On May 11, the German Computer Game Award was presented. The DCP 2023 is associated with €800,000 in prize money for German games. We at MeinMMO look at which 3 games received the highest cash prizes and observe an interesting phenomenon when sorting the games by their Steam reviews.
What makes the German Computer Game Award so different? The high cash prizes tied to the award cause a bit of astonishment abroad. Prize money of €100,000 is not found at comparable events elsewhere.
The English-speaking gaming journalists at PC Gamer write in amazement: When Geoff Keighley awards his video game prize in December, there’s no check for Hideo Kojima.
In Germany, it’s different, as the Computer Game Award is a type of economic promotion from the Federal Republic for German game studios. The award is funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action – personally by Green Jesus, Robert Habeck.
Overall, the DCP distributes €800,000 across 15 categories.
An JRPG wins the award for best German game 2023
Who was the big winner of the evening? The award for “Best German Game” went to the JRPG “Chained Echoes,” which was released on Steam on December 8, 2022. It is from Matthias Linda and was published by Deck 13.
On Steam, it costs €25 and has 91% positive reviews.
In the Steam reviews, it says about the game:
- “If you have any interest in JRPGs, play this game. This is the best JRPG that has been released in a long, long time.”
- “A masterpiece. One of the best JRPGs and one of the best indie games I have ever played.”
- It is a “fantastic tribute to classic JRPGs.”
So evidently, the jury selected a real gem for the “Best German Game” and rewarded it with €100,000.
For the DCP, only games that were developed at least 80% in Germany are allowed. The winners are determined in a two-stage process:
- First, a panel of experts discusses the nominations
- then the main jury selects the winning titles
€120,000 for “serious” game
Who received the most money? The game “Beholder 3” took home a total of 3 cash prizes:
- €30,000 for “Best German Game – 2nd/3rd Place”
- €40,000 for “Best Serious Game”
- €50,000 went to the studio, “Paintbucket Games” (Berlin) as “German Studio of the Year” on top
But Beholder 3 fares much worse on Steam compared to Chained Echoes. It is a “dystopian strategy simulation” where you spy on tenants, employees, and superiors.
It has only 68% positive Steam reviews and costs €15 there.
In the Steam reviews, it says: The game has potential, but is ruined by game-breaking bugs. Others criticize a poor translation and slow dialogue options.
However, there are also people who praise the game as very entertaining – especially fans of the series. Beholder 1 was released on Steam in 2016 and has garnered 91% positive reviews to this day.
€100,000 for survival horror from Germany
Who else received a lot? €100,000 was awarded to “Signalis,” which received €60,000 for best debut and an additional €40,000 for best sound design.
Signalis even has 95% positive reviews on Steam. It is a survival horror game. Currently, it costs €16 on sale.
In a review, it says: “Robots from outer space make me feel feelings again.”
The best international game was, by the way, “God of War: Ragnarök” – the award is, however, without prize money. That would be something else.
The cover image shows Lara Trautmann (Lara Loft) during the event (Image source: Franziska Krug/Getty Images for Quinke Networks).
However, there are also people who praise the game as very entertaining – especially fans of the series. Beholder 1 was released on Steam in 2016 and has garnered 91% positive reviews to this day.
€100,000 for survival horror from Germany
Who else received a lot? €100,000 was awarded to “Signalis,” which received €60,000 for best debut and an additional €40,000 for best sound design.
Signalis even has 95% positive reviews on Steam. It is a survival horror game. Currently, it costs €16 on sale.
In a review, it says: “Robots from outer space make me feel feelings again.”
The best international game was, by the way, “God of War: Ragnarök” – the award is, however, without prize money. That would be something else.
The cover image shows Lara Trautmann (Lara Loft) during the event (Image source: Franziska Krug/Getty Images for Quinke Networks).
