The Winners of 2024

DUBAI GAMES STAR

WINNER: Yalla Group

This special award recognises a Dubai-based games company who has demonstrated a considerable amount of success, influence, and impact despite their relatively recent arrival within the industry.

FINALISTS:

• BoomLand
• DMCC Gaming Centre [Honourable Mention]
• Nifty Craft
• Oneness Labs
• Predipie
• Sawa Group [Honourable Mention]

BEST GAMES STARTUP

WINNER: Starvania

Any MENA games company that has been established (in 2023) for 18 months or less, has significantly evolved their business, and made an impact on the industry through innovation, creativity, and/or other initiatives – but has not necessarily brought a game to market yet.

FINALISTS:

• Emeraldz Studio
• Fahy Studios
• Foxrito Studios
• Game Hermits
• Hajem Sports
• Kashkool Games
• Nifty Craft
• Nomadroid [Honourable Mention]
• Tafra Games
• TakaHouse Gaming Studio
• Yalla Game [Honourable Mention]

BEST GAME INNOVATION HUB/DISTRICT

WINNER: DMCC

Showcasing the innovation hubs that support developers with centres that cultivate creativity, enable locally produced content, and accelerate the MENA gaming space.

FINALISTS:

• AD Gaming [Honourable Mention]
• in5 Tech
• NEOM [Honourable Mention]
• Sharjah Media City
• Tamkeen

BEST TOOL & SERVICE PROVIDER

WINNER: Xsolla

This accolade is for companies that support the MENA ecosystem through either dedicated development tools – game engine, AI, middleware, etc – or the enabling of monetisation via advertising (or other means), thereby helping developers create their games and grow their audience.

FINALISTS:

• Arabic Writer (Evolite Studio)
• Audiomob [Honourable Mention]
  
• Craftware (Nifty Craft)
• Elevatix
• GameUp (Sourena Game Studio)
• Pay1st (Carry1st)
• Reymit (Sourena Game Studio)
• Tamatem Plus (Tamatem) [Honourable Mention]

MOST INNOVATIVE GAME

WINNER: AVO Escape Space (Game Cooks)

Any MENA-based game, released in 2023, that pushes the boundaries of the game dynamics – whether through play mechanics, technical achievements (or use of technology itself), and more – to deliver a unique experience for players.

FINALISTS:

• Fateel (Evolite) [Honourable Mention]
  
• Hajem Sports (Hajem)
• Martha EDU
• Predipie
• The True Persian Love Story (Emeraldz Studio) [Honourable Mention]

BEST ARABIC LOCALISATION

WINNER: Assassin’s Creed: Mirage (Ubisoft)

This accolade awards studios that have supported games last year in the areas of localisation, ensuring that both new releases and updates go live with as few hiccups as possible, and are localised appropriately for target MENA markets.

FINALISTS:

• EA Sports FC 24 (Electronic Arts)
• Good Pizza, Great Pizza (TapBlaze) [Honourable Mention]
• HAWKED (The 4 Winds Entertainment) [Honourable Mention]
• Hogwarts Legacy (Avalanche Software)
• Infinity Kingdom (SAWA GROUP)
• Mafioso: Godfather of Mafia City (Paeezan)
• Resident Evil 4 (Capcom)

BEST IN ESPORTS (SERVICE)

WINNER: True Gamers

This award recognises and celebrates the most impressively implemented and strategically sustained MENA esport-related support service of last year.

FINALISTS:

• Gamers Hub
• Kafu Games
• Power League Gaming [Honourable Mention]
• The Esports & Gaming Agency [Honourable Mention]
  
• Zain Esports
• Zawaya Gaming

BEST IN ESPORTS (TEAM)

WINNER: Falcons Esports

This award recognises and celebrates the most consistently successful MENA-based esports team performance throughout 2023.

FINALISTS:

• FATE Esports
• Geekay Esports [Honourable Mention]
• NASR ESPORTS [Honourable Mention]
  
• Team RA’AD
• Twisted Minds

BEST WEB3 GAMING

WINNER: WEMIX (Wemade)

Showcasing the company that is bringing the most impactful use of, or support for, Web3 technology to the MENA game development scene.

FINALISTS:

• BoomLand
• Everdome
• Farcana Studio
• Kiraverse (Param Labs)
• Nunu Spirits
• Oneness Labs [Honourable Mention]
  
• PlanetQuest (Galactic Entertainment)
• SastanaGaming (Sastanaqqam)
• The World of Nifty Craft
• Yayy [Honourable Mention]

INVESTOR OF THE YEAR

WINNER: Savvy Games Group

This award showcases an investment within the MENA games industry that has played a vital role in the success and growth of a company in the region during 2023.

FINALISTS:

• FineWill Capital
• GEM Capital
• Level Up (NEOM) [Honourable Mention]
  
• National Development Fund
• Shorooq Partners [Honourable Mention]
• Triple Dragon
  

BEST DEVELOPER

WINNER: Mad Hook

Any MENA games company that has released a game, or successfully grown an existing game, during the past year, as well as expanded their business and made an impact on the industry through innovation, creativity and other initiatives.

FINALISTS:

• 2024 Studios
• AHAKuo Creations
• Chickmania
• Evolite Studio
• Game Cooks
• Inspired Square
• Jawaker [Honourable Mention]
  
• Maysalward
• Shanab Games
• Spoilz
• Table Knight Games
• Tarboosh Games
• UMX Studio [Honourable Mention]
• YallaPlay

BEST PUBLISHER

WINNER: Tamatem Games

Celebrating a MENA company that has assisted developers in releasing a game during the last year, whether through publishing support, marketing, co-development, or investment.

FINALISTS:

• Babil Games [Honourable Mention]
• Game District
• MBC Group [Honourable Mention]
  
• Naphora Games Group
• Sandsoft
• Sawa Group
• Yalla Group
• Yayy

MENA GAME OF THE YEAR

WINNER: DC Heroes & Villains (Jam City/Sandsoft)

This award recognises the finest games experience released last year based on creativity, play mechanics, technological, artistic and aural achievement, innovation, audience engagement, and both critical and commercial success.
To be eligible for this award, games must have been given a full release, received a significant update, or maintained substantial live ops activity, during 2023.

• AVO Escape Space (Game Cooks) [Honourable Mention]
• Fake Emperors (Pershaland)
• Fateel (Evolite)
• Jawabak Jawabahom (Table Knight Games)
• Jawaker: Games & Friends (Jawaker)
• Kammelna (Remal)
• Merge Kingdoms (Yalla Game / YG Technology)
• Spades Masters (YallaPlay)
  
• UHD (Mad Hook)
• VIP Baloot (Tamatem)
• West Hunt (NewGen Studio) [Honourable Mention]

MENA MARKET LEGEND

WINNER: Nour Khrais

This illustrious lifetime achievement award recognises a person from the MENA region who has achieved a considerable amount of success in their career and has acted as a pioneer in, and made an outstanding contribution to, the regional games space.
The MENA Market Legend is a special award, selected directly by the organisation committee of the MENA Games Industry Awards.