On December 11th, the winners of the 2021 indiePlay, China’s Indie Game Awards, were announced. Starting in 2015, indiePlay China’s Indie Game Awards is now one of the most prestigious indie game awards in China. The award is organized by CiGA (China indie Game Alliance). This year, Supercell also sponsored the event.
311 games entered the selection this year across PC, console, mobile, and VR platforms. Both the number of entries and the overall quality of the works have further improved. Readers can access the WePlay online resource site at http://gmhub.com/weplay2021 and try out all the participating games.
Due to the pandemic measures, the ceremony was held in a hybrid mode. With most of the developers joining the ceremony virtually.
The Grand Prize for Best Game this year went to Zoo Breaker, developed by Metal Hands Games. It is a pixel RPG that feels like Zootopia met Prison Break. The cinematic art direction combined with the innovative semi-open level design has provided gamers with the ultimate immersive experience. Another highlight was OPUS: Echo Of Starsong developed by SIGONO. This text-based piece has created its own oriental aesthetics through meticulously designed interactive elements. The game won two awards, Excellence in Narrative and Excellence in Audio, at this year’s indiePlay.
For more information on the event, check out the full list of winners below:
Excellence in Narrative: OPUS: Echo of Starsong by SIGONO
Excellence in Audio: OPUS: Echo of Starsong by SIGONO
Excellence in Innovation: Forgetter by Sometimes Monastery
Excellence in Visual Art: Behind the Frame: The Finest Scenery by Silver Lining Studio
Excellence in Game Design: My Time at Sandrock by Pathea
Best Overseas Games: GOSIA by Petit Depotto
Best Mobile Games: Detective Mimo by OMESCAPE
Nova Prize (Rising Star): TANERGAME (Studio)
Best Game Grand Prize: Zoo Breaker by Metal Head Games
Best Game Jam
Third Prize: Train Toll Station (火车收费站) by The Grand Canal（京杭大运河）
Second Prize: Small Town Train（小镇火车）by Dan Ru Dan Chu （蛋入蛋出）
First Prize: Dreamcatcher by Shao Nv Qi Tao Zu（少女乞讨组）
Best Student Games
Third Prize: Dualistic Man by Dualistic Man Studio （二元人工作室）
Second Prize: Jelly Express by xx gamestudio （叉叉工作室）
First Prize: Refactor by Gaga（嘎嘎）