NEW YORK (June 15, 2022) – Games for Change, the leading global advocate for the power of games as drivers of social impact, announced their award finalists for the 19th annual Games for Change Awards. The Games for Change Awards will be streamed at 7:00 pm EDT on July 15, 2022, as part of the first-ever hybrid Games for Change Festival, July 13 - 16.
This year’s awards are the most competitive and global in the Festival’s history – with over 400 submissions across nine categories: Best Gameplay, Most Innovative, Most Significant Impact, Best Learning Game, Best Student Game, Best Civics Game, Best Health Game, Best Narrative Game, and Best XR for Change.
A group of 125 game developers, researchers, and experts in game design reviewed the games and selected the finalists. Game entries came from established AAA studios, indie developers, and university-level students.
“Since 2011, the Games for Change Awards have highlighted the best social impact games from around the world. We have seen such fantastic growth over the past decade, and this year we had a record number of submissions from indie and AAA studios, solo developers, and more,” said G4C President Susanna Pollack. “With 14 countries represented, we are thrilled to see the reach of these games and the global diversity of voices represented.”
The 2022 Games for Change Awards finalists include:
Most Innovative:
- Before Your Eyes from GoodbyeWorld Games
- The Vale: Shadow of the Crown from Falling Squirrel
- Inua - A Story in Ice and Time from Iko - The Pixel Hunt ARTE France
- Unpacking from Witch Beam
Best XR for Change:
- The Choice from Joanne Popinska
- DIAGNOSIA from Mengtai Zhang and Lemon Guo
- Gravitational from Electric Monkeys
- Steps of Privilege from REM5 Studio
- Svoboda 1945: Liberation from Charles Games
- VOXPOP from Gigantic Mechanic
- Dot's Home from Weathered Sweater & Rise Home Stories Project
- MadeVR: Take me to the end of the Assembly Line from Singing Cicadas
Best Gameplay:
- Road 96 from DigixArt
- Before Your Eyes from GoodbyeWorld Games
- Midnight Protocol from LuGus Studio & Sixty Four
- Lost Recipes from Schell Games
Best Learning Game:
- Lingo Legend from Hyperthought Games Inc.
- Ava from Team Ava
- Culture Overlord from Lucas Vially
- Math Makers from Ululab
Most Significant Impact:
- Svoboda 1945: Liberation from Charles Games
- Blackhaven from Historiated Games
- Dot's Home from Weathered Sweater and Rise Home Stories Project
- MadeVR: Take me to the end of the Assembly Line from Singing Cicadas
Best Health Game:
- Smileyscope MRI from Smilescope
- REThink Game from Babes-Bolyai University of Cluj-Napoca
- BeatNic Boulevard from skillsgapp
Best Narrative Game:
- Before Your Eyes from GoodbyeWorld Games
- Dot's Home from Weathered Sweater and Rise Home Stories Project
- The Vale: Shadow of the Crown from Falling Squirrel
- UNSIGHTED from Studie Pixel Punk
Best Student Game:
- There You Are from Funky Dango
- P.A.N.I.K.O. from Bluv Studio
- The Social Engineer from Pascal Jansen & Fabian Fischbach (Zefwih)
- Project Anomaly: Urban Supernatural Investigator from Dark Science
Additionally, games from the Best Gameplay, Most Innovative, Most Significant Impact, Best Health, Best Narrative, Best Civics, and Best Learning Game categories are eligible for the “G4C People’s Choice” Award, presented by Facebook Gaming. Voting for the People’s Choice Award will open later this week.
“Facebook Gaming is proud to sponsor Games for Change once again this year. Games are a powerful tool for innovation, creativity, and social impact which is why we are excited to see who will win the 2022 People's Choice Award," Sabs Meditz, Head of Gaming Partnerships – Americas, Facebook Gaming.
For more information, visit the Festival site.
About Games for Change
Since 2004, Games for Change (G4C) has empowered game creators and innovators to drive real-world change, using games and immersive media that help people learn, improve their communities, and contribute to making the world a better place. G4C partners with technology and gaming companies and nonprofits, foundations, and government agencies, to run world-class events, public arcades, design challenges, and youth programs. G4C supports a global community of game developers working to use games to tackle real-world challenges, from humanitarian conflicts to climate change and education.
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