Full Winners List From the Indie Game Awards 2025

Clair Obscur / Indie Game Awards 2025

UPDATE 12/20: Initially, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 won both the Game of the Year and Debut Game awards, but after a recent revelation about their use of generative AI in some parts, the organizers decided to strip the awards from developer Sandfall Interactive.

ORIGINAL STORY:

The celebration season continues. After the Game Awards, the Streamer Awards, and the Horror Game Awards, it’s now time to spotlight the indie scene.

The second annual Indie Game Awards just wrapped up on Thursday evening (December 18), honoring some of the best indie titles of 2025 across 21 categories.

This year’s ceremony was packed with standout moments. Blue Prince emerged as the big winner, taking home Game of the Year. Meanwhile, Hollow Knight: Silksong claimed Community Game of the Year.

Other highlights included Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector for Narrative, and Peak for Achievement in Accessibility.

The event also recognized industry contributions beyond games. Maddy Thorson of Extremely OK Games received the Mohammad Fahmi Storyteller Award, while the Industry Impact Award went to Game Devs of Color (Catt Small, Brian S. Chung, and Josh Boykin).

Game Devs of Color is a nonprofit that works to uplift the creative voices of people of color in the gaming world through events, community support, and advocacy. Every year, they host the Game Devs of Color Expo, a celebration of the talent and contributions of diverse creators in the industry. The expo is a space for networking, showing off new games, and exchanging ideas among developers.

In addition, the Indie Vanguard Class of 2025 spotlighted five promising projects and teams shaping the future of indie development.

Below is the full list of winners and nominees from the Indie Game Awards 2025:

Game of the Year

• Absolum – Dotemu, Guard Crush Games, Supamonks

• and Roger – TearyHand Studio

• Blue Prince – Dogubomb (WINNER)

• Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector – Jump Over the Age

• Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 – Sandfall Interactive (Disqualified)

• Hades II – Supergiant Games

• Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo – Pocket Trap

• Hollow Knight: Silksong – Team Cherry

• Consume Me

• Keep Diving – YCJY Games

Achievement in Accessibility

• Abiotic Factor – Deep Field Games

• Barista – YofiAsi

• Calm the Storm – Ludic Lemur

• Peak – Team PEAK (WINNER)

• Spray Paint Simulator – North Star Video Games

• Squeakross: Home Squeak Home – Alblune

ANZ Indie Game Award

• Abiotic Factor – Deep Field Games

• Hollow Knight: Silksong – Team Cherry

• Mars First Logistics – Shape Shop

• PROXIMATE – Cain Maddox

• Tempopo – Witchbeam

• The Drifter – Powerhoof (WINNER)

Bite-Sized Game

• CARIMARA – Beneath the Forlorn Limbs – Bastinus Rex

• FlyKnight – Wabbaboy

• Many Nights a Whisper – Deconstructeam, Selkie Harbour

• The Dark Queen of Mortholme – Mosu

• this game will end in 205 clicks – insertdisc5

• Time Flies – Playables (WINNER)

Black Voices in Gaming Award

• Advent Neon – CryoGX

• Altheia: The Wrath of Aferi – MarsLit Games (WINNER)

• Sorry We’re Closed – à la mode games

• Spirit Swap: Lofi Beats to Match-3 To – Soft Not Weak, LLC

• Sunken Stones – Spritewrench

• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tactical Takedown – Strange Scaffold

Debut Game

• Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 – Sandfall Interactive (Disqualified)

• Discounty – Crinkle Cut Games

• Fretless: The Wrath of Riffson – Ritual Studios

• ILA: A Frosty Glide – Magic Rain Studios

• Sorry We’re Closed – à la mode Games (WINNER)

• Tyrant’s Realm – Team Tyrant

Emotional Impact

• Afterlove EP – Pikselnesia

• and Roger – TearyHand Studio (WINNER)

• Don’t Get Your Hopes Up – Krish Raghav

• Henry Halfhead – Lululu Entertainment

• Wanderstop – Ivy Road

• Wednesdays – Pierre Corbinais, The Pixel Hunt, exaheva

Gameplay Design

• Absolum – Dotemu, Guard Crush Games, Supamonks

• BallxPit – Kenny Sun (WINNER)

• Dawnfolk – Darenn Keller

• Hades II – Supergiant Games

• Hollow Knight: Silksong – Team Cherry

• Keep Driving – YCJY Games

• Look Outside – Francis Coulombe

• Öoo – NamaTakahashi, tiny cactus studio, Tsuyomi

• Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo – Pocket Trap

• The King is Watching – Hypnohead

Innovation

• Blue Prince – Dogubomb (WINNER)

• FREERIDE – Flightyfelon Games Inc.

• Gas Station Story – enzi

• PBJ The Musical – Philipp Stollenmayer

• Ruffy and the Riverside – Zockrates Laboratories UG

• Taria & Como – Poppyseed Studio Inc, JuVee Productions

Narrative

• Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector – Jump Over the Age (WINNER)

• Consume Me – Jenny Jiao Hsia, AP Thomson, Jie En Lee, Violet W-P, Ken “coda” Snyder

• Promise Mascot Agency – Kaizen Game Works

• The Drifter – Powerhoof, Dave Lloyd

• The Roottrees are Dead – Evil Trout Inc.

• The Séance of Blake Manor – Spooky Doorway

Music

• Everhood 2 – Chris Nordgren, Jordi Roca

• Herdling – Okomotive

• Rift of the NecroDancer – Brace Yourself Games, Tic Toc Games (WINNER)

• SONOKUNI – DON YASA CREW

• Sword of the Sea – Giant Squid

• Wheel World – Messhof

Solo Development

• Tall Trails – Brady Soglin (WINNER)

• Lushfoil Photography Sim – Matt Newell

• Megabonk – vedinad

• NAIAD – HiWarp

• Spilled! – Lente

• Vile: Exhumed – Cara Cadaver

African Indie Game Award

• Bru & Boegie Get Da Milk! – MIKDOG

• Finding Father – Studio Bo

• Flibbius McDoogle and The Mysterious Flying Machine – Unsigned Double Collective

• IKEELYA – ALL DAY ALL NIGHT

• Metavoidal – Yellow Lab Games

• Stick It To The Stickman – Free Lives (WINNER)

Southeast Asian Indie Award

• Afterlove EP – Pikselnesia

• Artis Impact – Mas (WINNER)

• Glyphica: Typing Survival – aliasBLACK

• SEDAP! A Culinary Adventure – kopiforge

• Urban Jungle – Kylyk Games

• Whisper Mountain Outbreak – Toge Productions

Latin American Indie Award

• Adventure of Samsara – Ilex Games

• despelote – Julian Cordero, Sebastian Valbuena

• Kulebra and the Souls of Limbo – Galla

• Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo – Pocket Trap (WINNER)

• Taria & Como – Poppyseed Studio Inc, JuVee Productions

• Tormented Souls 2 – Dual Effect

Visual Design

• 30 Birds – RAM RAM Games, Business Goose Studios (WINNER)

• Artis Impact – Mas

• Cat Detective Albert Wilde – beyondthosehills

• Eclipsium – Housefire

• Mashina – Talha and Jack Co, J. King Spooner, Talha Kaya

• Slime Rancher 2 – Monomi Park

Women-Led Indie Game Award

• Cabernet – Party for Introverts

• Duck Detective: The Ghost of Glamping – Happy Broccoli Games

• Gemporium: A Cute Mining Sim – Merge Conflict Studio

• Spilled! – Lente

• Urban Myth Dissolution Center – Hakababunko (WINNER)

• White Knuckle – Dark Machine Games

Community Picks (Fan-Voted)

• Action Game: Hades II

• Adventure Game: Hollow Knight: Silksong

• Horror Game: R.E.P.O.

• Interactive Fiction: Date Everything!

• Multiplayer Game: Peak

• Puzzle Game: Blue Prince

• Role Playing Game (RPG): Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

• Simulation Game: Schedule I

• Strategy Game: The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy

• Survival Game: Abiotic Factor

• Community Game of the Year: Hollow Knight: Silksong

The Mohammad Fahmi Storyteller Award

• Maddy Thorson (Extremely OK Games)

Industry Impact

• Game Devs of Color (Catt Small, Brian S. Chung, Josh Boykin)

Indie Vanguard

• Chantey — Gortyn Code

• Neon Knives — Cookiecrayon

• Seasonala Cemetery — Gabby DaRienzo, Kait Tremblay, Jen Costa, Nina Wong, halina heron, Mobeen Fiktree, Jacqueline de Leon

• HYPERBEAT — Alice Bottino / Chancellor Wallin / Dreamware Media

• Wildwood Down — Crashable Studios

You can check out all the winners and highlights on the official Six One Indie channel.