The nominations for the 2018 International Gamers Awards were just announced.  Congratulations to these games, designers, and publishers!

The IGA is awarded annually by a jury of prominent gamers from around the world, with a stated goal “to recognize outstanding games and designers, as well as the companies that publish them.”  Over the years the IGA has grown to be one of the major prizes in gaming, alongside Germany’s Spiel des Jahres (“Game of the Year”) and the Deutscher Spiele Preis (the “German Game Prize”).  The IGA’s nomination and voting procedures are outlined on the jury’s website (http://www.internationalgamersawards.net/).  

Several members of the Opinionated Gamers team are members of the IGA jury, but as a disclaimer, reviews on this site don’t necessarily reflect the opinions of the jurors.

The winners will be announced in a few weeks.  I have no inside info (I’m not affiliated with the jury), but typically the results come out a few weeks before Essen, and the ceremony is always at Essen.

2018 Multiplayer Nominees

• Agra, Designed by Michael Keller, Published by Quined Games
• Altiplano, Designed by Reiner Stockhausen, Published by dlp Games
• Azul, Designed by Michael Kiesling, Published by Plan B Games
• Clans of Caledonia, Designed by Juma Al-Jou Jou, Published by Karma Games
• Decrypto, Designed by Thomas Dagenais-Lespérance, Published by Le Scorpion Masqué
• Gaia Project, Designed by Jens Drögemüller & Helge Ostertag, Published by Feuerland Spiele
• Gentes, Designed by Stefan Risthaus, Published by Spielworxx
• Heaven & Ale, Designed by Michael Kiesling & Andreas Schmidt, Published by eggertspiele
• Nusfjord, Designed by Uwe Rosenberg, Published by Lookout Games
• Pulsar 2849, Designed by Vladimir Suchy, Published by Czech Games Edition
• Rajas of the Ganges, Designed by Inka & Markus Brand, Published by Huch!
• Santa Maria, Designed by Eilif Svensson & Kristian Amundsen Ostby, Published by Aporta Games
• TransAtlantic, Designed by Mac Gerdts, Published by PD-Verlag

2018 2-player Nominees

• Codenames Duet, Designed by Vlaada Chvatil & Scot Eaton, Published by Czech Games Edition
• The Fox in the Forest, Designed by Joshua Buergel, Published by Foxtrot Games
• 13 Days: The Cuban Missile Crisis, Designed by Asger Harding Granerud & Daniel Skjold Pederson, Published by Jolly Roger Games
• Claim, Designed by Scott Almes, Published byWhite Goblin Games
• Colonial Twilight, Designed by Brian Train, Published by GMT Games
• Fog of Love, Designed by Jacob Jaskov, Published by Hush Hush Projects
• Shadows in Kyoto, Designed by Wei-Min Ling, Published by EmperorS4