Gamescom LATAM 2025 Big Festival Winners Revealed

Summary

The first round of winners at Gamescom LATAM 2025 have been announced, with Nine Sols winning Game of the Year.
The popular Metroidvania title Animal Well took home the award for Best Gameplay.
Other winning titles include Mullet MadJack, Paper Trail, and Sol Cesto.

During the first night of Gamescom LATAM 2025, video game fans celebrated the winners of the BIG Festival, with the 2D action-platformer Nine Sols winning Game of the Year. Gamescom LATAM will run until May 4 in São Paulo, Brazil, celebrating Latin America’s most beloved developers and shining a light on the many titles coming out of the region.

Beginning on April 30, the 2025 edition of the popular gaming event has been filled with guest appearances and special events, with Gamescom LATAM 2025 partnering with The Pokemon Company to offer guests exclusive merchandise, community-driven activities, special Pokemon GO on-site AR missions, and more. Steam is also making its first appearance at the event, offering guidance for new developers, while Xbox is also showcasing a number of diverse indie titles. The first award ceremony took place on the night of April 30, with both well-known titles and lesser-known games finding success with fans and judges alike.

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While more award announcements will follow on May 4, the first round of finalists at Gamescom LATAM 2025 took to the stage on the evening of April 30. Nine Sols, a story-rich, hand-drawn 2D action-platformer inspired by Sekiro, took the top prize, with developer Red Candle Games taking home the R$5,000 prize. The Devolver Digital-published Neva was awarded Best Narrative, while the best Brazilian Game was given to Mullet Madjack, with the developers thanking their fans for their continued support. Grizzly Man took the prize for the Best Latin American game, while Sol Cesto, a unique tactical roguelike title developed by Geraud Zucchini & Chariospirales, was given the Innovation Award.

Game of the Year: Nine Sols (Red Candle Games)
Best Game: Latin America: Grizzly Man (LCB Game Studio)
Best Game: Brazil: Mullet MadJack, (Hammer 95 Studios, published by Epopeia Games)
Best Casual Game: Paper Trail (Newfangled Games)
Best Art: Naiad (HiWarp)
Best Narrative: Neva (Nomada Studio, published by Devolver Digital)
Best Gameplay: Animal Well (Shared Memory, published by Bigmode)
Innovation Award: Sol Cesto (Geraud Zucchini and Chariospirales, published by Goblinz Publishing)
Best Mobile Game: Level Devil (Unept, LLC)
Best Multiplayer Game: Bang Bang Barrage (Monkey Bread, published by Spiral Up Games)

Notably, the award for Best Gameplay went to the popular Metroidvania game Animal Well, created by the solo developer Billy Basso. In January, Balatro creator LocalThunk named Animal Well his 2024 Game of the Year pick, humorously awarding the title with the “Golden Thunk” award and complimenting the game’s style, calling it a “true masterpiece.” The title tasks players with controlling a blob as they explore an animal-filled labyrinth while solving puzzles and discovering countless secrets.

Gamescom continues to grow and find success, with the 2024 event attracting over 335,000 attendees and the first-ever Gamescom LATAM in 2024 attracting over 100,000 visitors. Gamescom 2025 will take place from August 20-24 in Cologne, Germany, and will kick off with Gamescom Opening Night Live on August 19. This year’s event will also see the start of The Witcher in Concert tour, which will celebrate the 10th anniversary of The Witcher 3 and travel to many cities around the world.