Tandem Events have today announced the ten finalists for the Develop:Brighton 2024 Indie Showcase Competition, kindly sponsored by Team Junkfish, celebrating the best unsigned games from indie developers across the UK and Europe.
Each of the ten shortlisted games will be available to play at the Develop:Brighton 2024 Expo, which takes place on Wednesday 10 July and Thursday 11 July at the DoubleTree by Hilton Brighton Metropole during the conference which starts on Tuesday 9 July.
“We’ve been highly impressed this year by the level of innovation and imagination demonstrated in all of the different games that were submitted” said Alistair Aitcheson, chair of the Indie Showcase judging panel.
“The top ten games were ones which went above and beyond in showcasing creativity and originality and we believe that they all possess brilliant potential. We’re thrilled to give them a platform in the Indie Showcase and we can’t wait for you to play these games!”
Develop:Brighton attendees will be able to vote onsite for the People’s Choice award winner, with an additional Overall Winner selected by a panel of expert judges. The winners will be announced during the final session on the final day of Develop:Brighton.
The finalists were selected by a panel of judges and include a magical word-based puzzle game, solving a murder through mind-reading, and a cozy fantasy shopkeeping game.
- The Horror At Highrook by Nullpointer (PC)
The Horror At Highrook is an occult card crafting RPG. Explore a haunted mansion with a team of investigators, summon dark entities, craft powerful protections, uncover the fate of the missing family, and choose your own path through the darkness.
- Wax Heads by Patattie Games (PC)
Wax Heads is a cosy-punk slice-of-life narrative sim about playing matchmaker between customers and albums. Chat to the quirky clientele of Repeater Records, puzzle your way through a handcrafted album collection to find the perfect track, fall in love with bands (and their drama!), and slack off with your colleagues - all to restore the groove!
- LOK Digital by Icedrop Games & Letibus Design (PC)
LOK Digital is a whimsical adventure of magical words and mind-bending mechanics. In it, players will master the mind-bending effects of the LOK language in order to help the Lok creatures. Discover magical words, and learn their rules as you go as each of these words has their own special ability to change the world around you.
- BOTSU: Ridiculous Robots by Peculiar Pixels (PC)
BOTSU: Ridiculous Robots is a funny, physics-based, multiplayer, sports party game. In BOTSU, ragdoll robots compete in numerous humorous game modes, such as Boxball (soccer/basketball), Sumo (wrestling/boxing), and Stockpile (collect and steal points boxes). Between different modes, arenas, environments and modifiers, plus all the physics interactions, every match is unique.
- Trash Goblin by Spilt Milk Studios (PC)
Trash Goblin is a wholesome & cosy shopkeeping game where you uncover & clean trinkets, then upcycle them to sell to endless colourful & quirky customers. Spend your savings to upgrade your shop, buy new and better tools, even expand your business to exciting new districts across town.
- Into the Restless Ruins by Ant Workshop Ltd (PC)
A roguelike deckbuilder where you build the dungeon you fight through. Cards in your deck represent rooms and corridors. Each turn is in two phases - in the first you play cards to expand the ruins, buff your stats, and try to find one of the four Seal rooms you need to activate. In the second phase you auto-battle through the dungeon, collecting XP from enemies to gain new cards, and attempt to activate the seals.
- Pieced Together by Glowfrog Games (PC, Mac, iOS, Android)
Pieced Together is an award-winning cozy scrapbooking game that tells a heartwarming story about friendship, getting older and letting go.
- Super Spelling Ducks by SKYLE Games (PC)
Super Spelling Ducks is a chaotic party game about being ducks who push around blocks to make words. Try a variety of game modes such as the run-based mode against the clock called Quabble, the sokoban-like puzzle game Birdwords, and the competitive multiplayer variant Quabble Clash.
- Dead Meat by Meaning Machine (PC & Mac)
Dead Meat is an innovative murder-mystery game that tells the story of Lucia - a robotics engineer who’s definitely maybe just killed her husband. You play the role of Detective, charged with getting a confession - armed with nothing but your trusty "Mind Reader 3000". Ask Lucia a question, read her mind, and use what you've learnt to get closer to the truth. Get a confession, and you win the game.
- PEPPERED by Mostly Games (PC)
A narrative-driven platformer where you have only one shot at everything. A dark comedy about the meaninglessness of existence. A game where every failed boss fight, every poor choice, and every wrong action remains permanent and determines how the branching storyline will go and how wrong things will get.
Last year’s Indie Showcase winners were Noun Town: VR Language Learning by realiaXR, which was the overall winner, whilst Donjon Fauna by Bang Technologies was crowned the People’s Choice Winner.
Past Indie Showcase winners and finalists have included Paper Trail by Newfangled Games, That Dragon, Cancer by Numinous Games, Sunless Sea by Failbetter Games, Hue by Fiddlesticks Games, Lumino City by State of Play Games and WHAT THE GOLF? by Triband, which won in 2018 and just two years later went on to win Best Mobile Game at the Develop:Star Awards.
Develop:Brighton 2024 takes place at the DoubleTree by Hilton Brighton Metropole from Tuesday 9 to Thursday 11 July 2024. A range of passes for the conference and expo are available to book at https://www.developconference.com/event-info/passes-pricing.
The Develop:Star Awards also take place that Wednesday evening at a new venue, the Brighton Dome, celebrating the best and brightest of the game making community. Tables for this event are available to purchase at https://www.developconference.com/awards.
About Develop:Brighton conference & expo
Develop:Brighton brings together the entire UK game dev industry to learn from each other, share ideas and experiences, network, and do business in a friendly and inclusive environment. The event also offers high quality conference sessions - from the industries brightest minds and talents - with practical takeaways that allow delegates to “skill-up” and be inspired to make better games.
With a programme shaped to reflect attendees’ feedback and hot topics for game makers in 2024 (AI, inclusivity, environment and sustainability, etc.) the Expo brings together some of the most innovative companies from every sector of games development. Guests can also keep up-to date with the latest dev tools/tech and get hands on with all the games on display.
Develop:Brighton offers three days of inspiration, fulfilment, and fun by England’s south coast.
About The Develop:Star Awards
Taking place alongside the conference, the new Develop:Star Awards recognise the very best of the game development community. The achievements of developers and success of great games and creativity will be celebrated across 22 categories, including one ultimate ‘Develop Star’ honouring an extraordinary game developer for outstanding achievement and contribution to the industry.
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