Indie Game Developer Network

The Indie Game Developer Network (IGDN) is a trade association for developers of indie role-playing games, board games, card games, and LARPs.^[1] They present the annual Indie Groundbreaker Awards at Gen Con.^[2]^[3]^[4] Their other programs include a scholarship to attend the game designer convention Metatopia, a mentorship program, and a peer coaching program.^[5]^[6]

Indie Groundbreaker Awards

The Indie Groundbreaker Awards began in 2016 and are offered in 5 categories: Game of the Year, Best Art, Best Setting, Best Rules, and Most Innovative. They are judged by a rotating panel of game designers. After the Indie RPG Awards gave their final set of awards in 2017,^[7] IGDN's Indie Groundbreaker Awards took on their function in the tabletop role-playing game community of evaluating and recognizing achievements in independent game design.

Award Winners by Year

2016

Award	Game	Credits
Game of the Year	A Real Game^[8]	Aura Belle
Best Art	Fall of Magic^[9]	Ross Cowman (Heart of the Deernicorn)
Best Setting	Downfall^[10]	Caroline Hobbs (Less Than Three Games)
Best Rules	Death of Legends^[11]	Imaginary Empire
Most Innovative	183 Days^[12]	Tiny Knives

2017

Award	Game	Credits
Game of the Year	Seven Wonders^[13]	Pelgrane Press
Best Art	Fellowship^[14]	Liberi Gothica Games
Best Setting	War Birds
Best Rules	Masks: A New Generation^[15]	Magpie Games
Most Innovative	The Beast

2018

Award	Game	Credits
Game of the Year	Bluebeard's Bride^[16]	Whitney "Strix" Beltrán, Marissa Kelly, Sarah Doombringer (Magpie Games)
Best Art	Bluebeard's Bride^[17]	Whitney "Strix" Beltrán, Marissa Kelly, Sarah Doombringer (Magpie Games)
Best Setting	Arecibo^[18]	Evil Hat Productions
Best Rules	Damn the Man, Save the Music^[19]	Hannah Shaffer
Most Innovative	Feast^[20]	Sharang Biswas
Groundbreaking Supplement	Harlem Unbound^[21]	Chris Spivey

2019

Award	Game	Credits
Game of the Year	Dialect: A Game About Language and How It Dies^[22]	Kathryn Hymes and Hakan Seyalıoğlu (Thorny Games)
Best Art	Bluebeard's Bride: Book of Rooms^[23]	Whitney "Strix" Beltrán, Marissa Kelly, Sarah Doombringer (Magpie Games)
Best Setting	The Way of Pukona^[24]	Evil Hat Productions
Best Rules	Good Society (game)^[25]	Storybrewers Roleplaying (Vee Hendro and Hayley Gordon)
Most Innovative	Verdure^[26]	Sharang Biswas

2020

Award	Game	Credits
Game of the Year	Companions' Tale^[27]	Laura Simpson
Best Art	Humblewood^[28]	Hit Point Press
Best Setting	Afterlife: Wandering Souls^[29]	Angry Hamster Publishing
Best Rules	Mazes^[30]	9th Level Games
Most Innovative	If I Were a Lich, Man^[31]	Lucian Kahn

2021

Award	Game	Credits
Game of the Year	Crescendo Giocoso Ritornello^[32]	The Italian Chamber Orchestra
Best Art	Lutong Banwa^[33]	Diwata ng Manila
Best Setting	Karanduun - Make God Bleed^[34]	Joaquin Kyle Saavedra
Best Rules	Slayers^[35]	Spencer Campbell
Most Innovative	This Discord Has Ghosts In It^[36]	Will Jobst and Adam Vass (World Champ Game Co.)

2022

Award	Game	Credits
Game of the Year	Brave Zenith^[37]	Giuliano Roverato and Rodrigo Melchior
Best Art	A Fantastic Longing for Adventure^[38]	Tim Hutchings
Best Setting	Arcon: City of Neon Daylight^[39]	Kienna Shaw and Jason Cutrone
Best Rules	GUN&SLINGER^[40]	Nevyn Holmes
Most Innovative	My Body is a Cage^[41]	Batts

2023

Award	Game	Credits
Game of the Year	Slugblaster: Kickflip Over a Quantum Centipede^[42]^[43]	Mikey Hamm
Best Art	Dinocar^[42]^[44]	Julie-Anne Muñoz
Best Graphic Design	Butter Princess^[42]	Brian Sago, graphic design by Mike Martens
Best Setting	Gubat Banwa^[42]	Joaquin Kyle Saavedra
Best Rules	Saltfish and Almanacs^[42]	Storybrewers Roleplaying (Vee Hendro and Hayley Gordon)
Most Innovative	The Sticker Game^[42]^[45]	Cassi Mothwin and Joshua Peters

References

^ "The Gaming Shelf Celebrates the Indie Groundbreaker Awards". Gizmodo. 2022-08-02. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
^ "Indie Game Developer Network". Indie Game Developer Network. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
^ "Indie Game Developer Network". Dicebreaker. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
^ Wieland, Rob (August 2, 2018). "THESE 5 INCREDIBLE INDIE RPGS ARE GROUNDBREAKING (AND AWARD-WINNING)". Nerdist.
^ Girdwood, Andrew (2022-09-11). "2022 IGDN Diversity Sponsorship opens applications and funding". Geek Native. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
^ "Serena and the Power of Collaborative Indie Game Development". the-artifice.com. 26 July 2015. Retrieved 2023-03-28.
^ "Indie RPG Awards". www.indie-rpg-awards.com. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
^ https://auramakesgames.itch.io/
^ "Fall of Magic – Heart of the Deernicorn".
^ "Downfall: Less Than Three Games".
^ "DriveThruRPG".
^ https://www.drivethrucards.com/product/144510/183-Days
^ "Seven Wonders – A Story Games Anthology". 18 November 2015.
^ "DriveThruRPG".
^ "Masks".
^ "Bluebeard".
^ "Bluebeard".
^ "DriveThruRPG".
^ "Damn the Man, Save the Music! By Turtlebun".
^ "Feast by astrolingus".
^ "Harlem Unbound - 2nd Edition - PDF".
^ "Dialect: A Game about Language and How it Dies".
^ "Book of Rooms".
^ "DriveThruRPG".
^ "Good Society: A Jane Austen Roleplaying Game".
^ "Verdure by astrolingus".
^ "Companions' Tale [Print+PDF] :: Print+PDF Bundles :: IPR".
^ "Humblewood".
^ "Afterlife: Wandering Souls [Book & PDF] | Angry Hamster Publishing". 11 September 2019.
^ "Mazes | 9th Level Games". Archived from the original on 2023-03-27. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
^ http://ifiwerealichman.com
^ "Crescendo Giocoso Ritornello by NessunDove".
^ https://diwatamnl.itch.io/lutong-ban^{[permanent dead link]}wa
^ "Karanduun - Make God Bleed Edition by makapatag".
^ "Slayers by Gila RPGS".
^ "This Discord Has Ghosts in It by will jobst, World Champ Game Co".
^ "Brave Zenith by Roll 4 Tarrasque".
^ "A Fantastic Longing for Adventure by timhutchings".
^ "Arcon by KiennaS, JustJasonPls".
^ "GUN&SLINGER by Nevyn Holmes".
^ "My Body is a Cage by Batts".
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Carter, Chase (2023-08-01). "IGDN's 2023 Groundbreaker winners include a 90-pound butter heist, reality-spanning stickers and dinos in cars". Dicebreaker. Retrieved 2024-09-26.
^ https://www.dicebreaker.com/games/slugblaster/news/slugblaster-tabletop-rpg-kickstarter
^ https://www.dicebreaker.com/categories/roleplaying-game/best-games/zine-month-2023-rpgs
^ https://www.dicebreaker.com/games/the-sticker-game/news/sticker-game-rpg

[1] "The Gaming Shelf Celebrates the Indie Groundbreaker Awards". Gizmodo. 2022-08-02. Retrieved 2023-03-27.

[2] "Indie Game Developer Network". Indie Game Developer Network. Retrieved 2023-03-27.

[3] "Indie Game Developer Network". Dicebreaker. Retrieved 2023-03-27.

[4] Wieland, Rob (August 2, 2018). "THESE 5 INCREDIBLE INDIE RPGS ARE GROUNDBREAKING (AND AWARD-WINNING)". Nerdist.

[5] Girdwood, Andrew (2022-09-11). "2022 IGDN Diversity Sponsorship opens applications and funding". Geek Native. Retrieved 2023-03-27.

[6] "Serena and the Power of Collaborative Indie Game Development". the-artifice.com. 26 July 2015. Retrieved 2023-03-28.

[7] "Indie RPG Awards". www.indie-rpg-awards.com. Retrieved 2023-03-27.

[8] ttps://auramakesgames.itch.io/

[9] "Fall of Magic – Heart of the Deernicorn".

[10] "Downfall: Less Than Three Games".

[11] "DriveThruRPG".

[12] ttps://www.drivethrucards.com/product/144510/183-Days

[13] "Seven Wonders – A Story Games Anthology". 18 November 2015.

[14] "DriveThruRPG".

[15] "Masks".

[16] "Bluebeard".

[17] "Bluebeard".

[18] "DriveThruRPG".

[19] "Damn the Man, Save the Music! By Turtlebun".

[20] "Feast by astrolingus".

[21] "Harlem Unbound - 2nd Edition - PDF".

[22] "Dialect: A Game about Language and How it Dies".

[23] "Book of Rooms".

[24] "DriveThruRPG".

[25] "Good Society: A Jane Austen Roleplaying Game".

[26] "Verdure by astrolingus".

[27] "Companions' Tale [Print+PDF] :: Print+PDF Bundles :: IPR".

[28] "Humblewood".

[29] "Afterlife: Wandering Souls [Book & PDF] | Angry Hamster Publishing". 11 September 2019.

[30] "Mazes | 9th Level Games". Archived from the original on 2023-03-27. Retrieved 2023-03-27.

[31] ttp://ifiwerealichman.com

[32] "Crescendo Giocoso Ritornello by NessunDove".

[33] https://diwatamnl.itch.io/lutong-ban^{[permanent dead link]}wa

[34] "Karanduun - Make God Bleed Edition by makapatag".

[35] "Slayers by Gila RPGS".

[36] "This Discord Has Ghosts in It by will jobst, World Champ Game Co".

[37] "Brave Zenith by Roll 4 Tarrasque".

[38] "A Fantastic Longing for Adventure by timhutchings".

[39] "Arcon by KiennaS, JustJasonPls".

[40] "GUN&SLINGER by Nevyn Holmes".

[41] "My Body is a Cage by Batts".

[:0-42] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Carter, Chase (2023-08-01). "IGDN's 2023 Groundbreaker winners include a 90-pound butter heist, reality-spanning stickers and dinos in cars". Dicebreaker. Retrieved 2024-09-26.

[43] ttps://www.dicebreaker.com/games/slugblaster/news/slugblaster-tabletop-rpg-kickstarter

[44] ttps://www.dicebreaker.com/categories/roleplaying-game/best-games/zine-month-2023-rpgs

[45] ttps://www.dicebreaker.com/games/the-sticker-game/news/sticker-game-rpg

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