The Cellular Video games Awards are going down only a week from as we speak in Central London, however there’s nonetheless time to hitch us!
There’s restricted time left to safe your ticket to hitch us at this prestigious ceremony. Safe your seat at this evening of celebration and prepare to attach with the most effective within the video games {industry} as we congregate to rejoice the {industry}’s successes over the previous yr! E book your ticket when you nonetheless can, availability is extremely restricted so don’t go away it till the final minute to register!
That is an occasion you completely gained’t need to miss! This yr’s Pocket Gamer MGAs are a really particular version of those prestigious awards. For the primary time, the Cellular Video games Awards Winners are determined by the {industry}. That’s proper, it’s all as much as professionals working within the cell video games {industry} now and votes are being counted as we converse! Now we have 22 classes every with a collection of worthy finalists who’ve been voted for by {industry} professionals over the previous few weeks, and there’s been an open vote for folks outdoors the {industry} to voice their ideas with The Pocket Gamer Folks’s Selection Award. We’re thrilled to have seen an unprecedented response from the general public for The Pocket Gamer Folks’s Selection Award, and we completely can’t wait to see who the general public crowns the winner amongst the implausible finalists which might be up for this award.
Talking of particular awards, as we speak we’re supplying you with a little bit of perception into the MGAs’ particular lifetime achievement award. One winner is topped because the MGA Cellular Legend annually, and as we speak, we’re diving into what this very particular award means and the winners from years previous in anticipation of who will safe the title this yr. Carry on studying to be taught extra in regards to the unbelievable {industry} veterans which have earned this title.
What’s the Cellular Legend award?
This particular lifetime achievement award recognised an individual from anyplace on the planet who has achieved a substantial quantity of success of their profession and has acted as a pioneer within the cell video games house.
The Cellular Legend is a particular award to recognise an excellent contribution to the cell video games {industry} chosen straight by the organisation committee of the Pocket Gamer Cellular Video games Awards.
Since our inaugural Cellular Video games Awards, we’ve had 5 winners declare the title of Cellular Legends, each one among them a famend video games {industry} pioneer inside their very own proper. These people’ careers and notable achievements excel far past what we are able to cowl on this article, however we’ve supplied a short snippet of their spectacular work that led them to their award. We can’t wait to see what sport {industry} dynamo wins this prestigious award this yr!
2018 – Kristian Segerstrale (CEO of Tremendous Evil Mega Corp)
Kristian Segerstrale was the primary ever recipient of this prestigious award. A real {industry} pioneer, he’s been concerned in lots of, many profitable video games for over a decade and proved himself again and again as an incredible predictor and investor within the subsequent huge initiatives for the video games {industry}. His work started again in 2011 by co-founding java sport developer Macrospace, and he launched over 20 video games below that firm.
He co-founded Playfish in 2007 to benefit from the large adjustments introduced on by free-to-play and social networks and oversaw the likes of The Sims Social, Restaurant Metropolis and Pet Society earlier than promoting the studio to EA for $400 million in 2009. He at the moment works as CEO of esports specialist Tremendous Evil Megacorp.
2019 – Tommy Palm (Founder and CEO of Decision Video games)
Tommy Palm gained this prestigious accolade again in 2019, after twenty years of being closely concerned within the cell video games house. He labored as a vp of cell from 1999 to 2009 and based Fabrication Video games in 2009. They had been ultimately purchased by King in 2012 in a deal value tens of millions.
Palm is credited with taking part in a key position in King’s cell push as they launched Sweet Crush Saga again in 2012, some of the in style cell video games on the planet to this present day, on iOS and Android and was dubbed the ‘Video games Guru’ throughout his time at King. He based Decision Video games again in 2015 and has been serving as CEO ever since on the augmented reality-focused firm, overseeing initiatives together with Bait! and Offended Birds: First Individual Slingshot. He’s additionally devoted to giving again to the {industry} by his non-profit Stugan, an all bills paid video games accelerator for builders to make progress on their video games and obtain mentorship from {industry} specialists.
2020 – Bernard Kim (President of Publishing, Zynga)
Bernard Kim of Zynga was offered with this award in 2020, a celebration of one of many very first pioneers of the cell house. He started his profession in Disney Cellular and ultimately moved to EA Cellular with the aim of bringing video games to units that weren’t, on the time, “meant for gaming” in his personal phrases. He labored at EA for a decade and rose to the place of Senior Vice President, serving to the corporate from early successes on JAVA downloads by the transition to smartphones into the large billion-dollar empire the enterprise is as we speak. He labored on gaming franchises together with Tentris, The Simpsons: Tapped Out, Crops vs. Zombies, Star Wars, Minions and lots of, many extra.
Again in 2016, he joined Zynga as president and helped pave the way in which for the corporate’s development into one of many quickest rising public gaming firms on the planet. Their market cap had virtually tripled in 2020 from the time he joined below his management, and he’s an exemplary {industry} chief who maintains his ardour for gaming on the forefront of his management. In his personal phrases, “My one superpower is I’ve the flexibility to play three hours of video video games each single day, and I’ve performed that for 30-plus years.”
2021 – Chris DeWolfe (Co-founder of Plai Labs)
Co-founder and former CEO of Jam Metropolis Chris DeWolfe joined the unique membership of Cellular Legends again in 2021. His story begins along with his work in MySpace through the rise of the web, with DeWolfe serving to set up MySpace as one of many first and largest social media platforms of our time. Following its sale to Information Corp in 2005, he based Jam Metropolis in 2010 with some colleagues.
As we now know, Jam Metropolis exploded into one of many greatest names within the {industry} to this present day, main 9 studios which have introduced us huge titles reminiscent of Harry Potter: Hogwarts Thriller, Cookie Jam, Panda Pop, Disney Emoji Blitz and Household Man The Quest for Stuff, which have achieved nicely over 1.3 billion downloads. DeWolfe’s affect reaches far past the video games {industry}, being named one among Time 100’s most influential folks on the planet and handpicked by legend Barbara Walters as one of many 10 most fascinating folks.
2022 – Daniel Grey (Chief Artistic Officer, ustwo video games)
Our most up-to-date MGA Cellular Legend is none apart from ustwo video games’ Chief Artistic Officer Daniel Grey. He has been with the awards-winning studio since 2013, however has spent over fifteen years in his profession creating, in his personal phrases, “significant video games at scale” and forming ustwo video games’ outstanding, industry-leading artistic imaginative and prescient.
His profession started at Lionhead Studios’ QA work expertise programme proper after graduating college and moved into work between Lionhead, Kuju Studio and Whats up Video games over the following few years. He made the change over the cell video games at a time the place cell gaming was nonetheless extremely underestimated, being drawn in by ustwo video games’ uncommon background as a design company trying to department out into the cell gaming sphere. Inside a couple of months of Grey becoming a member of the corporate in 2013, ustwo achieved their best hit, Monument Valley, and Grey acquired to be proper there to see the prototyping course of happen. He ultimately moved right into a Head of Studio place and shifted into director duties by 2020. After a short while working the corporate, Grey shifted gears to deal with what he most prioritised spending his time on, and now works at main the artistic imaginative and prescient for the corporate as Chief Artistic Officer. You may learn our interview from final yr with the legend himself for extra perception right here.
Celebrating the way forward for the video games {industry} with the Rising Star award!
Whereas the Cellular Legend award celebrates essentially the most extremely achieved trailblazers who’ve already left a long-lasting mark within the video games {industry}, we equally need to uplift the rising stars who’ve already begun to go away a constructive affect on the video games {industry}. Our Rising Star award was a brand new addition to the awards again in 2020 and recognises an individual from any nook of the globe who has demonstrated a substantial quantity of success, affect, and affect regardless of their comparatively latest arrival inside the cell video games {industry}.
Earlier winners have included Simay Dinç, the Co-Founding father of Recontact Video games, Jana and Sham Al Bdour of Sakura Video games and most just lately, Niantic’s Progress Product Supervisor Karla Reyes. We can’t wait to see what spectacular {industry} newcomer takes this award this yr!
Be among the many greatest names within the video games {industry} subsequent week on the Pocket Gamer Cellular Video games Awards!
There isn’t any place to be just like the Cellular Video games Awards in the case of connecting with the most effective of the current and the way forward for the video games {industry}. Huge names from all corners of the video games {industry} might be becoming a member of us in Central London subsequent week for this huge evening for the video games {industry}, and also you gained’t need to miss this phenomenal alternative to mingle with high authorities and main manufacturers within the {industry}. The present’s developing in only a week, so that is your final likelihood to safe your ticket and be part of us and the {industry}’s most interesting at this prestigious night! There’s a really restricted variety of tickets left, so head over to our official website and safe your spot on the present when you nonetheless can.
