Mojo Nation has detailed the finalists for this year’s Play Creators Awards.

The Play Creators Awards celebrates designers and inventors in the toy and game community that have excelled over the last 12 months.

Winners will be selected over a series of panel sessions with industry experts and revealed at this year’s Play Creators Awards – taking place on Tuesday, June 23rd at London’s Under the Bridge venue within Stamford Bridge Stadium.

To book your ticket to this year’s Play Creators Awards, click here

As nominated by their peers in the industry, the finalists are:

Toy Designer of the Year (Sponsored by Jazwares)
• 2 Much Fun – Make & Bake Pies Playset (Melissa & Doug)
• Cheeky Donkey & Make It Real Advanced Design Team – Quick Twist Bracelet Maker (Make It Real)
• DiscoNifty & Spin Master’s New Brand Group – Magic Jellykins (Spin Master)
• Lucas Tyler & Doug Taylor (Fuse) – Monster High Potion Reveal (Mattel)
• Moose Girls Team – Gui Gui Slime Mega Haul (Moose Toys)
• Nynke van Dijk (Goliath) – Clickeez (Goliath)
• Pace Development & Toy Venture – Barbie Roll & Reveal (Mattel)
• Sanne van den Bosch (Goliath) – Princess Castle Jelly Blox (Goliath)
• Tantrum Innovation & Hiram Johnson – Barbie Petal Pop (Mattel)

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Game Designer of the Year – Kids Games
• Big Potato – Stomp Stomp Chomp (Big Potato)
• Carlo Molinari & Martino Chiacchiera – Matsch Party (Schmidt)
• Ellie Dix – Early Bird (Hootenanny Games)
• David Yakos (Streamline Design) – Queen Swarm (Mindware)
• Fun-Damental Invention & Xavier Mendoza and Kristina Moulden (Educational Insights) – Snack or Splash (Educational Insights)
• Raf Peeters & Leighton Rees (Smart Toys and Games) – Hansel & Gretel’s Candy Adventure (Smart Toys and Games)
• Seven Towns – Cats & Robbers (Relatable)
• Seven Towns – Pooch on the Loose (Jazwares)
• This is YARD & Design Edge – Drop N Roll (Blast Off Toys)
• Thomas Favrelière & Adrien Pedron – Archeo (Gigamic)

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Game Designer of the Year – Family Games
• Don Ullman, Bob Driscoll & Brad Ross – Rubik’s Rush (Spin Master)
• Elizabeth Hargrave – Sanibel (Hasbro)
• Ellie Dix – Seeker of Spells (Mindware)
• Gareth Edwards – Cat Earth (Outset Media)
• Longshore & Gunter Baars – Deep Sea Diamond Dive (Mattel)
• Markus Slawitscheck – Morty Sorty Magic Shop (Schmidt)
• Richard Garfield & Takashi Ishida – Magical Athlete (CMYK)
• Rob Sparks & Brett J. Gilbert – Barbecubes (Alley Cat Games)
• Seven Towns – Banana Panic (Jazwares)
• The Fantastic Factory – Topple (The Fantastic Factory)

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Game Designer of the Year – Party Games (Sponsored by Playtime PR)
• Ceri Price & Natalie Podd – Breadcrumbs (Confident Games)
• Ellie Dix – Roughly (Laurence King Publishing)
• Don Ullman & Bob Driscoll – Murder Phone (Spin Master)
• Big Potato – Noodle Flip (Big Potato)
• Joe Barron, Brady Peterson, David Yakos, Sophia Ricciardi, Grant Lyon & Danielle Standring – Cross the Line (Gray Matters Games)
• Jon Gracey, Viv Egan & Matthew Hancock – You Know It! (Invisible Typewriter)
• Jon Perry – Hot Streak (CMYK)
• K.C. Schrimpl, Corey Schrimpl & Cameron Ring – Burst (Lost Boy Entertainment)
• McMiLLER – DUMMEEZ (McMiLLER)
• Stephen Wilson – You Read My Mind (Ridleys Games)

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Invention Studio/Design Agency of the Year (Sponsored by Hasbro)
• Bang Zoom
• Fugafour
• Fun-Damental Invention
• Fuse
• Indy Toy Lab
• Open 2 Design
• Seven Towns
• So Sound
• Streamline Design
• Tantrum Innovation

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Inventor Relations Exec of the Year (Sponsored by Seven Towns)
• Alex & Whitney Kimerling (Hootenanny Games)
• Becs Henchey (Golden Bear)
• Dan Luther (Hasbro)
• Erik Quam (Smart Toys and Games)
• Helen De La Cruz (Spin Master)
• James Vaughan (Big Potato)
• Lee Allentuck (The Plan A Group)
• Magdalena Eichhorn (Jazwares)
• Tara McGrath (Mattel)
• Tony Serebriany (The Op Games)

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R&D Team of the Year (Sponsored by British Toy & Hobby Association)
• EXG Pro
• Gigamic
• Jazwares’ BlueJ Team
• Lost Boy Entertainment
• Make It Real Advanced Design Team
• Mattel’s MOTU Team
• Moose’s RADAR Team
• Spin Master’s New Brand Group
• The Op Games
• YuMe Toys

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Toy Designer of the Year (Licensed Product)
• Bang Zoom – PAW Patrol Megasaurus Dino Vehicle (Spin Master)
• Fuse – Pokémon Carry Case Lighthouse Adventure Playset (Jazwares)
• Lorena Montalvo, Olivia DeLuca, Madolyn Miller & Kendrin Geerdes (TOMY) – Momiji (TOMY)
• Mark Grote (Spin Master) – Hatchin’ Yoshi (Spin Master)
• Katy Kedward (Craft Buddy) – Disney Crystal Art Advent Calendar (Craft Buddy)
• Super Fun Innovations – Super Strike Batman (Mattel)
• Tantrum Innovation & MB Creations – Gabby’s Dollhouse Fairylandia Kitty Fairy’s Flutter-riffic Playset (Spin Master)
• Tantrum Innovation & MB Creations – WWE Slambulance (Mattel)
• Tom Yamazaki, Emma Costa Lascelles, Matt Jordan (TOMY) – My Mario Toomies Bath Range (TOMY)
• Wow! Stuff – Pikachu Puppetronic (Wow! Stuff)

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Play Innovator of the Year
• Jason Tremblay – Hummingbirds (The Op Games)
• JMP Creative – Slime Riders (ArtSkills)
• Katia & Gigi Funnovation & Make It Real Design Team – Salon Style Fashion Studio (Make It Real)
• LEGO Education Team – LEGO Education Science Kits (LEGO)
• Make It Real Advanced Design Team – Ultimate Spin Art Studio (Make It Real)
• McMiLLER – JOLT (McMiLLER)
• Moose STEM Team & Crunch Labs Engineering Team – Crunch Labs Range (Moose Toys)
• Moose Youth Electronic Team – Little Live Pets Mama Surprise Kitty (Moose Toys)
• Stickerbox Team – Stickerbox (Stickerbox)
• ZB Designs – Wigglitz (ZB Designs)

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Unsung Hero Award
• Amanda Bright (Spin Master)
• Bethan Stone (Big Potato)
• Brian Greenwald (The Op Games)
• Brian Wan (Zuru)
• Judi Stonecipher (Mattel)
• Laurence Andrault (Seven Towns)
• Mark Aaron, Artist
• Paola Dyboski (Bubbles Not Bombs)
• Paolo Olimpio (EXG Pro)
• Rob Harris (Playtest UK)
• Rory Kelly (Zatu Distribution)

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Game Designer of the Year – Licensed Product
• Arnaud Perez & Yannick Beaulé – PAC-MAN Craze Maze (No Loading Games)
• David Winter (Jazwares) – Love Island: Villa Life (Jazwares)
• Jeremy Posner & Ken Gruhl – Survival of the Weirdest (EightyTwo)
• LA Brands – Cryptic Killers: Peaky Blinders (LA Brands)
• Luca Bellini – Brick Like This (Dotted Games)
• TJ Spalty, Nathaniel Basch-Gould, Kyle Hussa-Lietz (Spin Master) & Ghost Galaxy – Hellbreak (Spin Master)
• Don Ullman & Bob Driscoll – Jumanji: The Ultimate Level (Spin Master)
• Moose Games Team – Bluey: Here Comes the Grannies (Moose Toys)
• Moose Games Team – Crunch Labs: Squirrel Dash (Moose Toys)
• Matt Leacock – The Lord of the Rings: Fate of the Fellowship (Z-Man Games)

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Debut of the Year (Sponsored by Eastar Game Manufacturing)
• Benjie Talbott – Tenby (Cosy Cub Games)
• Brady Smith – Graphic Novel Kit & Character Design Studio (Educational Insights)
• Dan Linden – Offshoots
• Diane Alber – A Little Spot Sensory Toy Line (All 4 Fun Toys)
• Florian Bohr – Kapti (Wilton Bradley)
• Heftzi Zion-Mozes & Limor Hershco – Simmer & Stir Stove-Top Playset (Melissa & Doug)
• Jason Tremblay – TACTA (The Op Games)
• Max Gelbert, Deb Raisner & David Raisner – Spellio (Jazwares)
• Pablo Clark – The Old King’s Crown (Eerie Idol Games)

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Rising Star Award (Sponsored by Spin Master)
• Brooke Cherry (Big Potato)
• Emma Costa Lascelles (TOMY)
• Gareth Edwards (Frog Hall Games)
• Heftzi Zion-Mozes & Vered Bahat (2 Much Fun)
• Ian Clayman (Exploding Kittens)
• James Sheeler (Mattel)
• K.C. Schrimpl, Corey Schrimpl & Cameron Ring (Lost Boy Entertainment)
• Stephani Belmonte (Spin Master)
• Stephen Wilson (Ragged Owl Games)
• Tyler Morton (KidKenn)

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Icon Award
This award has no shortlist and is instead revealed on the night.

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To book your ticket to this year’s Play Creators Awards, click here.

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The post Play Creators Awards 2026 finalists revealed appeared first on Mojo Nation.

There’s only one week left to get your nominations in for this year’s Play Creators Awards, Mojo Nation’s annual event celebrating great achievements in toy and game design and invention.

This year’s Play Creators Awards will take place on Tuesday, June 23rd at Under the Bridge in London, as part of this year’s Play Creators Festival.

The event will celebrate inventors and external studios, as well as in-house design talent, that have excelled over the past 12 months.

The full line-up of categories available to nominate are:

Toy Designer of the Year
Whether bringing innovation to an iconic toy brand, or responsible for the industry’s latest big hit, this award celebrates inventors and designers that have done outstanding work over the past 12 months.
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Game Designer of the Year (Kids Games)
This award is for inventors and designers behind the best and brightest in the world of kids’ games. Celebrate the brains behind the games!
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Game Designer of the Year (Family Games)
This award is for inventors and designers behind top family games launched over the past 12 months.
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Game Designer of the Year (Party Games) – Sponsored by Playtime PR
This category celebrates the in-house designers or external inventors and studios behind the year’s top party games.
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

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Invention Studio/Design Agency of the Year – Sponsored by Hasbro
This category celebrates studios and agencies that deserves recognition for exceptional work over the last 12 months.
• To nominate we need: Name of Design Agency/Invention Studio
—

Inventor Relations Exec of the Year – Sponsored by Seven Towns
This award highlights the phenomenal work being done by individuals working in IR across the past year.
• To nominate we need: Name of IR exec & achievements from the past 12 months

—

R&D Team of the Year – Sponsored by the BTHA
This award celebrates in-house teams that have achieved extraordinary things over the last year.
• To nominate we need: Company Name, Names of R&D Team Members & achievements from the past 12 months

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Toy Designer of the Year (Licensed Product)
The first of two awards recognising excellence in licensed product, Toy Designer of the Year (Licensed Product) celebrates creators that have brought much loved characters and IP to life through great toys.
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Game Designer of the Year (Licensed Product)
This award is for a designer that has given an IP the board game treatment in impressive style via a great licensed game this year.
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Play Innovator of the Year
Whether through fresh thinking or tech twists, the Play Innovation of the Year award celebrates those driving innovation in our industry.
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Unsung Hero Award
A model making superstar? An exceptional artist? A secret weapon within your IR team? This award sings the praises of those who maybe don’t always get the credit they deserve.
• To nominate we need: Name of Nominee & achievements from the past 12 months

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Debut of the Year – Sponsored by Eastar Game Manufacturing
Aiming to shine a spotlight on budding inventor talent, this award celebrates inventors who saw their first item land on shelves in past 12 months.
• To nominate we need: Name of Inventor & Product Name

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Rising Star Award – Sponsored by Spin Master
This award celebrates fresh design talent and the inventor stars of the future. Nominate them in the Rising Star category.
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & achievements from the past 12 months

—

Icon Award
This award celebrates an iconic figure that have helped shape the industry, truly leaving their footprint and a lasting legacy in the world of toy and game design and/or invention.
• To nominate we need: Name of nominee & reasons why you believe they are an icon.

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To nominate, email the name of your nominated person or team – and the name of the product, if nominating for a product category – to billy@mojo-nation.com, along with some reasons as to why they should win the accolade.

If nominating for a product category, the product has to have launched between Summer 2025 and this coming Summer 2026.

The deadline to get nominations in is Tuesday, April 21st.

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Finalists for each category will be announced in May, before a panel of experts select winners over a series of roundtable judging sessions.

For sponsorship opportunities, email adam@mojo-nation.com.

–

To stay in the loop with the latest news, interviews and features from the world of toy and game design, sign up to our weekly newsletter here

The post One week left to nominate for this year’s Play Creators Awards appeared first on Mojo Nation.

Nominations are now open for this year’s Play Creators Awards, an event celebrating great achievements in toy and game design and invention.

This year’s Play Creators Awards will take place on Tuesday, June 23rd at Under the Bridge in London, as part of this year’s Play Creators Festival.

The event will celebrate inventors and external studios, as well as in-house design talent, that have excelled over the past 12 months.

The full line-up of categories available to nominate are:

Toy Designer of the Year
Whether bringing innovation to an iconic toy brand, or responsible for the industry’s latest big hit, this award celebrates inventors and designers that have done outstanding work over the past 12 months.
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Game Designer of the Year (Kids Games)
This award is for inventors and designers behind the best and brightest in the world of kids’ games. Celebrate the brains behind the games!
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Game Designer of the Year (Family Games)
This award is for inventors and designers behind top family games launched over the past 12 months.
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Game Designer of the Year (Party Games) – Sponsored by Playtime PR
This category celebrates the in-house designers or external inventors and studios behind the year’s top party games.
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Invention Studio/Design Agency of the Year – Sponsored by Hasbro
This category celebrates studios and agencies that deserves recognition for exceptional work over the last 12 months.
• To nominate we need: Name of Design Agency/Invention Studio

—

Inventor Relations Exec of the Year – Sponsored by Seven Towns
This award highlights the phenomenal work being done by individuals working in IR across the past year.
• To nominate we need: Name of IR exec & achievements from the past 12 months

—

R&D Team of the Year – Sponsored by the BTHA
This award celebrates in-house teams that have achieved extraordinary things over the last year.
• To nominate we need: Company Name, Names of R&D Team Members & achievements from the past 12 months

—

Toy Designer of the Year (Licensed Product)
The first of two awards recognising excellence in licensed product, Toy Designer of the Year (Licensed Product) celebrates creators that have brought much loved characters and IP to life through great toys.
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Game Designer of the Year (Licensed Product)
This award is for a designer that has given an IP the board game treatment in impressive style via a great licensed game this year.
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Play Innovator of the Year
Whether through fresh thinking or tech twists, the Play Innovation of the Year award celebrates those driving innovation in our industry.
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Unsung Hero Award
A model making superstar? An exceptional artist? A secret weapon within your IR team? This award sings the praises of those who maybe don’t always get the credit they deserve.
• To nominate we need: Name of Nominee & achievements from the past 12 months

—

Debut of the Year
Aiming to shine a spotlight on budding inventor talent, this award celebrates inventors who saw their first item land on shelves in past 12 months.
• To nominate we need: Name of Inventor & Product Name

—

Rising Star Award
This award celebrates fresh design talent and the inventor stars of the future. Nominate them in the Rising Star category.
• To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & achievements from the past 12 months

—

Icon Award
This award celebrates an iconic figure that have helped shape the industry, truly leaving their footprint and a lasting legacy in the world of toy and game design and/or invention.
• To nominate we need: Name of nominee & reasons why you believe they are an icon.

—

To nominate, email the name of your nominated person or team – and the name of the product, if nominating for a product category – to billy@mojo-nation.com, along with some reasons as to why they should win the accolade.

If nominating for a product category, the product category has to have launched between Summer 2025 and this coming Summer 2026.

The deadline to get nominations in is Tuesday, April 21st.

—

Finalists for each category will be announced in May, before a panel of experts select winners over a series of roundtable judging sessions.

For sponsorship opportunities, email adam@mojo-nation.com.

–

To stay in the loop with the latest news, interviews and features from the world of toy and game design, sign up to our weekly newsletter here

The post Nominations now open for Play Creators Awards 2026 appeared first on Mojo Nation.

A celebration of the industry’s design and inventor talent, among the winners this year are Seven Towns, The Op Games’ Tony Serebriany and Smart Toys and Games.

As nominated by their peers, the winners are:

Toy Designer of the Year (Sponsored by Jazwares)
• Carlyle Nuera (Mattel) – Barbie You Create (Mattel)
• Designbytouch & Chris Lutchen, Matt Synowicz, Brennan Hunt and Beth Boudin (TOMY) – Doteki (TOMY)
• Emily Ruether (MindWare) – Run the Runway (MindWare)
• Gilad Podgor & Roy Kfir – Tattoomeez (Golden Bear)
• Josh Carlson, Nick Grisolia & Paul Von Mohr (Gee Tree & Mee) – Cheeky Chonks (Spin Master)
• KID Group – FigBands (Jazwares)
• Make It Real Advanced Design Team – Swift Click Heishi Bracelet Maker (Make It Real)
• Moose Toys Girls Team – Gui Gui (Moose Toys)
• WINNER: Triclops Studio – Terror Fried (Character Options)

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Game Designer of the Year (Kids & Family Game) (Sponsored by ThinkFun)
• Barry & Jason Games and Entertainment – Feelin’ Cute (Hootenanny Games)
• David Yakos (Streamline Design) – Ringer (MindWare)
• Elodie Clément & Théo Rivière – Potion Express (Kiwizou)
• Emma Ribbens (Smart Toys and Games) – The Wolf & The 7 Goats (Smart Toys and Games)
• Fun-Damental Invention & Matt Jordan and Tom Yamazaki (TOMY) – Extreme Silence (TOMY)
• WINNER: JM Duparc and Identity Games Team – Birdy Call (Identity Games)
• KID Group – Snack-O-Saurus Rex (Spin Master)
• Kim Vandenbroucke – ThinkFun Friends: Tree House (ThinkFun)
• Paul Martinsen (Fuse) – Crash Cats (ThinkFun)

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Game Designer of the Year (Party Game) (Sponsored by Playtime PR)
• Alena Istif, Chiara Bellavite, Isabeau Rosen, Josh West, Sébastien Eme, Shanon Lyon, Riccardo Fabiani & Valentin Köberlein (Ravensburger) – Oh My Pigeons (Ravensburger)
• Alice & Nick Payne – Bean Counters Inc. (Gibsons)
• Chrissy Fagerholt – Girls in Bar Bathrooms (Mattel)
• Danielle Reynolds & Scott Brady – Caution Signs (Wacky Wizard Games)
• Dyce Studios – First to Worst (Dyce)
• WINNER: Eric Olsen – Flip 7 (The Op)
• Nextoy & Matt Jordan (TOMY) – Human Controller (TOMY)
• Rodrigo Rego – QuizWiz (Brain Games)
• Ted Getschman & Big Potato Games – Whirly Derby (Big Potato Games)

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R&D Team of the Year (Sponsored by the British Toy & Hobby Association)
• Bitzee Development Team (Spin Master)
• EXG Pro
• Lucky Egg
• Make It Real Advanced Design Team
• Hot Wheels Speed Snap Track System Design Team (Mattel)
• Moose Toys
• WINNER: SMART Toys & Games
• Strikesphere Team (Golden Bear)
• TOMY
• YuMe Toys

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Invention Studio of the Year (Sponsored by Hasbro)
• 7pips
• Bang Zoom
• Fun-Damental Invention
• Fuse
• Indy Toy Lab
• JMP Creative
• Open 2 Design
• WINNER: Seven Towns
• So Sound
• Tantrum Innovation

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Inventor Relations Exec of the Year (Sponsored by 7Towns)
• Adam Carson, Chris Lutchen & James Wing – TOMY/Fat Brain Toys
• Alex & Whitney Kimerling – Hootenanny Games
• Audrey Watanabe – Mattel
• Brent Geppert – Educational Insights
• Heath Saber – Moose Toys
• Helen De La Cruz – Spin Master
• Mark Garcia – Hasbro
• Magdalena Eichhorn – Jazwares
• Sarah Franco – Mattel
• WINNER: Tony Serebriany – The Op Games

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Toy Designer of the Year (Licensed Product) (Sponsored by The Wyld Bunch)
• Bang Zoom & Hasbro Preschool Team – Talk & Sing Peppa (Hasbro)
• BMT – Spidey & His Amazing Friends: Spidey Team Split Racer (Jazwares)
• Fuse – Pokémon Beach Battle Playset (Jazwares)
• Moose Licensed Team – Tile Town Bluey Heeler Family Home (Moose Toys)
• WINNER: Sergio Anna (Craft Buddy) – Disney Crystal Art 2-in-1 Pin Badges (Craft Buddy)
• So Sound – Star Wars Darth Vader Ultimate Mech Force Suit (Hasbro)
• Ste Smith (WITH Creative) – National Geographic Motorized Models (Blue Marble)
• Tantrum Innovation & MBCreations Ltd – Minecraft Click and Switch Sword and Pickaxe (Mattel)
• Tantrum Innovation & MBCreations Ltd – Rubble & Crew Power Tool Pups (Spin Master)

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Game Designer of the Year (Licensed Product)
• April Mitchell & Serena Fadlun – RHS Swapple (Gibsons)
• Bryan Bornmueller – The Fellowship of the Ring: Trick Taking Game (Office Dog)
• Daryl Andrews & Wolfgang Kramer – Donald Duck in Happy Camper (Maestro Media)
• David Gordon & TAM – LEGO Monkey Palace (Dotted Games)
• Dmitrijus Babičius, Justina Lapinskienė, Marijus Lapinskas & Tadas Kastanauskas – Flow (Brain Games)
• EastPoint Sports Design Team – Tetris Tumble (EastPoint Sports)
• Erica Bouyouris (Spin Master) – Wicked: The Game (Spin Master)
• Brooke Foster, Gavin Waxkirsh & Jim Harrison – The Polaroid Game (Fuel for Fun)
• WINNER: Tim Walsh (The Playmakers) – A Daily Cloud: The Game (MindWare)

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Outstanding Contribution
Doug Morrison – So Sound

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Play Innovator of the Year (Sponsored by Toyzone)
• Austin Hillam & Stephen Fazio (ZipString) – ZipString Luma (ZipString)
• Fun-Damental Invention & Blue Marble – Tie-Dye Dots (Blue Marble)
• WINNER: JMP Creative & Sky Castle Toys – Sticki Rolls (Sky Castle Toys)
• Ken Scheel – FOROS (KEVA Planks)
• Make It Real Advanced Design Team – Polish & Shine Bead Tumbler (Make It Real)
• Mark Grote (Spin Master)– Tech Deck SK8 Crew 2-in-1 Transforming Ultra SK8 Bus (Spin Master)
• Moose Boys Team – MrBeast Lab Mutators (Moose Toys)
• Nextoy & Yair Shilo – Power Saber (Goliath)
• Raf Peeters (Smart Toys and Games) – IQ Deluxe Series (Smart Toys and Games)

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Rising Star
• Austin Hillam & Stephen Fazio (ZipString)
• Brooke Cherry (Big Potato Games)
• Grace Newman-Lapinski (Educational Insights)
• Harry Newman (EXG Pro)
• James Sheeler (Mattel)
• Jeremy Shank (TOMY)
• Lauren Heywood-Law (Gibsons)
• Rinat Alima & Tom Dor (Designers)
• WINNER: Serena Fadlun (Game Designer)
• Shauna McKeon (Big Potato Games)

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Unsung Hero
• Adex Costa (EXG Pro)
• Alex Murty (Joking Hazard)
• Christopher Aja (Schylling)
• WINNER: Gareth Lloyd (Golden Bear)
• Geizi Guevara (Jazwares)
• Jeff Arnold (Sponge Creative)
• Judi Stonecipher (Mattel)
• Lauren Stallard (Gibsons)
• Ryo Yoshihara (YuMe)
• Shaylyn Berntson (IDEO)

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Debut of the Year
• Alfie Dix – That’s Crypto, Bro (Bubblegum Stuff)
• Ammon Anderson – Gnome Hollow (The Op)
• Anna Wielach & James Clayson – How to Train Your Dragon 12” Toothless Feature Plush (Spin Master)
• Jamie Smart – Jamie Smart’s Hero Slam (Laurence King Publishing)
• Leonie Grundler – Biome (Lioness Games)
• Michael Bergmann – MAGNA-TILES Rail Racers (MAGNA-TILES)
• WINNER: Sabrina Gareau (Cheeky Donkey) – Cool Maker Stack’d Heishi Bracelet Studio (Spin Master)
• Stephen Wilson – Bish Bash Bosh (Ginger Fox)
• Rinat Alima & Tom Dor – Roll ‘N’ Hatch (Hape)

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Icon
WINNER: Tony Serebriany – The Op Games

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The post Play Creators Awards 2025 winners revealed appeared first on Mojo Nation.

Gabi Drew – Founder and Creative Director at creative agency Tela – will explore the power of values-based storytelling at this year’s Play Creators Conference.

Gabi’s session – titled ‘Creating with True Value’ – will look at how values-based storytelling builds brands that connect, move and extend their reach.

Tela is a Milan-based creative agency that provides expertise and creative consultancy within the licensing industry. Tela’s clients include Playmobil, Hasbro, Perfetti Van Melle, Jeep and more.

This year’s Play Creators Conference is taking place at London’s Stamford Bridge Stadium on Wednesday, June 25th. To book your ticket, head to: https://playcreatorsconference.co.uk/product/play-creators-conference-ticket/

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To stay in the loop with the latest news, interviews and features from the world of toy and game design, sign up to our weekly newsletter here

The post Tela’s Gabi Drew to explore ‘Creating with True Value’ at Play Creators Conference 2025 appeared first on Mojo Nation.

There’s only one week left to send in nominations for this year’s Play Creators Awards, an event celebrating achievements in toy and game design and invention.

This year’s Play Creators Awards will take place on Tuesday, June 24th at Under the Bridge in London, as part of this year’s Play Creators Festival.

The event will celebrate inventors and external studios, as well as in-house design talent, that have excelled over the past 12 months.

The full line-up of categories available to nominate are:

Toy Designer of the Year – Sponsored by Jazwares
Whether bringing innovation to an iconic toy brand, or responsible for the industry’s latest big hit, this award celebrates inventors and designers that have done outstanding work over the past 12 months.

To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Game Designer of the Year (Kids & Family Game) – Sponsored by ThinkFun
This award is for inventors and designers behind the best and brightest in the world of kids’ games. Celebrate the brains behind the games!

To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Game Designer of the Year (Party Game) – Sponsored by Playtime PR
This category celebrates the in-house designers or external inventors and studios behind the year’s top party games.

To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

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Invention Studio/Design Agency of the Year – Sponsored by Hasbro
This category celebrates studios and agencies that deserves recognition for exceptional work over the last 12 months.

To nominate we need: Name of Design Agency/Invention Studio

—

Inventor Relations Exec of the Year – Sponsored by Seven Towns
This award highlights the phenomenal work being done by individuals working in IR across the past year.

To nominate we need: Name of IR Exec

—

R&D Team of the Year
This award celebrates in-house teams that have achieved extraordinary things over the last year.

To nominate we need: Company Name & Names of R&D Team Members

—

Toy Designer of the Year (Licensed Product) – Sponsored by The Wyld Bunch
The first of two awards recognising excellence in licensed product, Toy Designer of the Year (Licensed Product) celebrates creators that have brought much loved characters and IP to life through great toys.

To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Game Designer of the Year (Licensed Product)
This award is for a designer that has given an IP the board game treatment in impressive style via a great licensed game this year.

To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Play Innovator of the Year
Whether through fresh thinking or tech twists, the Play Innovation of the Year award celebrates those driving innovation in our industry.

To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

—

Unsung Hero Award
A model making superstar? An exceptional artist? A secret weapon within your IR team? This award sings the praises of those who maybe don’t always get the credit they deserve.

To nominate we need: Name of Nominee

—

Debut of the Year
Aiming to shine a spotlight on budding inventor talent, this award celebrates inventors who saw their first item land on shelves in past 12 months.

To nominate we need: Name of Inventor & Product Name

—

Rising Star Award
This award celebrates fresh design talent and the inventor stars of the future. Nominate them in the Rising Star category.

To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor

—

Icon Award
This award celebrates an iconic figure that have helped shape the industry, truly leaving their footprint and a lasting legacy in the world of toy and game design and/or invention.

To nominate we need: Name of Nominee

—

To nominate, email the name of your nominated person or team – and the name of the product, if nominating for a product category – to billy@mojo-nation.com, along with some reasons as to why they should win the accolade.

If nominating for a product category, the product category has to have launched between Summer 2024 and this coming Summer 2025.

The deadline to get nominations in is Tuesday, April 22nd.

Finalists for each category will be announced in May, before a panel of experts select winners over a series of roundtable judging sessions.

For sponsorship opportunities, email adam@mojo-nation.com.

–

To stay in the loop with the latest news, interviews and features from the world of toy and game design, sign up to our weekly newsletter here

The post One week left to send in your nominations for Play Creators Awards 2025 appeared first on Mojo Nation.

A celebration of the industry’s design and inventor talent, among the winners this year are Fun-Damental Invention, Angus Walker and Kid Group’s Dan Klitsner.

As nominated by their peers, the winners are:

Toy Designer of the Year

• Charlie Bason (Buzz Ideas) & Fuse  |  Revibe Beadworks Studio (PlayMonster)
• CONNETIX Design Team  |  CONNETIX 50 Piece Pastel Transport Pack (CONNETIX)
• WINNER: Eilat Tzin, Gigi Shachal, Katia Li-Ran & Make It Real Advanced Design Team  |  LinXo (Make It Real)
• Emma Costa Lascelles (TOMY) & Rad Stuff  |  Stakimos (TOMY)
• Fun-Damental Invention & ToyZone  |  Biggies (Eolo Toys)
• Lucas Tyler (Fuse)  |  Monster Jam Launch N Go Hauler (Spin Master)
• Making Things Studio & Phase Two  |  Playtab (Fat Brain Toys)
• Moose Toys Design Team  |  Magic Mixies Pixlings (Moose Toys)
• Moose Toys Design Team  |  Cookeez Makery Freezy Cakez (Moose Toys)

Sponsored by

——

Game Designer of the Year (Kids/Family Games)

• Bang Zoom  |  Pickleball Blast (Moose Toys)
• WINNER: Dan Klitsner & Brian Clemens (KID Group)  |  Sling It
• David Yakos (Streamline Design)  |  Fainting Goats (Ambassador Games)
• Eric Lang & Ken Gruhl  |  Life in Reterra (Hasbro)
• The Fantastic Factory & TOMY Games Team  |  5 Up (TOMY)
• Sara Farber & Bryan Wilson (Galactic Sneeze)  |  Floats McGoats (Hootenanny Games)
• Raf Peeters (SMART Toys and Games)  |  Cats and Boxes (SMART Toys and Games)
• KidKenn  |  VolleyShot (Fat Brain Toys)
• Seven Towns  |  Fart Yoga (Golden Bear)

Sponsored by

——

Game Designer of the Year (Party Games)

• Austyn Romero (Ridley’s Games)  |  Pickles (Ridley’s Games)
• WINNER: David Yakos (Streamline Design)  |  Battleship Royale (Hasbro)
• Emily Brinkley, Marty Pardoe & Rob Piesse (Lucky Egg)  |  Grab the Mic (Lucky Egg)
• Fun-Damental Invention  |  Tilt N’ Shout (Big Potato)
• Sara Farber & Bryan Wilson (Galactic Sneeze)  |  Fork Milk Kidnap (Hasbro)
• Hunch Studios  |  Decodables (Spin Master)
• Matt Edmondson (Format Games)  |  13 Beavers (Format Games)
• Tantrum Innovation & BRIK  |  Pictionary Vs. AI (Mattel)
• Vincent Burger  |  CDSK (Randolph)

Sponsored by

——

Debut of the Year

• WINNER: Brad Owen & Fat Brain Toys R&D Team  |  Air Toobz (Fat Brain Toys)
• Cara Weiss  |  Meet MahJong (ThinkFun)
• Chris Priscott  |  Moving Wild (Oink Games)
• Christopher Endozo Chafee (ThinkFun)  |  Math Path Monster (ThinkFun)
• Fumiko Shimizu  |  Dying Message (Oink Games)
• Jason Hibbert  |  Sosig (Joking Hazard)
• Marcus Carleson  |  Hitster (Jumbo)
• Paula Pitiot (ToyZone)  |  Jiggly Bugs (Eolo Toys)
• Romain Froger & Didier Lenain-Bragard  |  Qawale (Gigamic)

Sponsored by

——

R&D Team of the Year

• WINNER: Fat Brain Toys
• Golden Bear
• Hasbro’s Furby R&D Team
• Identity Games
• Lucky Egg
• Make It Real
• Moose Toys
• TOMY
• tms Product & Engineering Development Teams
• Wow! Stuff Innovation Team

Sponsored by

——

Inventor Relations Exec of the Year

• WINNER: Angus Walker  |  Hasbro
• Audrey Watanabe  |  Mattel
• Chris Lutchen & James Wing  |  TOMY
• David Laskowski  |  Hasbro
• Dominique Roy  |  Make It Real
• Floor Doggenaar  |  Jumbo
• Heath Saber  |  Moose Toys
• John Bell  |  Buffalo Games
• Shannon Swindle  |  Moose Toys
• Tony Serebriany  |  The Op

Sponsored by

——

Invention Studio/Design Agency of the Year

• Design Edge
• Designbytouch
• WINNER: Fun-Damental Invention
• Fuse
• Incredible Us
• Seven Towns
• So Sound
• Streamline Design
• Tantrum Innovation
• ToyZone
• Triclops Studio

Sponsored by

——

Toy Designer of the Year (Licensed/IP-Driven Product)

• Dominic Yard (This is YARD)  |  WWE Wrekkin’ Boneyard Slamcycle (Mattel)
• Fuse & Moose Toys Design Team  |  Bluey 3-in-1 Transforming Airplane Playset (Moose Toys)
• Greg Fisher & Sam Smith (Hasbro)  |  Spidey & His Amazing Friends Web Spinners Webquarters (Hasbro)
• Gurdeep Bains (YuMe Toys)  |  Netflix Countdown Giftbox (YuMe Toys)
• Jo Gough  |  Numberblocks Clip & Learn Number Fun (Trends UK)
• Josh Wilde & Tim Rowe (Fuse)  |  Jurassic World Mission Mayhem Truck Set (Mattel)
• Matt Jordan (TOMY)  |  Jixels Remix: Sonic the Hedgehog (TOMY)
• WINNER: Moose Toys Design Team  |  Minions Ultimate Fart Blaster (Moose Toys)
• Wow! Stuff R&D Team  |  Real FX Stitch (Wow! Stuff)

Sponsored by

——

Game Designer of the Year (Licensed/IP-Driven Product)

• Becky Shank & Craig Hendrickson (University Games)  |  Dog Man: 20,000 Fleas Under the Sea (University Games)
• Bluematter Games & David Yakos (Streamline Design)  |  AdventureX: Jurassic World (PlayMonster)
• Brady Lang (Moose Toys)  |  Bluey Keepy Uppy (Moose Toys)
• Daniel Schaefer, Jeremy Zwirn, Jim Cartwright & Tyler Parrott (Fantasy Flight Games)  |  Star Wars: Unlimited (Fantasy Flight Games)
• JM Duparc & Identity Games Team  |  The Traitors (Identity Games)
• Lauren Wallace (Ridley’s Games)  |  Marvel Guardians of the Galaxy Dance-Off (Ridley’s Games)
• Mirko Marchesi  |  Quoridor PAC-MAN (Gigamic)
• Rowena Isotta-Day (Orchard Toys)  |  Peter Rabbit Fish and Count (Orchard Toys)
• WINNER: Ryan Miller & Steve Warner (Ravensburger)  |  Disney Lorcana (Ravensburger)

Sponsored by:

——

Play Innovator of the Year

• WINNER: Bluematter Games  |  Medical Mysteries (Identity Games)
• Dan Klitsner (KID Group)  |  Bop It Button
• Furby Development Team  |  Furby (Hasbro)
• IDEO & Allie Jennings (Hasbro)  |  Twister Air (Hasbro)
• Make It Real Design Team  |  Stamp to Reveal (Make It Real)
• Moose Toys Design Team  |  Beast Lab (Moose Toys)
• Peter Wachtel  |  Batter Batter Fetch (Jazwares)
• So Sound & Wilder Toys  |  Snake Attack (Wilder Toys)
• Spin Master Bitzee Team  |  Bitzee (Spin Master)

Sponsored by:

——

Unsung Hero

• Chloe McCourt  |  GW Development
• Emily Brinkley  |  Lucky Egg
• Harriet Steeds  |  Ridley’s Games
• Jim Wyatt  |  Wow! Stuff
• Jodie Broaders  |  Fuse London
• WINNER: Josh Addyman  |  Seven Towns
• Oliver Chang  |  YuMe Toys
• Rich Walton  |  Format Games
• Richard Herman  |  The Happy Puzzle Company
• Sam Costidell  |  tms

Sponsored by

——

Rising Star

• Abbi Udell  |  Moose Toys
• Brooke Cherry  |  Fuse
• Chijioge “Chi” Nwogu  |  GameFlo
• WINNER: Danielle Reynolds  |  Wacky Wizard Games
• Eilat Tzin, Gigi Shachal & Katia Li-Ran
• Katie Holt  |  Camden Games
• Laura Estrada  |  ToyZone
• Olivia DeLuca  |  TOMY
• Ross Monks  |  Moose Toys
• Samuel Price  |  tms

Sponsord by

——

Icon Award
WINNER: Dan klitsner (KID Group)

Sponsord by

–

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The post Play Creators Awards 2024 winners revealed appeared first on Mojo Nation.

Tim Schilder – Game Development Manager at Ravensburger – will host a session at this year’s Play Creators Conference that takes delegates ‘Inside Game Design’.

Providing a deep dive into Ravensburger’s hit Disney Lorcana TCG, the full title of Tim’s session is: ‘Inside Game Design – Or How To Enhance Cards with Pixie Dust!’

“I’m delighted to have Tim speaking at this year’s event,” said Mojo Nation’s Billy Langsworthy.

“Disney Lorcana has been huge this year, and I know our audience will be excited to see behind the curtain when it comes to design of the game.”

This year’s Play Creators Conference is taking place at London’s Stamford Bridge Stadium on Wednesday, June 26th.

To book your ticket, head to: https://playcreatorsconference.co.uk/product/play-creators-conference-ticket/

–

To stay in the loop with the latest news, interviews and features from the world of toy and game design, sign up to our weekly newsletter here

The post Ravensburger’s Tim Schilder to take Play Creators Conference audience ‘Inside Game Design’ appeared first on Mojo Nation.

Mojo Nation has detailed the finalists for this year’s Play Creators Awards.

The Play Creators Awards celebrates designers and inventors in the toy and game community that have excelled over the last 12 months.

This year’s Play Creators Awards will take place on Tuesday, June 25th at London’s Under the Bridge venue within Stamford Bridge Stadium.

As nominated by their peers, the finalists are:

Toy Designer of the Year – Sponsored by Jazwares

• Charlie Bason (Buzz Ideas) & Fuse  |  Revibe Beadworks Studio (PlayMonster)
• CONNETIX Design Team  |  CONNETIX 50 Piece Pastel Transport Pack (CONNETIX)
• Eilat Tzin, Gigi Shachal, Katia Li-Ran & Make It Real Advanced Design Team  |  LinXo (Make It Real)
• Emma Costa Lascelles (TOMY) & Rad Stuff  |  Stakimos (TOMY)
• Fun-Damental Invention & ToyZone  |  Biggies (Eolo Toys)
• Lucas Tyler (Fuse)  |  Monster Jam Launch N Go Hauler (Spin Master)
• Making Things Studio & Phase Two  |  Playtab (Fat Brain Toys)
• Moose Toys Design Team  |  Magic Mixies Pixlings (Moose Toys)
• Moose Toys Design Team  |  Cookeez Makery Freezy Cakez (Moose Toys)

——

Game Designer of the Year (Kids/Family Games) – Sponsored by ThinkFun

• Bang Zoom  |  Pickleball Blast (Moose Toys)
• Dan Klitsner & Brian Clemens (KID Group)  |  Sling It
• David Yakos (Streamline Design)  |  Fainting Goats (Ambassador Games)
• Eric Lang & Ken Gruhl  |  Life in Reterra (Hasbro)
• The Fantastic Factory & TOMY Games Team  |  5 Up (TOMY)
• Sara Farber & Bryan Wilson (Galactic Sneeze)  |  Floats McGoats (Hootenanny Games)
• Raf Peeters (SMART Toys and Games)  |  Cats and Boxes (SMART Toys and Games)
• KidKenn  |  VolleyShot (Fat Brain Toys)
• Seven Towns  |  Fart Yoga (Golden Bear)

——

Game Designer of the Year (Party Games) – Sponsored by Playtime PR

• Austyn Romero (Ridley’s Games)  |  Pickles (Ridley’s Games)
• David Yakos (Streamline Design)  |  Battleship Royale (Hasbro)
• Emily Brinkley, Marty Pardoe & Rob Piesse (Lucky Egg)  |  Grab the Mic (Lucky Egg)
• Fun-Damental Invention  |  Tilt N’ Shout (Big Potato)
• Sara Farber & Bryan Wilson (Galactic Sneeze)  |  Fork Milk Kidnap (Hasbro)
• Hunch Studios  |  Decodables (Spin Master)
• Matt Edmondson (Format Games)  |  13 Beavers (Format Games)
• Tantrum Innovation & BRIK  |  Pictionary Vs. AI (Mattel)
• Vincent Burger  |  CDSK (Randolph)

——

Debut of the Year – Sponsored by YuMe Toys

• Brad Owen & Fat Brain Toys R&D Team  |  Air Toobz (Fat Brain Toys)
• Cara Weiss  |  Meet MahJong (ThinkFun)
• Chris Priscott  |  Moving Wild (Oink Games)
• Christopher Endozo Chafee (ThinkFun)  |  Math Path Monster (ThinkFun)
• Fumiko Shimizu  |  Dying Message (Oink Games)
• Jason Hibbert  |  Sosig (Joking Hazard)
• Marcus Carleson  |  Hitster (Jumbo)
• Paula Pitiot (ToyZone)  |  Jiggly Bugs (Eolo Toys)
• Romain Froger & Didier Lenain-Bragard  |  Qawale (Gigamic)

——

R&D Team of the Year

• Fat Brain Toys
• Golden Bear
• Hasbro’s Furby R&D Team
• Identity Games
• Lucky Egg
• Make It Real
• Moose Toys
• TOMY
• tms Product & Engineering Development Teams
• Wow! Stuff Innovation Team

——

Inventor Relations Exec of the Year

• Angus Walker  |  Hasbro
• Audrey Watanabe  |  Mattel
• Chris Lutchen & James Wing  |  TOMY
• David Laskowski  |  Hasbro
• Dominique Roy  |  Make It Real
• Floor Doggenaar  |  Jumbo
• Heath Saber  |  Moose Toys
• John Bell  |  Buffalo Games
• Shannon Swindle  |  Moose Toys
• Tony Serebriany  |  The Op

——

Invention Studio/Design Agency of the Year – Sponsored by Hasbro

• Design Edge
• Designbytouch
• Fun-Damental Invention
• Fuse
• Incredible Us
• Seven Towns
• So Sound
• Streamline Design
• Tantrum Innovation
• ToyZone
• Triclops Studio

——

Toy Designer of the Year (Licensed/IP-Driven Product) – Sponsored by The Wyld Bunch

• Dominic Yard (This is YARD)  |  WWE Wrekkin’ Boneyard Slamcycle (Mattel)
• Fuse & Moose Toys Design Team  |  Bluey 3-in-1 Transforming Airplane Playset (Moose Toys)
• Greg Fisher & Sam Smith (Hasbro)  |  Spidey & His Amazing Friends Web Spinners Webquarters (Hasbro)
• Gurdeep Bains (YuMe Toys)  |  Netflix Countdown Giftbox (YuMe Toys)
• Jo Gough  |  Numberblocks Clip & Learn Number Fun (Trends UK)
• Josh Wilde & Tim Rowe (Fuse)  |  Jurassic World Mission Mayhem Truck Set (Mattel)
• Matt Jordan (TOMY)  |  Jixels Remix: Sonic the Hedgehog (TOMY)
• Moose Toys Design Team  |  Minions Ultimate Fart Blaster (Moose Toys)
• Wow! Stuff R&D Team  |  Real FX Stitch (Wow! Stuff)

——

Game Designer of the Year (Licensed/IP-Driven Product) – Sponsored by Wynne-Jones IP

• Becky Shank & Craig Hendrickson (University Games)  |  Dog Man: 20,000 Fleas Under the Sea (University Games)
• Bluematter Games & David Yakos (Streamline Design)  |  AdventureX: Jurassic World (PlayMonster)
• Brady Lang (Moose Toys)  |  Bluey Keepy Uppy (Moose Toys)
• Daniel Schaefer, Jeremy Zwirn, Jim Cartwright & Tyler Parrott (Fantasy Flight Games)  |  Star Wars: Unlimited (Fantasy Flight Games)
• JM Duparc & Identity Games Team  |  The Traitors (Identity Games)
• Lauren Wallace (Ridley’s Games)  |  Marvel Guardians of the Galaxy Dance-Off (Ridley’s Games)
• Mirko Marchesi  |  Quoridor PAC-MAN (Gigamic)
• Rowena Isotta-Day (Orchard Toys)  |  Peter Rabbit Fish and Count (Orchard Toys)
• Ryan Miller & Steve Warner (Ravensburger)  |  Disney Lorcana (Ravensburger)

——

Play Innovator of the Year – Sponsored by ToyZone

• Bluematter Games  |  Medical Mysteries (Identity Games)
• Dan Klitsner (KID Group)  |  Bop It Button
• Furby Development Team  |  Furby (Hasbro)
• IDEO & Allie Jennings (Hasbro)  |  Twister Air (Hasbro)
• Make It Real Design Team  |  Stamp to Reveal (Make It Real)
• Moose Toys Design Team  |  Beast Lab (Moose Toys)
• Peter Wachtel  |  Batter Batter Fetch (Jazwares)
• So Sound & Wilder Toys  |  Snake Attack (Wilder Toys)
• Spin Master Bitzee Team  |  Bitzee (Spin Master)

——

Unsung Hero – Sponsored by Ravensburger’s Disney Lorcana TCG

• Chloe McCourt  |  GW Development
• Emily Brinkley  |  Lucky Egg
• Harriet Steeds  |  Ridley’s Games
• Jim Wyatt  |  Wow! Stuff
• Jodie Broaders  |  Fuse London
• Josh Addyman  |  Seven Towns
• Oliver Chang  |  YuMe Toys
• Rich Walton  |  Format Games
• Richard Herman  |  The Happy Puzzle Company
• Sam Costidell  |  tms

——

Rising Star – Sponsored by Ridley’s Games

• Abbi Udell  |  Moose Toys
• Brooke Cherry  |  Fuse
• Chijioge “Chi” Nwogu  |  GameFlo
• Danielle Reynolds  |  Wacky Wizard Games
• Eilat Tzin, Gigi Shachal & Katia Li-Ran
• Katie Holt  |  Camden Games
• Laura Estrada  |  ToyZone
• Olivia DeLuca  |  TOMY
• Ross Monks  |  Moose Toys
• Samuel Price  |  tms

——

Icon Award – sponsored by Moose Toys
The winner of this award will be announced on the night.

—

Winners will be revealed at the live Play Creators Awards on Tuesday, June 25th at Under the Bridge within London’s Stamford Bridge Stadium.

To book your ticket to this year’s Play Creators Awards, click here.

–

To stay in the loop with the latest news, interviews and features from the world of toy and game design, sign up to our weekly newsletter here

The post Play Creators Awards 2024 finalists revealed appeared first on Mojo Nation.

There is only a few days left to send in nominations for this year’s Play Creators Awards, an event celebrating great achievements in toy and game design and invention.

This year’s Play Creators Awards will take place on Tuesday, June 25th at Under the Bridge in London, as part of this year’s Play Creators Festival.

The event will celebrate inventors and external studios, as well as in-house design talent, that have excelled over the past 12 months.

The deadline to get nominations in is Friday, April 19th.

The full line-up of categories available to nominate are:

Toy Designer of the Year
Whether bringing innovation to an iconic toy brand, or responsible for the industry’s latest big hit, this award celebrates inventors and designers that have done outstanding work over the past 12 months.
To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

———

Game Designer of the Year (Kids & Family Game)
This award is for inventors and designers behind the best and brightest in the world of kids’ games. Celebrate the brains behind the games!
To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

———

Game Designer of the Year (Party Game)
This category celebrates the in-house designers or external inventors and studios behind the year’s top party games.
To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

———

Invention Studio/Design Agency of the Year
This category celebrates studios and agencies that deserves recognition for exceptional work over the last 12 months.
To nominate we need: Name of Design Agency/Invention Studio

———

Inventor Relations Exec of the Year
This award highlights the phenomenal work being done by individuals working in IR across the past year.
To nominate we need: Name of IR Exec

———

R&D Team of the Year
This award celebrates in-house teams that have achieved extraordinary things over the last year.
To nominate we need: Company Name & Names of R&D Team Members

———

Toy Designer of the Year (Licensed Product)
The first of two awards recognising excellence in licensed product, Toy Designer of the Year (Licensed Product) celebrates creators that have brought much loved characters and IP to life through great toys.
To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

———

Game Designer of the Year (Licensed Product)
This award is for a designer that has given an IP the board game treatment in impressive style via a great licensed game this year.
To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

———

Play Innovator of the Year
Whether through fresh thinking or tech twists, the Play Innovation of the Year award celebrates those driving innovation in our industry.
To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor & Product Name

———

Unsung Hero Award
A model making superstar? An exceptional artist? A secret weapon within your IR team? This award sings the praises of those who maybe don’t always get the credit they deserve.
To nominate we need: Name of Nominee

———

Debut of the Year – NEW FOR 2024!
Aiming to shine a spotlight on budding inventor talent, this award celebrates inventors who saw their first item land on shelves in past 12 months.
To nominate we need: Name of Inventor & Product Name

———

Rising Star Award
This award celebrates fresh design talent and the inventor stars of the future. Nominate them in the Rising Star category.
To nominate we need: Name of Designer/Inventor

———

Icon Award
This award celebrates an iconic figure that have helped shape the industry, truly leaving their footprint and a lasting legacy in the world of toy and game design and/or invention.
To nominate we need: Name of Nominee.

To nominate, email the name of your nominated person or team – and the name of the product, if nominating for a product category – to billy@mojo-nation.com, along with some reasons as to why they should win the accolade.

If nominating for a product category, the product has to have launched between Summer 2023 and this coming Summer 2024.

Finalists for each category will be announced in May, before a panel of experts select winners over a series of roundtable judging sessions.

For sponsorship opportunities, email sarah@mojo-nation.com.

–

To stay in the loop with the latest news, interviews and features from the world of toy and game design, sign up to our weekly newsletter here

The post Only a few days left to nominate for Play Creators Awards 2024 appeared first on Mojo Nation.