SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 6 CA-ngmoco-GDC-iPhone
SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Think Services, organizers of the
Game Developers Conference and the Independent Games Festival, have entered a
new partnership with high-profile iPhone game publisher ngmoco. The deal will
add a $10,000 'Best iPhone Game' prize to 2009's Independent Games Festival
Mobile (http://www.igfmobile.com), and increase the maximum amount of prizes
in the hotly contested indie mobile competition to a record $30,000.
The partnership with ngmoco, the Kleiner Perkins-funded iPhone publisher
co-founded by former EA executive Neil Young, includes a Gold Sponsorship of
the IGF Mobile event, which is now in its second year. The mobile-centric
indie event, originally created by Think Services and Founding Sponsor Nvidia,
is expanding to include iPhone games this year. With last year's Grand Prize
winner Critter Crunch already a successful title on Apple's handheld,
organizers are expecting a surge in iPhone game entries.
"ngmoco is proud to support the independent development community and
burgeoning micro-studios who are dedicated to creating device defining 'only
on iPhone' games," Alan Yu, Vice President, Artist & Repertoire, ngmoco, said.
"As gamemakers, we've long admired the IGF for showcasing and highlighting
innovation and independent thinking in games."
iPhone developers entering their games will be eligible for all IGF Mobile
categories, which also include game design, art, technical and audio awards, a
Best Game award, and other major prizes. In addition, entry into IGF Mobile is
free this year, meaning it's easy for 'bedroom programmers' and upwardly
mobile indies alike to enter the competition.
The finalists in the 'Best iPhone Game' category will be invited to
showcase their games on the expo floor at the industry-leading Game Developers
Conference 2009, to be held in San Francisco from March 23th-27th, 2009. In
addition, the winners of the category will be revealed onstage at the special
IGF Mobile awards ceremony at GDC 2009, and also highlighted at the flagship
Independent Games Festival Awards event at the show.
"We're delighted to be working with ngmoco to help discover the best
iPhone games out there," commented Simon Carless, Chairman, Independent Games
Festival. "We're starting to see open platforms and innovation spread indie
goodness into fascinating new places, and highlighting worthy, high quality
iPhone games is something that will benefit both discerning consumers and
developers."
In addition to the IGF Mobile sponsorship, ngmoco has also partnered as
the exclusive sponsor of Think Services' new iPhone and iPod Touch-specific
weblog, FingerGaming (http://www.fingergaming.com). The site, one of the
leading outlets in the rapidly expanding space, covers business announcements,
gaming news, trends, and impressions regarding games for Apple's touch screen
handheld.
For more information on IGF Mobile and entering this year's competition,
for which the deadline is November 17th, please visit
http://www.igfmobile.com.
About ngmoco
Headquartered in San Francisco, ngmoco is the publisher of games
specifically created for the iPhone. The privately held company was founded
in 2008 by games industry veterans and is funded, and backed by top-tier VCs
Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Maples Investments. For more information,
please visit http://www.ngmoco.com.
About the Think Services Game Group
A core provider of essential information to the professional game
industry, the Think Services Game Group offers market-defining content, and
drives community through its award winning lineup of print, online, event and
research products and services. These include Game Developer Magazine, Game
Developer Research, the Webby Award-winning Gamasutra.com,
GameCareerGuide.com, the Game Developers Conference, and the Austin Game
Developers Conference. For more information, please visit
http://www.tsgamegroup.com/.
SOURCE Think Services Game Group
