Develop Awards 2011: The finalists for Best Use of an IP

The ninth annual Develop Industry Excellence Awards is just around the corner, with more than 90 studios competing for top honours at the July 20th event in Brighton.

In the run up to the big night, Develop is running a series of profiles of all the nominees in each category.

We continue here with the finalists for Best Use of A Licence or IP. To be eligible, a studio will need to be based in Europe and have built a new game, since July 2010, that is based on an established brand.

The final choices, chosen by Develop’s editorial team, are found below. The ultimate winner will be decided by a 100-person-strong judging panel of industry pros, and announced at the awards show on July 20th.

To watch the event live, email Kathryn.humprey@intentmedia.co.uk to book your seat.

BEST USE OF A LICENCE OR IP

Angry Birds Rio (Rovio Mobile)

Those ever-furious avians flew into the ‘transmedia’ realm this year with the clever tie-in release with 20th Century Fox’s family film Rio. An astute IP crossover if ever there was one.

F1 2010 (Codemasters Birmingham)

Building on their growing experience with the licence, Codemasters delivered a stand-out racing title with F1 2010. The studio’s hardworking ethic came up trumps and delivered an important franchise reboot.

FIFA Superstars (Playfish)

Creating something fresh from the FIFA brand was a bold move for UK studio Playfish, and the exceptional skill with which Superstars was executed has done great things for a great IP.

GoldenEye 007 (Eurocom)

In an era marked more by dull ports of classic games than worthy remakes or IP updates, GoldenEye 007 was a hugely welcome surprise. Making a new great game from an old great game is a task rarely undertaken, and with good reason. Eurocom, however, has done something special.

Jenga (NaturalMotion Games)

A classic IP in every sense of the word, NaturalMotion’s Jenga has reinvigorated a game that many would never have even considered a worthwhile videogame crossover. The very excellent result is proof that inspiration takes many forms.

Michael Jackson: The Experience (Ubisoft Paris)

Ubisoft Paris did something really impressive with Michael Jackson: The Experience, securing the rights to the legacy of one of the biggest pop stars of all time, and creating one of the greatest casual experiences of the year.

Mr Men / Little Miss (Digital Goldfish)

The Use of a Licence or IP award contains interesting variations of all the categories, and Digital Goldfish’s Little Miss is the perfect example of that. An excellent translation of a classic IP as an interactive 2D iOS experience, this is a very worthy addition to the shortlist.

Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit (Criterion)

Criterion has excelled itself with the new direction it took Need for Speed in this year. Harking back to the cops n’ robbers gameplay of previous titles, and channelling the Burnout crash-frenzy experience, the good old car chase has returned.