The SXSW Sydney Games Festival is now back, and it’s bringing the heat. Across one dynamic week, the festival unites some of the most daring, inventive, and genre-defying titles from across the world, spotlighting the visionaries shaping the future of play.
The celebration will reach its crescendo on Saturday, the 18th of October, with the SXSW Sydney Games and Screen Awards, kicking off at 7 pm at UTS Underground. Expect a night where developers, dreamers, and die-hard players collide in a ceremony-turned-party that salutes the very best in global gaming.
From nimble indie upstarts to powerhouse studios, the Awards honour the trailblazers reimagining what games can be. Here’s a look at this year’s contenders lighting up each of the following categories…
SXSW Sydney Discovery Award
Celebrating a breakout title from emerging developers or new studios featured in the SXSW Sydney Games Showcase.
- Beyond the Board – Fragile Shapes Studio
- Compress(space) – B-Deshi Interactive
- Desktop Explorer – Recurring Dream
- Letters to Arralla – Little Pink Clouds
- PRŠÍ – Herdek Kolektiv
SXSW Sydney Best International Game
Showcasing exceptional work from teams outside Australia and New Zealand, this award shines a light on the global minds redefining game design.
- Auridia – Norseboar Games
- FACEMINER – Wristwork
- Goodnight Universe – Nice Dream
- Relooted – Nyamakop
- Stretchmancer – Triangle Wave
SXSW Sydney Game of the Year
The crown jewel. This award celebrates a game that fuses artistic mastery with technical brilliance, the kind of experience that lingers long after the credits roll.
- Aether & Iron – Chaos Theory & Seismic Squirrel
- As Long As You’re Here – Autoscopia Interactive
- Gambonanza – Blukulélé
- Mixtape – Beethoven & Dinosaur
- Tavern Keeper – Greenheart Games
SXSW Sydney People’s Choice Award
This one’s all you. Vote for the game that stole your heart via the SXSW Sydney app. Voting closes 18 October at 5 pm, ahead of the awards that evening.
The Best Tabletop Game Award
The dice will roll at the Games Awards, where the winner for Best Tabletop Game will be revealed after judging wraps during the festival.
SXSW Sydney Best Student Game Award
Presented on Wednesday, 15 October at 2:30 pm at ICC Sydney Parkside Ballroom, this category highlights the extraordinary talent rising from university programs across the Asia-Pacific.
The winning team will also score a 12-hour mentorship with the creative titans at Devolver Digital, an opportunity to supercharge their next big idea.
Nominees include:
- Aberrate Inc. – Aberrate Team (Macquarie University)
- Bento Blocks – Sometimes Limited (Media Design School)
- Cloudlings – Howler (University of Queensland)
- Cyberpedia – Bitcrush (RMIT)
- Pistil – Sagehart Studio (RMIT)
- Soul Launder Inc. – P3.14 & Minions (King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi)
With fresh talent, fearless creativity, and a few well-earned trophies on the line, SXSW Sydney’s Games Festival isn’t just a celebration of play; it’s a love letter to interactive imagination itself.
SXSW Sydney 2025 is set to explore the ideas and innovations defining our future, from the rapid rise of AI and the transformation of work to breakthroughs in quantum tech, cybersecurity, sustainability, and the creative industries. Running from October 13–19, the week-long festival will feature more than 1,600 sessions and events, including 400+ conference sessions, 150+ professional development sessions, 300+ live music performances, 95 film screenings, 150 games, and 400+ brand activations across the city.
Final passes are now on sale at sxswsydney.com.
