Nominations for the Australian Game Developer Awards are now open for all eligible developers. Presented by the Interactive Games and Entertainment Association, this year’s awards ceremony will take place in Melbourne on 7 October, concluding the events of Games Connect Asia Pacific and functioning as a celebration for all attendees, nominees and winners.
The AGDAs is a prestigious ceremony within Australia, recognising the best Australian-made games of the year across multiple award categories including art, design, music, narrative, platforms, impact and overall achievement.
Past winners include global hits like Cult of the Lamb, Unpacking, Untitled Goose Game, Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical, Gubbins, The Drifter, Conscript, and more.
2026 AGDAs – quick links
How to nominate for the 2026 AGDAs
The AGDAs aim to recognise developers and studios that have ‘defined the year’ and contributed creatively to the growth of Australia’s arts and culture. This year, there’s a particular focus on acknowledging the skills, perseverance and impact of Australian game makers, given the current economic challenges facing the global games industry.
Eligible developers are able to submit their work across multiple categories, including:
- Visual Art
- Gameplay
- Narrative
- Sound Design
- Music
- Accessibility
- Mobile
- Extended Reality
- Impact
- Ongoing
- Debut
- Game of The Year
The deadline for nominations for the Games Awards is 7 June.
This year also sees the return of the Career & Culture Awards, which are the overall Studio of the Year Award, the Adam Lancman Award and The Rising Star Award. There is a separate form for nominations for the Career & Culture Awards.
Awards will be judged by an expert panel of developers, specialists and critics. The organisers of the AGDAs have also opened expressions of interest to join the judging panel.
The impact of the AGDAs
As developers told ScreenHub, the AGDAs remain an important occasion to elevate the local games industry and celebrate its achievements. Being nominated lends a sense of confidence to teams, and winning gives recognition that often leads to future opportunities.
‘The AGDAs win brought our small team even closer,’ said Kostia Liakhov and Samantha Cable from Spoonful of Wonder (the studio behind 2025 Impact Award winner Copycat) in a joint statement. ‘It was a cherry on top after a long development period of three and a half years. To have been recognised on a national level truly meant the world to us.’
‘Professionally, it’s given us more confidence to apply to other award shows, festivals, and open up conversations in our wider network.’
Ian McLarty of Shape Shop (Mars First Logistics) described his own AGDAs win as ‘great validation’ for all the hard work he and his team put into the project. ‘It was wonderful to have a night to just celebrate what we created,’ he said.
‘It’s just nice to be recognised by your peers. It makes you feel part of something. However, our industry is very diverse and there are many ways to get validation and to feel part of a community,’ he added. ‘The AGDAs is just one.’
Those in a position to nominate should consider submitting their works in the coming weeks, as organisers at IGEA prepare for a grand show in October, to close out one chapter of the games industry calendar.
