Keep Driving, a road trip-themed management RPG with pixel art, claimed the Grand Prize at the DevGAMM Awards, held on Friday night. The Swedish studio YCJY Games, behind the game, received a $20,000 cheque. The competition, open to indie developers and small studios, had a total prize pool of $135,000. This year's event saw 15 games awarded, including Despelote for Excellence in Narrative, Promise Mascot Agency for Epic Games Store Indie Spotlight, and Rockbeasts for Excellence in Audio. Glasshouse from FLAT28 Collective won the Developers Choice award, while Misery from Platypus Entertainment x Ytopia secured the Community Vote. The show featured 63 nominees, selected from 610 entries. The DevGAMM Lisbon conference, attended by 1,122 people, included a talk by Chris Charla, general manager of portfolio and programs at Xbox, who discussed seven common mistakes in game launches. The conference also showcased 80 games and had over 60 speakers, including Raphaël Joffres and Tim Browne. The event was preceded by the Madeira Games Summit, a smaller gathering for industry leaders. The DevGAMM Awards celebrated a diverse range of games, with winners from various categories, including Battle Cars, Breathedge 2, Crowded, DDoD, Drop Duchy, Hell Maiden, Keep Driving, Misery, Promise Mascot Agency, Rockbeasts, Stretchmancer, Tukoni, and What the Clash? GamesIndustry.biz's travel and accommodation for the event were funded by DevGAMM, with a focus on showcasing the latest indie games and fostering the growth of the industry.
