The sixth annual Young Game Designers Awards are taking place July 8 in London. The award ceremony and initiative is hosted and created by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA). Its goal is to inspire and motivate young people aged 10-18 throughout England to compete and create video game prototypes.
“Each year I’m truly inspired by the amazing games that we see and the talent, creativity and enthusiasm that all our entrants show,” said Nick Button-Brown, Chair of the BAFTA Games Committee. “I never fail to be humbled by how much better their work is than what I could do at their age. The entrants to this competition will help to define the future of the games industry, and I for one look forward to seeing what they come up with and playing their games. The awards ceremony in July is a fantastic opportunity to celebrate with all the winners and finalists.”
The categories are divided into Game Concept and Game Making, and each of those is separated by two age groups, 10-14 and 15-18. You can see a full list of this year’s finalists and games here.
There’s also the YGD Mentor Award, which is awarded to an educator of young game designers. The Mentor Award will be announced along with the winners of the YGD Awards.
Last year’s winner of the Game Making Award (15-18) was Daniel Smith. His game, Spectrum, has since been picked up by a publisher and is set to release in 2018.
The YGD Hero Award goes to an industry professional or development team for its support to young game designers. This year’s YGD Hero Award is Unity Technologies.
“We are very grateful to BAFTA for this recognition,” said Jessica Lindl, Global Head of Education at Unity. “At Unity, we believe every young person should have the opportunity to learn how to become a creator, and not just a consumer, of technology. That’s why we invest so deeply in building a powerful and flexible engine that makes young people’s dreams a reality.”
