Activision Announces an Independent Developer Contest
Jack Fish June 3, 2010 - 6:37 pm
While many may be quick to dismiss the indie sweethearts vying for our affection, Activision has a much kinder idea regarding them: pit them against each other in a showdown for cold hard cash.
While it may be true that many independent games end up resembling Indian Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, there are those shining gems that remind us the underdog can still sometimes win outside of Hollywood. Since I like a feel-good story as much as the next overly sentimental guy, it always warms my heart to see big-name publishers offering support to independent developers.
The first round of the contest will be running from now until August 31, and will award $175,000 to the first place contest and $75,000 to the runner up. It’s currently open to US entries only, so European indie developers will have to keep struggling with low budgets and obscurity for the time being. Activision has announced there will be a second round to the contest, but has yet to release details. Perhaps a European showdown?
The final round will consist of five games to be judged by a third-party panel selected by Activision executives. Each game that makes it this far will have to submit right of first refusal to Activision and feature their logo in the finished game. The winners will be announced this October.
Source: Gamesindustry.biz
