SXSW Interactive Reveals Co-Hosts for the Second Annual Gaming Awards Ceremony Actress Janet Varney and YouTube Sensation Markiplier

Gaming Awards Submission Deadline Approaching December 12th

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Dec 05, 2014, 02:30 ET

AUSTIN, Texas, Dec. 5, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The South by Southwest (SXSW) Interactive Festival today announced co-hosts for its second annual Gaming Awards, honoring the best and most inventive games the industry has to offer. This year's awards ceremony will be hosted by actress and comedian Janet Varney along with actor and popular YouTube personality Markiplier. SXSW is accepting nominations for the awards through December 12, 2014. The SXSW Gaming Awards ceremony takes place Saturday evening, March 14, 2015, at a new location, Austin's premier entertainment venue, ACL Live at the Moody Theater.

"The gaming world is growing rapidly and people everywhere are looking to games as their first choice for entertainment," said Justin Burnham, SXSW Gaming Project Manager. "The SXSW Gaming Awards honor some of the best and most exciting games in the industry. We are thrilled to have entertainers Janet Varney and Markiplier host the show this year and give recognition to the impressive titles the industry is producing."

The Hosts

As the voice for the title character on Nickelodeon's The Legend of Korra, host of the Nerdist's The JV Club podcast, a regular guest on the stage show and podcast phenomenon, The Thrilling Adventure Hour, and co-founder of SF Sketchfest, the San Francisco Comedy Festival, Varney brings more than 15 years of entertaining to the SXSW Gaming Awards stage.

Mark Edward Fischbach, well known as Markiplier in the YouTube community for his video game commentary and voiceover work, has quickly grown his YouTube audience to almost five million dedicated fans in less than three years.

The Gaming Awards

This year, SXSW has added six new award categories to the roster, featuring new categories such as "Mobile Game of the Year," "Table Top Game of the Year," "Most Anticipated Crowdfunded Game" and "Most Valuable Esports Team," among others. With 21 award categories, the SXSW Gaming Awards will celebrate creativity and overall excellence of games across PC, console, mobile, and table top platforms. Indie and AAA developers alike are encouraged to submit. Eligible games or titles must have been released during the 2014 calendar year, with the exception of the Most Anticipated Crowdfunded and Gamer's Voice categories. There is no application fee for entering.

Last year's Gaming Awards showcased the industry's leading talent from the "Gamer's Voice Award" for Nidhogg and the "Matthew Crump Cultural Innovation Award" for Paper, Please to "Excellence in Art" for Bioshock Infinite to "Game of the Year," The Last of Us.

The deadline for the SXSW Gaming Awards submissions is Friday, December 12, 2014, at 11:59 p.m. CT.

The 2015 SXSW Gaming Expo, March 13-15, at the Palmer Events Center, with additional programming at The Long Center for the Performing Arts, is filled with game demos, tournaments, panels and geek swag that appeal to industry experts and consumers alike. The Gaming Expo has become an integral part of the SXSW Interactive experience, attracting more than 48,000 attendees last year.

For more information on the SXSW Gaming Awards, please visit: http://www.sxsw.com/interactive/awards/gaming.

About SXSW Interactive

The 22nd annual SXSW Interactive Festival returns to Austin from Friday, March 13 through Tuesday, March 17. An incubator of cutting-edge technologies and digital creativity, the 2015 event features five days of compelling presentations and panels from the brightest minds in emerging technology, scores of exciting networking events hosted by industry leaders and an unbeatable lineup of special programs showcasing the best new websites, video games and startup ideas the community has to offer. From hands-on training to big-picture analysis of the future, SXSW Interactive has become the place to preview the technology of tomorrow today. Join us in March 2015 for the sessions, the networking, the evening events, the 18th Annual SXSW Interactive Innovation Awards, SXSW Accelerator, the SXSW Gaming Expo, the SXSW Trade Show, SXSW Create, the Digital Creative Job Market, cross-industry conversations with attendees from SXSW Film and SXSW Music, and, most of all, the unforgettable inspirational experiences that only SXSW can deliver.