Megabonk developer vedinad has announced the withdrawal of the indie hit from consideration for best debut indie game at The Game Awards 2025. The announcement comes just one day after The Game Awards 2025 nominations were revealed on November 17, when fans could begin voting for their choice of winner for each award category.
Released in September Megabonk has been described as “3D The surviving vampires-like” game and quickly became a standout entry in the popular survivor genre. An impressive feat for solo developer vedinada, MegabonkTotal concurrent players on Steam peaked at over 117,000 players in October. WITH Megabonk after the nomination was withdrawn, the remaining nominees for Best Debut Indie Game include:
- Blue Prince
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Despelote
- Send
Megabonk withdraws nomination for Best Debut Indie Game from The Game Awards 2025
In a post on MegabonkThe official X account has confirmed that they are withdrawing the game from consideration at The Game Awards 2025 for Best Debut Indie Game. While vedinad is grateful for the community's support in earning this nomination, it believes it is unfair to the other nominees that Megabonk be considered a debut indie game as they have developed other games under different names in the past. The post goes on to encourage fans to support the other Best Debut Indie Game nominees instead.
Vedinad adds that players can expect a new update for Megabonk soon. Players who are disappointed by it Megabonk won't be considered the best debut indie game, there's still this little trailer to look forward to in the future.
The Game Awards 2025 is already stirring up controversy in several other categories, with some fans believing the title as ARC Raiders it was rejected for Best Audio Design and Game of the Year awards. The Best Performance nominations were also divisive, with some fans believing that three nominations were too many. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 have in one category. Despite these controversies, MegabonkWithdrawal is the only nomination this year so far.
Although nominated for Best Debut Indie Game, Megabonk was not nominated in the Best Independent Game category. There is some overlap between the two categories, with the nominees being:
- Absolutely
- Ball x Pit
- Blue Prince
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Hades 2
- Hollow Knight: Silksong
Both Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and Blue Prince they were nominated for Best Debut Indie Game and Best Independent Game. Nominated for Best Debut Indie Game Despelote it was also nominated for a Games for Impact award.
Unfortunately, Best Debut Indie Game was the only award Megabonk was nominated for, meaning its withdrawal from that category means the game cannot win any of the current award categories. There is still some hope Megabonk fans, as the game has a chance to win the Player's Voice award, which is decided solely by player votes. Voting for the Player's Voice award has not started at this time, so the Megabonk community still has the potential to rally around this game and win it.
- Location
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Los Angeles, California
- Dates
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Annual
