adminMixtape was the leading title at the Australian Game Developer Awards 2026, earning Game of the Year along with Excellence in Art and Excellence in Sound Design. The awards also recognised studios and creators across a broad range of categories, from gameplay and accessibility to music and narrative.
Image credit: Beethoven & Dinosaur
Mixtape wins three awards at the 2026 ceremony
Beethoven & Dinosaur’s Mixtape received three honours, including the ceremony’s top prize. The judges described it as “a triumph in virtual storytelling,” highlighting its distinctive visual identity and heartfelt music. Its wins across art and sound design also recognise two different parts of the game’s creative presentation.
For readers comparing the awards, the category wins offer a quick way to see which projects were recognised for specific strengths. Mixtape led in the overall award count, while several other games took home honours in individual areas.
Other notable Australian Game Developer Awards winners
Tempo Lab Games’ rhythm game Bits & Bops won Excellence in Gameplay and Excellence in Accessibility. Canberra-based Uppercut Games was named Studio of the Year. The judges cited the studio’s diverse team and a company culture centred on collaboration and respect.
Uppercut Games, known for the Submerged series, is working on Magicians: The Devil’s Deal, which is scheduled to launch in 2027. Other category winners included Schrodinger’s Cat Burglar for narrative, Malys for music and Key Fairy for debut.
The ceremony also presented the inaugural Games Connect Asia Pacific (GCAP) Legacy Award to Tony Albrecht, a principal software engineer at Riot Games and an industry veteran. The award recognised his commitment and advocacy for the ANZ video game community. Amy Potter-Jarman and Tyson Butler-Boschma received the 2026 Rising Star Award, while Paris Buttfield-Addison received the Adam Lancman Award.
Full list of Australian Game Developer Awards 2026 winners
The complete list below is useful for finding winners by category, including awards beyond the three received by Mixtape.
- Game of the Year: Mixtape (Beethoven & Dinosaur)
- Excellence in Art: Mixtape
- Excellence in Gameplay: Bits & Bops (Tempo Lab Games)
- Excellence in Narrative: Schrodinger’s Cat Burglar (Abandoned Sheep with SuperTonic, Actuator Digital & Translationz)
- Excellence in Sound Design: Mixtape
- Excellence in Music: Malys (Summerfall Studios with Belinda Coomes and Montaigne)
- Excellence in Accessibility: Bits & Bops
- Excellence in Extended Reality: Hyper Bullet (Protostar)
- Excellence in Impact: Bluey’s Happy Snaps (Gameloft Brisbane with BBC Studios, Ludo Studio & Bandai Namco)
- Excellence in Debut: Key Fairy (Owl Machine)
- Excellence in Ongoing: Static Shift Racing (Timbo Jimbo)
- The Rising Star: Amy Potter-Jarman and Tyson Butler-Boschma
- The Adam Lancman Award: Paris Buttfield-Addison
- The GCAP Legacy Award: Tony Albrecht
- Studio of the Year: Uppercut Games
What the awards say about Australia’s games industry
Interactive Games and Entertainment Association (IGEA) CEO Ron Curry said the winners and finalists showcased the range of talent in Australia’s games industry. He also emphasised the role of a strong industry ecosystem and government support in helping local studios grow, take creative risks and compete internationally.
Separately, the South Australian Film Corporation doubled its Digital Games Fund to $1 million. The fund provides support across three stages of development and introduced a Game Studio Placement Program for paid placements in local studios for early- and mid-career creators.
Overall, Mixtape’s three wins make it the standout title of the Australian Game Developer Awards 2026, while the full results highlight achievements across games, studios and individual contributors. The list provides a useful snapshot of the Australian games industry’s recognised work this year.
