Indie developers swept this year's European-centric Develop Industry Excellence Awards in Brighton, UK, as
Minecraft developer Mojang took home three awards and
Angry Birds developer Rovio received the show's coveted Grand Prix award.
Mojang received the New Studio, Micro Studio, and Download IP awards, and Rovio took the Handheld Studio award in addition to earning the Grand Prix for the undeniable success of its mobile powerhouse.
Additional winners included
Moshi Monsters creator Mind Candy for the Business Development Award, Valve Software and its Steam platform for the Publishing Hero award, and Ian Livingstone, Games Workshop co-founder and life president of Square Enix, for the show's Development Legend award.
Develop organizers noted that this year's ceremony was the biggest yet, with over 550 attendees at the show.
Now in its ninth year, the event honors the best of the European game industry, though the Technology and Services category and certain other categories still permit non-European winners.
The full list of categories and winners at the ceremony is as follows:
Creativity
New IP
Enslaved (Ninja Theory)
New Download IP
Minecraft (Mojang Specifications)
Use Of A License Or IP
F1 2010 (Codemasters Birmingham)
Visual Arts
Limbo (Playdead)
Audio Accomplishment
Papa Sangre (Somethin’ Else)
Publishing Hero
Valve
Technology And Services
Technical Innovation
Kinect (Microsoft Research Cambridge)
Audio Outsourcer
Side UK
Visual Outsourcer
Axis Animation
Services
Audiomotion
Recruitment
Specialmove
Tools Provider
Autodesk
Engine
Unreal Engine 3 (Epic Games)
Studios
New Studio
Mojang Specifications
Micro Studio
Mojang Specifications
Handheld Studio
Rovio Mobile
Business Development
Mind Candy
In-House Studio
Media Molecule
Independent Studio
Crytek
Special industry Recognition
Development Legend
Ian Livingstone
Grand Prix
Rovio Mobile
"A packed house of the industry elite saw the cream of European games development take home much-deserved accolades, showing our industry in excellent health," said Develop editor-in-chief Michael French.
"Key winners such as Rovio,
Minecraft, Mind Candy and Valve all prove that independent companies have been reinvigorated, and are today empowered by new platforms and business models to create best-selling games properties without needing publisher support or interference."
