During Game Developers Conference 2026, the 28th Independent Games Festival (IGF) Awards officially revealed the most innovative and outstanding independent games and their creators of the past year. Developed by AP Thomson and published by Fellow Traveller, the surreal strategy game *Titanium Court* won both the highest honor, the "Seumas McNally Grand Prize," and the "Excellence in Design" award. This not only represents a huge success for the game but also makes developer AP Thomson one of the very few legendary figures in IGF history to win the grand prize twice.
Titanium Court: A surreal tactic combining match-3 and Roguelike elements.
Titanium Court is a surreal strategy game that blends puzzle elements with tactical gameplay. The game received high praise from judges for its unique humorous narrative style, innovative systems, and captivating script.
In terms of gameplay mechanics, it boldly combines the "Match-3" mechanic with tactical Roguelike elements on a single chessboard. Players not only earn points by matching tiles, but also reshape the battlefield terrain, generate resources, and are forced to adapt their strategies in real time to the ever-changing battlefield.
It's worth noting that this is developer AP Thomson's second time standing on the Seumas McNally Game Awards stage. Last year, he shared the same award with developer Jenny Jiao Hsia for "Consume Me." This time, he is on par with Lucas Pope (winner of the 2025 Game Developers Choice Awards Pioneer Award), becoming one of the very few developers in the industry to have won the IGF's biggest award twice.
HORSES wins Nuovo Innovation Award, a plethora of excellent works emerge.
The Nuovo Award, which primarily recognizes games that offer judges a fresh perspective and a disruptive experience regarding "games as a medium," was won this year by Andrea Lucco Borlera and Santa Ragione's first-person horror game, *HORSES*. This game takes players on a 14-day adventure that blurs the lines between reality and the darkest corners of human imagination.
Furthermore, this year's IGF award winners showcased the rich talent and diversity of the global indie game community. For example, the point-and-click adventure game Poco, which blends 2D and 3D elements, won Best Student Game; while the Audience Award, chosen by fans, went to Wednesdays, a game that combines the unique narrative style of games and graphic novels.
Full list of winners for the 28th IGF Independent Games Festival
• Seumas McNally Gaming Awards:"Titanium Court" (AP Thomson, Fellow Traveller)
• Excellence in Design Award:"Titanium Court" (AP Thomson, Fellow Traveller)
• Nuovo Award:"HORSES" (Andrea Lucco Borlera, Santa Ragione)
• Audience Award:"Wednesdays" (Pierre Corbinais, The Pixel Hunt, exaheva, Christophe Galati, ARTE France)
• Best Student Game:"Poco" (Whalefall, Micah Boursier)
• Award for Excellence in Visual Art:Eclipsium (Housefire, CRITICAL REFLEX) is a first-person horror game.
• Award for Excellence in Audio:Baby Steps (Gabe Cuzzillo, Maxi Boch, Bennett Foddy, Devolver Digital) is a unique physics-based mobile game.
• Award for Excellence in Narrative:"Perfect Tides: Station to Station" (Three Bees)
• alt.ctrl.GDC Award:The "ProyectoEXO" (Todo Normal) award primarily recognizes outstanding games that utilize non-traditional, accessible, or alternative physical controllers.
• WINGS Award:13Z: The Zodiac Trials (Mixed Realms Pte Ltd) is a roguelike hack-and-slash game inspired by Eastern mythology.
