Berlin, March 31, 2026 – Today the German Computer Game Awards (DCP) announced the nominees for 2026. Faced with an impressive variety of entries, the DCP jury has selected the game titles that set benchmarks in terms of innovation, gameplay, and cultural impact.
A total of 800,000 euros in prize money will be awarded. Nominated for ‘Best German Game’ are the historical city-building simulation set in the Roman Empire, Anno 117: Pax Romana by Ubisoft Mainz; the cozy game Tiny Bookshop by neoludic games, in which the dream of owning one’s own bookstore is fulfilled; and the detective game The Darkest Files by Paintbucket Games, in which Nazi crimes are investigated. With a total of five nominations, The Darkest Files is also the most frequently nominated title this year. In the categories ‘Best German Game’ as well as the newcomer categories ‘Best Debut’ and ‘Best Prototype,’ not only the eventual winners but also all nominees are entitled to prize money.
Federal Research Minister Dorothee Bär: “Congratulations to all the nominees for the great achievement. I am pleased that many of them are games which are funded by the federal government. This year’s nominees show that federal funding makes a difference and that high-quality games are being developed in Germany more than ever before.”
Felix Falk, Managing Director at game – the German Games Industry Association: “Across all categories, this year’s German Computer Game Awards provide impressive evidence of the enormous strengths of games from Germany: whether great entertainment, masterful technical implementation, or games that skillfully place current issues of our time at the center of their stories. This underlines once more: Germany as a games location has great potential to belong to the global leaders in game development. We congratulate the nominees and look forward to celebrating all teams on the big stage of the DCP”.
Prof. Dr. Sabiha Ghellal, Chair of the Jury for the German Computer Game Awards 2026: “This year’s nominees reflect the enormous range and excellence of German games development. We are seeing games that courageously push technological standards, initiate socially relevant discourses, and explore new artistic paths. We want to honor these great talents of the games industry and their outstanding significance for our culture, technological progress, and economy at the festive presentation of the German Computer Game Awards 2026.”
The winners will be announced on April 29, 2026 at the Herkulessaal of the Munich Residenz. Viewers at home can follow the award show via livestream. Weekly pre-shows starting on April 1 invite everyone to get to know the nominees better.
All Nominees 2026 at a Glance:
Best German Game (endowed with €100,000 for the win and €30,000 each for the two other nominees):
- Anno 117: Pax Romana (Ubisoft Mainz / Ubisoft)
- The Darkest Files (Paintbucket Games)
- Tiny Bookshop (neoludic games / Skystone Games)
Studio of the Year (endowed with €50,000):
- ByteRockers’ Games
- Happy Broccoli Games
- weltenbauer. Software Entwicklung
Best Family Game (endowed with €40,000):
- Flick Shot Rogues (Butter By The Fish / Noodlecake Studios)
- Oddsparks: An Automation Adventure (Massive Miniteam / HandyGames)
- Ruffy and the Riverside (Zockrates Laboratories / Phiphen Games)
Newcomer Award: Best Debut (endowed with €60,000 for the win and €25,000 each for the two other nominees):
- Causal Loop (Mirebound / Headup)
- Constance (Blue Backpack / ByteRockers’ Games)
- Tiny Bookshop (neoludic games / Skystone Games)
Newcomer Award: Best Prototype (endowed with €50,000 for the win and €25,000 each for the four other nominees):
- Burn With Me (Eva Manuilovich, Ivan Bushmin, Nikita Melnikov)
- Cards and Cannons (Anica Gritzki, Jennifer Seeber, Luca Schmidt, Lucas Thieme, Jan-Ivo Lattek, Julian Seidel / HTW Berlin / DE:HIVE)
- Garden Ink (Arne Jürgens, Sven Mehlhorn)
- Heart Drive (Jonas Pfeiffer / HAW Hamburg)
- UnderPressure (Aaliyah Schäfer, Romy Scherwat, Lea Eschlberger, Tim Richter, Fabius Sachs, Felina Westrich, Malvina Arakelian, Rosalie Stallmann / Hochschule Darmstadt)
Best Innovation and Technology (endowed with €40,000):
- Anno 117: Pax Romana (Ubisoft Mainz / Ubisoft)
- Firefighting Simulator: Ignite (weltenbauer. software entwicklung / astragon Entertainment)
- How to God (Thoughtfish)
Best Audio Design (endowed with €40,000):
- Anno 117: Pax Romana (Ubisoft Mainz / Ubisoft)
- Duck Detective: The Ghost of Glamping (Happy Broccoli Games)
- EVERSPACE 2: Wrath of the Ancients (ROCKFISH Games)
Best Game Design (endowed with €40,000):
- Slots & Daggers (Friedemann / Future Friends Games)
- Super Meat Boy 3D (Sluggerfly / Headup)
- The Darkest Files (Paintbucket Games)
Best Graphic Design (endowed with €40,000):
- Oddsparks: An Automation Adventure (Massive Miniteam / HandyGames)
- The Berlin Apartment (Blue Backpack / ByteRockers’ Games)
- The Darkest Files (Paintbucket Games)
Best Mobile Game (endowed with €40,000):
- Duck Detective: The Ghost of Glamping (Happy Broccoli Games)
- MicroMacro: Downtown Detective (Soft Boiled Games)
- Ponchorado (seal Media)
Best Story (endowed with €40,000):
- PEPPERED (Mostly Games)
- The Berlin Apartment (Blue Backpack / ByteRockers’ Games)
- The Darkest Files (Paintbucket Games)
Best Serious Game (endowed with €40,000):
- Pictures VR (Modest Minds)
- The Darkest Files (Paintbucket Games)
- Umfeld (Hochschule RheinMain)
Player of the Year (not endowed):
- Copeylius
- Dennsen86
- Felikah
- JenNyan
Best International Game (not endowed):
- Blue Prince (Dogubomb / RAW FURY)
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive / Kepler Interactive)
- Kingdom Come Deliverance II (Warhorse Studios / PLAION)
Effective immediately, the public is also invited to participate in the category ‘Player of the Year,’ where all games fans can help decide who will win. Voting is now open at www.deutscher-computerspielpreis.de/publikumspreis and will run until April 14 2026.
The selection of nominees and winners takes place in a two-stage process: twelve specialist juries from the games industry, science, culture, and media first deliberate on the nominations before the main jury chooses the final winners. The jury is chaired by Prof. Dr. Sabiha Ghellal (Stuttgart Media University). A list of all jury members can be found on the DCP website at https://deutscher-computerspielpreis.de/the-award/jury/?lang=en.
The organizers of the German Computer Game Awards are the federal government, represented by the Federal Ministry for Research, Technology, and Space, as well as game – the German Games Industry Association. The 2026 award ceremony is supported by the Bavarian State Ministry for Digital Affairs.
