2023 GEE! Learning Game Awards
The GEE! award recognizes excellence in educational game design. The award is judged by international leaders in the field.
2023 winners were announced July 21.
Award Categories:
Formal Learning (Elementary)
Learning games for use in formal school contexts
up to grade 5 (~10 years old)
Judges
Chris Baker (Competition Lead, Department of Public Instruction)
Valentin Briukhanov (CodeCombat)
Adeeb Syed (Springboard, Harvard)
Finalists
Nunaka (FableVision Studios)
AJ’s Recycle (Twin Cities PBS)
Pengeby (PortaPlay Gp)
Winner
Nunaka (FableVision Studios)
Informal Learning
For home, family, museums, libraries, etc.
Judges
Barry Joseph (Competition Lead, Co-Founder of Games for Change)
Monica Fan (Pipeworks Studios)
Paolo Gambardella (Sentendo)
Akiva Joseph (High School Senior)
Finalists
Cyberchase Duck Dash (The WNET Group)
Star Stuff (Animo Games Studio)
Simple Methods Artificial Intelligence Learning Education (SMAILE)
Brewmaster: Beer Brewing Simulator (Auroch Digital Ltd)
Venture Valley Video Game (Singleton Foundation)
Winner
Star Stuff (Animo Games Studio)
Analog Games
Board games, card games,
or other non-digital games
Judges
Peter McDonald (Competition Lead, UW-Madison
Luis Felipe Martinez Gomez (UW-Madison)
Max Shafer-Landau (UW-Madison)
Finalists
Lightning in a Bottle (Howse, Kerman, & Taranat)
WorldPieces (GameChangers)
N.O.V.E.L. - Newly Observed Varient of Extreme Lethality (The Partnership in Education)
Empiric (Michael Cosimini)
Blacks & Whites: 50th Anniversary Edition (Never Sad)
ink (Snowbright Studio)
The UNDERstory (The App Farm)
Winner
Lightning in a Bottle (Howse, Kerman, & Taranat)
Formal Learning
(Middle+)
Learning games for use in formal school contexts
for grades 6+ (~11+ years old)
Judges
Matheus Cezarotto (Competition Lead, New Mexico State University)
Ray Kimball (42EdGames)
Amanda Siebert-Evenstone (Age of Learning)
Finalists
Mission US: No Turning Back (The WNET Group)
Tyto Online (Immersed Games)
Ozaria (CodeCombat Inc.)
Drama Studio (Ugly Duckling Games)
CodeCombat (CodeCombat Inc.)
People’s Pie (iCivics and Filament Games)
iThrive Sim: Leading Through Crisis (iThrive Games)
PlaySmart (play2PREVENT Lab / Schell Games)
Winner
People’s Pie (iCivics and Filament Games)
Small & Indie Studios
Studios with <$100k in funding for the game
Judges
Amy Patterson (Competition Lead, Urban Arts)
Michael Douma (IDEA)
Jenny Saucerman (Credit Union National Association)
Finalists
Sibel’s Journey (Food for Thought)
Katuku Island (Katuku Island)
EOS-503 (University of Connecticut / Pyrebug Studios)
Play the Knave (ModLab)
Imagine Earth - Building Sustainable Civilizations (Serious Bros.)
Beecarbonize (Charles Games)
Sabz (Gold Bug Interactive)
Three Adventures Imagined with Monsters - T.I.M.O. (Atomic Studio SAS)
Winner
Imagine Earth - Building Sustainable Civilizations (Serious Bros.)
The long and short of it
In the spirit of James Paul Gee’s scholarship, we’ve created an award to recognize best educational video games in the world. Finalists will showcase their games during the Play Make Learn conference. Send us your best!
Game Application Deadline:
June 1, 2023 at Midnight Latest Time Zone (UTC+14)
Judging Criteria
Does it Empower Learners?
Does it create Problems Worth Solving?
Does it create Deep Understanding?
Does it work smoothly?
Is it visually interesting?
Is it original?
What Do We Get?
For the Winners:
A GEE! Award Winner badge to use on your website and promotional materials
Your game featured on the GEE! Award website
The opportunity to talk about your game during a dedicated hybrid session at PLAY MAKE LEARN 2023
For the Finalists:
A GEE! Award Finalist badge to use on your website and promotional materials.
Your game featured on the GEE! Award website
Free registration to PLAY MAKE LEARN 2023 for 2 members of your team to demo your game in the Arcade (not required)