Public Voting to Select Indie Game Challenge Gamer's Choice Award Now Underway

Contest this year has international focus with seven out of 12 finalist composed of non-US teams

DALLAS, and CALABASAS, Calif., Feb. 1, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Public voting is underway for the Gamer's Choice Award in the second annual Indie Game Challenge(SM) sponsored by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS), GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME), and The Guildhall at Southern Methodist University.  The Gamer's Choice Award is one of more than $350,000 in prizes available to the 12 finalist teams in the Indie Game Challenge.  Visit  www.indiegamechallenge.com between now and midnight CT, Feb. 10, to learn more about the 12 finalists and to vote.  

The competition has a truly global perspective as a result of the IGC expanding this year's submissions to include international developers.  Half of the finalist teams reside outside the US:

• Limbo's nine-member professional team, Playdead: Denmark
• Spaces of Play, Spirit's four professional developers:  Germany
• Five-member professional team, Nemesys games, creators of Fortix 2: Hungary
• Professional two-member team responsible for Confetti Carnival, SpikySnails: Israel
• Hazard: The Journey of Life professional designer Alexander Bruce: Australia
• Non-professional five-member team behind Q.U.B.E., Toxic Games: England
• ZZZ Games, non-professional 10-member team and creators of Symon: Singapore

Also of interest is the breadth of academic influence presented among the non-professional category finalists:

• DigiPen Institute of Technology: Solace and Subsonic
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology: Symon
• Southern Methodist University: Inertia

Voters for the Gamer's Choice Award will be entered into the Gamer's Choice Sweepstakes, which offers a grand prize trip for two to Los Angeles to tour G4 studios, passes to attend a taping of the popular "X-Play" program, and a meet-and-greet with "X-Play" host Adam Sessler. The sweepstakes winner will be selected in March.

The winning Gamer's Choice Award team will be presented $10,000 on Feb. 11, at the D.I.C.E.™ (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit being hosted at Red Rock Resort & Casino in Las Vegas.  D.I.C.E. is an annual conference hosted by the AIAS dedicated to exploring approaches to the creative process and artistic expression as they uniquely apply to the development of interactive entertainment.  

In addition to the Gamer's Choice Award, the grand prizes and category winners of the Indie Game Challenge will also be unveiled at D.I.C.E. in an awards ceremony hosted by Sessler. The six non-professional and six professional finalists are eligible for more than $350,000 in prizes, including separate $100,000 pro and non-pro team awards, an SMU scholarship and more.

Complete details about the Indie Game Challenge, the Gamer's Choice Award and the Gamer's Choice Sweepstakes and the official rules can be found at www.indiegamechallenge.com.  

About the Indie Game Challenge

The Indie Game Challenge (IGC) is an annual competition for video game developers offering more than $350,000 in prizes for professional and non-professional categories.  Founded by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences, GameStop Corp. and The Guildhall at SMU, the IGC was created to foster game development innovation by independent developers.  Prizes include cash awards, scholarships, national consumer exposure for the top games and an opportunity for the finalists to obtain professional feedback and seek commercial avenues for their games through face-to-face meetings with representatives from the leading video game publishers.  For more information on the IGC visit www.indiegamechallenge.com, www.interactive.org, www.gamestop.com or http://guildhall.smu.edu.

SOURCE Indie Game Challenge