Develop Industry Excellence Awards Winners Announced

LittleBigPlanet and its creator Media Molecule were the big big winners at last night’s Develop Industry Excellence Awards.

Between them, the game and developer scooped five of the prestigious accolades, triumphing in the Best New IP, Visual Arts, Technical Innovation, Best New Studio and Best Independent Developer categories.

Elsewhere, Phil Harrison was awarded the Development Legend award for his sterling contribution to the European games industry during a long and illustrious career. And agent Jacqui Lyons – the first person in the world to recognise the pulling power of games developers – was honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Codemasters, meanwhile, took home the Grand Prix – an award that acknowledges the many achievements made by the company on the global games development stage during almost 25 years of business.

Over 500 games industry creatives gathered at the sold-out event to honour their peers, as Jason Manford hosted a star-studded evening celebrating the very best in the European development industry.

Now in their seventh year, the Develop Industry Excellence Awards are the only dedicated awards evening for European games developers. Voted for by a panel of industry experts pooled from the magazine’s influential and knowledgeable readership, they are a real reminder of the skill, creativity and influence of the European development industry.

“It’s just brilliant that a game which has been commercially successful across the world should be rightly honoured so extensively by the territory in which it was created,” says Michael French, editor in chief, Develop Magazine. “LittleBig
Planet is a real exercise in smart, imaginative game development, and one which put Media Molecule on the map. When the industry is often wrongly criticised for its reliance on licensed titles, Media Molecule has shown the value in a wholly original approach.

“Elsewhere, the Awards were fiercely contested, illustrating the rude health of the creative industry at the moment. We salute the winners, and pat the shoulders of those nominated – but everyone in the business should be rightly congratulated for another stellar year.”

The winners in full:

CREATIVITY

Best New IP
LittleBigPlanet (Media Molecule)

Best Use of a Licence
Lego Batman (Traveller’s Tales)

Visual Arts
LittleBigPlanet (Media Molecule)

Audio Accomplishment
Fable II (Lionhead)

Publishing Hero
Apple

TECHNOLOGY & SERVICES

Technical Innovation
LittleBigPlanet (Media Molecule)

Best Tools Provider
Autodesk

Best Engine
Unreal Engine 3 (Epic Games)

Recruitment Company
Amiqus

Services
Audiomotion

Creative Outsourcing
Side & Sidelines

STUDIOS

Best New Studio
Media Molecule

Best Handheld Games Studio
Rockstar Leeds

Business Development
Playfish

Best Independent Developer
Media Molecule

Best In-House Team
Rockstar North

SPECIAL RECOGNITION

Development Legend
Phil Harrison

Lifetime Achievement Award
Jacqui Lyons

Grand Prix
Codemasters