The nominees for the Debug Indie Game Awards have been announced. The awards, which are “dedicated to indie games and the people who make them,” are in their second year of existence.
The ceremony will take place on 21st February 21 2025, led by Josh Strife-Hayes, a well-known gaming YouTuber and streamer with 929K subscribers on YouTube and 190K followers on Twitch, at the Nottingham Metronome, streamed live on Twitch and Youtube.
The Nominees for the 2025 Debug Indie Game Awards are as follows:
Best Soundtrack
- A Park Full of Cats
- Drug Dealer Simulator 2
- Gatekeeper
- Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island
- Turbo Kid
- Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom
Best UK Indie
- Crow Country
- Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island
- Paper Trail
- Sociable Soccer 25
- Sorry We’re Closed
- Valley Peaks
Best VR Game
- Airspace Defender
- Arcade Paradise VR
- DIG VR
- On Point
- Solara One
- Wall Town Wonders
Free Play Award
- A Park Full of Cats
- ColorCoordination
- Feud
- Pixelitos
- Please, Touch The Artwork 2
- Project Shoreline
ICYMI Award (Recognizing previously overlooked gems)
- A Hat in Time
- Little Misfortune
- Loop Gero
- Rivals of Aether
- Sable
- Tinykin
Innovation & Creativity
- Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure
- Death of the Reprobate
- Harold Halibut
- Paper Trail
- Rusty’s Retirement
- SCHiM
Award for Mental Health (Games promoting mental health awareness and well-being)
- [Bober Bros] The Hole
- Back Then
- I’ll be Brave, Tomorrow
- Spiral
- Spirit City: Lofi Sessions
- The Bear – A Story from the World of Gra
Most Anticipated
- Axyz
- Cairn
- Crescent County
- Dungeon Rampage Remake
- Promise Mascot Agency
- Vaporwave Pinball
Best Physical Release
- A Little to the Left: Extra Tidy Edition
- Cassette Beasts Deluxe Edition
- Escape Team
- Inspector Waffles Early Days
- PlateUp!
- VED
Retro World Award (Celebrating games inspired by retro aesthetics and mechanics)
- Courier
- Dragonyhm
- FLEA!2
- Goodboy Galaxy
- Kudzu
- Roguecraft
Subscribers’ Choice Award (Voted for by the Debug community)
- Animal Well
- Gori: Cuddly Carnage
- Pacific Drive
- Paper Trail
- Thank Goodness You’re Here!
- The Plucky Squire
Best Voice Acting
- 1000xRESIST
- Closer the Distance
- Farewell North
- Still Wakes the Deep
- The Holy Gosh Darn
- Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina)
Award for Accessibility (Recognizing outstanding accessibility features)
- Another Crab’s Treasure
- Botany Manor
- Elsie
- Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island
- Pine Hearts
- Seasonspree
Best Art Direction
- #Blud
- Harold Halibut
- Puzzles for Clef
- SCHiM
- Sorry We’re Closed
- Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom
Best Gameplay
- Arco
- Buckshot Roulette
- DROVA – Forsaken Kin
- Gori: Cuddly Carnage
- Shady Knight
- Shapez 2
Best Narrative
- 1000xRESIST
- Closer the Distance
- Copycat
- Farewell North
- Mouthwashing
- Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina)
Best New Studio
- BerserkBoy Games
- Halftone Gaming
- Hilltop Studios
- Not Suspicious
- Slow Bros
- Whalestork
Best Sound Design
- Botany Manor
- Hollowbody
- Lynked: Banner of the Spark
- Solara One
- Still Wakes the Deep
- The Operator
The Debug Indie Game Awards are now open to the public, with tickets available before Friday’s ceremony. You can also watch the awards live on YouTube and Twitch.
Words by Louise Eve Leigh
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