The first GAM3 Awards aim to become the Grammys of Web3 gaming. Web3 games are video games built with blockchain technology. Many of the sector’s best-known firms and people have joined the effort.
The event takes place on December 15 and is presented by Polkastarter Gaming. It will honor the best Web3 games of the year, as chosen by expert judges and the wider community.
Over 200 Web3 games and content creators are up for 16 prizes, including “Game of the Year.” The judges whose votes will pick the winners include:
- Justin Kan, Founder of Fractal
- Urvit Goel, Head of Global Games at Polygon Studios
- Itai Elizur, Managing Partner at Market Across
- Rachel Levin, Director of Venture & Strategy at ImmutableX
- Matt Sorg, Head of Technology at Solana Foundation
GAM3 Awards 2022 is the first yearly Web3 gaming awards show. It is hosted by Polkastarter Gaming. This is Polkastarter’s first big step toward shaping the future of blockchain gaming. Its gaming community has grown to over 70,000 players around the world.
The awards honor the best-made Web3 games. The event draws industry leaders, blockchain ecosystems and media outlets. The top game developers and content creators will also share cash prizes and services worth more than $300,000.
Highlighting Best-In-Class Blockchain & Web3 Games
The GAM3 Awards were set up to spotlight the best Web3 games. They also aim to show that blockchain is a net plus for the gaming industry. The show will stream live on Polkastarter Gaming’s Twitch, YouTube and Twitter channels at the same time.
To keep voting thorough and fair, the jury will include over 30 gaming and Web3 leaders, ecosystem partners and media outlets.
Winners will gain fame and recognition. They can also share in $300,000 in prizes from sponsors such as:
- Immutable X
- Blockchain Game Alliance
- Machinations
- Naavik
- Ultra
The event will honor developers who build the best gaming experiences. It will also show off the best Web3 games available today.
Award categories
Each type of game will have its own “Best” award. The categories are:
- Action game
- Mobile game
- Adventure game
- Casual game
- Role-playing game
- Shooter game
- Graphics
- Strategy game
- Card game
- Multiplayer game
- Esports game
- Content creator
There will also be awards for Most Anticipated Game, Games’ Choice and People’s Choice. Future editions plan to add even more categories. To learn how players earn in these games, see our guide to play-to-earn tokens.
An All-Star Jury From The Gaming Industry
The jury brings years of gaming experience. It includes Yoshihisa Hashimoto, a former Square Enix CTO. He directed titles such as Sonic: Unleashed and Final Fantasy XIV Online. The jury also includes a former Senior Director of Partnerships at Electronic Arts.
Other jury members have held senior roles at Electronic Arts, Riot Games, Zynga, Xbox Game Studios, Amazon Gaming and Unity Technologies. They include the following:
- Sarutobi Sasuke, Head of Partnerships at YGG
- Dan Patterson, General Partner at Sfermion
- Brendan Wong, CEO at Avocado DAO
- Jesper Lindquist, Senior Manager Web3 Gaming at Animoca Brands
- Marco van den Heuvel, Co-Founder & CEO at Merit Circle
- David Hanson, Founder & CEO at Ultra
- John Izaguirre, BD Director at BNB Chain
- Abhimanyu Kumar, Co-Founder at Naavik
- Nathan N., Co-Founder at Ancient8
How voting works
The jury’s vote counts for 90% of the result. The public’s vote makes up the other 10%. A few categories follow different rules:
- Games’ Choice: game studios vote for their own pick for “Game of the Year.”
- People’s Choice: the community alone decides.
- Best Content Creator: the community alone decides.
The shortlist will show the jury’s top five picks in each category.
Once the shortlist is out, community voting will open on Polkastarter Gaming’s website around mid-November. The winners will be announced in December.
Games will be judged on several factors:
- The core loop, the main repeated action in a game
- Graphics
- Accessibility
- Replay value
- Fun
- The overall playing experience
To qualify, games must use blockchain technology. But they must not lose sight of good gameplay and playability.
Celebrating The Future Generation Of Web3 Gaming Builders
The event also honors the next wave of Web3 gaming builders. Game studios are invited to nominate their own staff, developers and experts from all fields. Those chosen will join the first “GAM3 Changers” list, which celebrates the future of Web3 gaming.
Justin Kan, Founder of Fractal, the awards’ content partner, said: “We are excited to partner with Polkastarter Gaming on this event, it is truly a step in the right direction for the industry and the first of its kind in Web3 gaming.”
Omar Ghanem, Head of Gaming at Polkastarter, said: “We called it the “GAME” awards, with a 3, to keep the focus on the actual games themselves, get rid of the Web3 jargon and negative connotation, while still paying tribute to the underlying Web3 tech that we believe will help shape the future of gaming.”
The GAM3 Awards aim to spotlight the high quality of today’s Web3 games. They also want to show the real promise of blockchain in games, without hurting the games themselves.
The event is large in scale, and its jury and partners are varied and well known. As the industry keeps growing, these awards could become the standard yearly ceremony for Web3 gaming. For more gaming and crypto stories, visit our crypto news today page.
