CMP Game Group's Independent Games Festival Launches IGF Mobile, Awarding Mobile Game Creators $20,000 in PrizesCall for Submissions Now Open for Mobile Game Industry's First-Ever Independent Games Festival, Spotlighting Innovation in Games for Cellphones and other Mobile Devices, Including DS and PSPPRNewswire SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 30 /PRNewswire/ -- CMP Game Group's Independent Games Festival (IGF) will launch a sister event for the handheld games industry, IGF Mobile, at the 2008 Game Developers Conference taking place February 18-22 at San Francisco's Moscone Convention Center. The first-of-its-kind event, celebrating innovation in games for cellphones and other mobile devices including Sony's PlayStation Portable and the Nintendo DS, is now accepting submissions from all independent developers working on mobile platforms at http://www.igfmobile.com/. Submissions are open through Friday, October 26. Winners of the event will be recognized with $20,000 in prizes at the IGF Mobile ceremony, taking place during the GDC Mobile event at Game Developers Conference on February 19, 2008. IGF Mobile is launching with NVIDIA, creator of the GoForce family of GPUs for handheld devices, as the Founding and Platinum Sponsor. In keeping with the company's philosophy of encouraging and fostering new technology innovation, NVIDIA is particularly supporting the 'Innovation in Augmented Design' category as part of its sponsorship. The prize specifically honors mobile games that were developed using GPS, camera, motion sensing, and WiFi elements, along with other unique and differentiating features. This $2,000 prize will be awarded in addition to other $2,000 prizes for Innovation in Mobile Game Design, Audio Achievement, Technical Achievement, and Achievement in Art. Finally, the title named Best Game of IGF Mobile will receive a $10,000 Grand Prize. IGF Mobile will also feature all finalist games in playable form within a special pavilion on the Game Developers Conference 2008 show floor, alongside the main IGF Pavilion, on February 20-22, 2008. "The portable games industry has come so far over these past few years in terms of originality and creativity, we felt it was time to recognize the star independent-minded mobile developers with their own festival, pavilion and awards," said Mathew Kumar, Content Director of IGF Mobile and editor of CMP Game Group's mobile game industry news site, GamesOnDeck. "We can't wait to see and play the wide range of innovative, handheld-specific gameplay experiences to be submitted over the next couple of months." The IGF was established in 1998 by the CMP Game Group to encourage innovation in game development and to recognize the best independent game developers, much the way that the Sundance Film Festival honors the independent film community. The creation of IGF Mobile, for which additional sponsorship placements are still available, is the Game Group's direct response to the maturing of the mobile and handheld game industry, and the desire to similarly recognize and reward those driving the advancement of the space. For further information on IGF Mobile, or to enter a submission, please visit http://www.igfmobile.com/. About the CMP Game Group (http://www.cmpgame.com/) The CMP Game Group delivers essential information and enables community within the game industry through events, services, and media. The group's flagship products include the Game Developers Conference and the Webby Award-winning Gamasutra.com. For more information, please visit http://www.cmpgame.com/. About CMP Technology (http://www.cmp.com/) CMP Technology is a marketing solutions company serving the technology industry. Through its market-leading portfolio of trusted information brands, CMP has earned the confidence of more technology professionals than any other media company. As a result, CMP is the premier provider of access, insight and actionable programs designed to connect sellers and buyers in ways that yield superior return on investment. CMP Technology is a subsidiary of United Business Media (http://www.unitedbusinessmedia.com/), a global provider of news distribution and specialist information services with a market capitalization of more than $3 billion. SOURCE: CMP Game Group CONTACT: Sibel Sunar, sibel@fortyseven.com, or Brian Rubin, Web site: http://www.cmpgame.com/ |