by you on the submission form within the deadline period.
- To give yourself or whoever you are nominating the best possible chance, please follow our criteria instructions on the form carefully and provide your information exactly as requested – this will help provide the judges with entries of a consistent standard and make it a fairer judging process.
- Entry for the Develop:Star Awards closes at midday on Friday 4 April 2025.
Shortlist selection:
- All entries will be evaluated by panels of games industry professionals appointed by the Develop:Star Awards team. The judging panel for each awards category will review entries and select a shortlist of 5 finalists for that award.
- The shortlisted entries will be announced w/c 12 May 2025.
Selection of the winners:
- The Develop:Star Awards are all about game devs recognising the achievements of other game devs. So winners will be independently selected by the game dev community – anyone who has attended Develop:Brighton in the last three years or has registered for this year’s event will be able to vote online for their favourite finalists.
- Voting will take place from 12 to 30 May.
- Winners will be announced at the Develop:Star Awards ceremony on Wednesday 9 July 2025.
- View the Develop:Star Awards terms and conditions here
Top Tips Before You Start Your Entry
1. Have a Clear Objective
Tell us why you or your nominee deserves to win. Be clear with your message - what sets the nominee apart from the other entrants?
2. Be Different
Judges and voters want to see nominees that stand out from the crowd, so make your entry engaging and inspirational - show us how excited you are about your entry.
3. Forward Planning
Draft an outline plan of what you want to get across before you start writing and talk to other team members to get their input.
4. Create a Story
Judges and voters like a clear narrative. Think about the 5 W’s – Who, What, Why, Where and When.
5. Answer the Questions Succinctly
Try not to waffle – think about what is being asked and answer thoroughly but concisely.
6. Put Yourself in the Judges Shoes
The judges will be reading lots of entries while whittling the nominees down to our final shortlist – make it an easy and enjoyable read and back up any claims with real-life examples and facts and figures where appropriate.
7. Supporting Materials
Only use evidence that really backs-up what you’re saying. Videos are a great way to show off a project and if you’re entering a game category then share game codes so the judges can play your game - if they haven’t already!
The Stars Schedule
- 3 February - Nominations open
- 4 April - Entry deadline
- 7 April to 2 May - Judging for the shortlist
- W/c 12 May - Shortlist announced and online voting for the winners opens
- 30 May - Voting closes
- 4 June - Early Bird Deadline
- 9 July - Winners announced at the Awards ceremony
Develop:Star Awards Party
The Develop:Star Awards winners will be announced at a ceremony on the evening of Wednesday 9 July during Develop:Brighton.
Venue:
Brighton Dome
New Road
Brighton
BN1 1UG
Party Timings:
- 19:00 Drinks
- 19:45 Awards Presentation
- 20:30 Dinner
- 21.45 Awards Presentation
- 22.30 After Party
Develop:Star Awards Categories
Recognising a team that has achieved exceptional game design that exhibits innovation, creativity and technical achievement in a specific game.
Qualifying games must have been released in the UK during the qualifying period 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Only significant expansions and DLC for existing games will be considered for this category.
Recognising a team that has demonstrated distinction in the use of sound and/or music to improve or enhance the player experience for a specific game.
Qualifying games must have been released in the UK during the qualifying period 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Only significant expansions and DLC for existing games will be considered for this category.
Recognising a team that has achieved exceptional creative, commercial and critical results with a brand-new intellectual property.
Qualifying games must have been released in the UK during the qualifying period 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Recognising a team that has demonstrated exceptional achievement in visual art and animation in a specific game.
Qualifying games must have been released in the UK during the qualifying period 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Only significant expansions and DLC for existing games will be considered for this category.
Recognising a team that has demonstrated exceptional achievement in storytelling to create an outstanding player experience – through innovative or ground-breaking writing.
Qualifying games must have been released in the UK during the qualifying period 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Only significant expansions and DLC for existing games will be considered for this category.
Recognising an exceptional technical innovation across video game software, hardware and engines, that demonstrates a fresh approach, unique thinking and/or addresses a particular need in the market.
Entries must be for a specific software or hardware innovation, the creation of which can be attributed to a company or companies.
Qualifying entries must have come to market in the UK during the qualifying period 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Recognising an exceptional initiative that has had a positive impact on equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) within a video game company or the wider industry.
Qualifying initiatives must have launched or shown demonstrable results during the qualifying period 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Recognising an exceptional marketing campaign for a video game or video game hardware that has demonstrated outstanding results during the qualifying period.
Campaigns must have been activated in the UK during the qualifying period 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Qualifying campaigns can be in support of products released outside of the qualifying period but must support new content or a significant new update to that product.
Recognising the outstanding work of a company supporting the game development community, including providers of creative audio-visual assets, QA and localisation, law, accountancy and production, but not recruitment.
Qualifying entries must include evidence of success that first occurred during the qualifying period 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Recognising an in-house team or external company or agency for exceptional work in the fields of talent acquisition, retention and development.
Qualifying companies must be able to provide evidence of outstanding approaches, practices and results that fall within the qualifying period 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Recognising outstanding new and emerging talent within the games industry.
Qualifying entrants must be in a position below senior management or director level at the time the submission is made.
All supporting evidence for the entry must fall within the qualifying period - 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Recognising outstanding achievement in the development and application of accessibility features that are wide-ranging, impactful and show exceptional craft.
Qualifying entries must be for accessibility features in specific games released in the UK during the qualifying period 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Recognising an organisation that has shown outstanding support helping developers get their game published. This can include via funding, discoverability, research or anything else that helped secure a successful route to market for new games.
Qualifying publishers must have published at least one game or significant content update for a game during the qualifying period - 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025 in the UK.
Recognising the stand-out game available on mobile phone or tablet devices that has excelled in all aspects of game development to achieve creative, commercial and critical success.
Qualifying games must have been released in the UK during the qualifying period - 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Only significant expansions and DLC for existing games will be considered for this category.
Recognising the game on any platform that stands out above all others, excelling in all aspects of game development to achieve creative, commercial and critical success.
Qualifying games must have been released in the UK during the qualifying period - 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Only significant expansions and DLC for existing games will be considered for this category.
Recognising a studio with ten or fewer employees that has achieved exceptional critical and commercial success during the qualifying period - 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Entrants must have released a game or significant content update for a game in the UK and during that period.
Recognising a studio with eleven or more full-time employees that has achieved exceptional critical and commercial success during the qualifying period - 1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025.
Entrants must have released a game or significant content update for a game in the UK and during that period.
The 2024 Develop:Star Awards winners were:
- Best Visual Art: Alan Wake 2 - Remedy Entertainment | Epic Games
- Best Narrative: Baldur's Gate 3 | Larian Studios
- Talent Development Star: nDreams
- Best Technology Provider: Unreal Engine
- Best Creative Provider: PitStop Productions
- Best Technical Innovation: Viewfinder - Sad Owl Studios | Thunderful Publishing
- Best Audio: Alan Wake 2 - Remedy Entertainment & Epic Games
- Best Game Design: Helldivers 2 - Arrowhead Game Studios | Sony Interactive Entertainment
- Recruitment Star: Amiqus
- Best QA & Localisation: Keywords Studios
- Marketing Star: Hannah Flynn – Failbetter Games
- Diversity Star: Moo Yu – POC in Play
- Tomorrow’s Star: Amy Elliott
- Sustainability Star: Green Game Jam
- Best Creative Lead: Sam Lake – Remedy Entertainment
- Supporting Star: Game Republic
- Best Original IP: Balatro – LocalThunk | Playstack
- Best Mobile Game: Sonic Dream Team - HARDlight | SEGA
- Best Small Studio: inkle
- Publishing Star: Kepler Interactive
- Best Game: Baldur’s Gate 3 – Larian Studios
- Best Studio: Larian Studios
The Develop:Star Award 2024
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Sports Interactive were the recipient of the 2024 Develop Star Award which recognises outstanding achievements and contributions to the games industry - so congratulations to the Sports Interactive team.
Sponsorship
The Develop:Star Awards offer a range of sponsorship opportunities to help you achieve your marketing & promotional goals. Whatever your aims, there’s something to suit every pocket - all designed to maximise your exposure.
To find out how you can get involved contact us at:
E: [email protected]
T: +44 (0)20 3927 6440