NZGA Awards for 2011
There was a strong field of entries for the 3rd annual NZGA Awards!
We are pleased to announce the following winners:
New Game of the Year 2011 – Toppletree by Matthew Lazenby and IQideas
Teacher’s Choice Award 2011 – Kiwi Quiz by Edugames
Children’s Choice Award 2011 – Time Zone by Edugames
Thanks to our independent panels of judges who assessed the games entered for these awards.
Press Release
2011 TOP KIWI BOARDGAMES ANNOUNCED
Awarding-winning New Zealand designed boardgame Toppletree has taken top honours at the annual New Zealand Games Association Boardgame Design Awards, announced this week.
Judged by a panel of teachers the awards are divided into three categories: The New Game of the Year, Teacher’s Choice Award and the Children’s Choice Award.
New Game of the Year Toppletree was invented by designer Matthew Lazenby. Toppletree is a smart construction game with a strategic twist for 2-4 players. Players aim to grow their coloured branch of the tree before it topples over.
Matthew Lazenby came up with the idea for the game four years ago and spent two years developing a prototype.
“I started by moulding a couple of the blocks. All of the blocks started as a single colour and I developed the concept from there to the four colours it is now. It was always going to be a tree. During the development I also played it on paper in a two dimensional format,” explains Matthew.
Toppletree has received other accolades including the Major Fun Thinking Award and a silver medal from The Parents Choice Foundation, USA.
Comments from families who have played Toppletree include: “My daughter is 5 and has a very short attention span. She received this for Christmas and loves it. Great fast paced game.” And, “this is very addictive. We played it for 5 hours last night. All ages can play it too.”
Winner of the 2011 Teachers Choice award, Kiwi Quiz was invented by David and Margaret Allis from Devonport. They developed the game in 2006 and it has become a very popular resource in New Zealand classrooms and homes. Kiwi Quiz is used in over 400 schools throughout New Zealand. Comprising 1600 questions and answers on 400 cards, it offers four levels of challenge so adults and children can easily play together.
Kiwi Quiz covers a range of topics including: history, geography, sports, birds, fauna, animals, politics, famous people, music, place names, literature, business, mathematics, general knowledge and many more. Comments from New Zealand teachers using Kiwi Quiz in the classroom include: “large, well-researched question bank; supports the NZ curriculum; an excellent concept; a ‘must’ for every senior (Primary) classroom”.
Time Zone takes out the 2011 Children’s Choice award. Also invented by David and Margaret Allis of Edugames, Time Zone challenges and teaches general knowledge about New Zealand and world events. Three games in one, players are challenged to place important historical events in a timeline. Time Zone supports the New Zealand school curriculum and is proving to be a valuable addition to the classroom.
“We are thrilled with the standard of entries received this year. This is the third year of the competition and we continue to see kiwis punching above their weight, producing top quality boardgames that compete on the world stage,” says Andrew Baker of the New Zealand Games Association.
For more information contact:
Andrew Baker
New Zealand Games Association
Phone: 06 877 9258
Mobile: 021 377 644
Andrew.baker@iqideas.com
Background Information:
The New Zealand Games Association (NZGA) aims to encourage the development of the game industry in Aotearoa New Zealand, from game design & development, through publishing and sales. Founded in 2009 NZGA has 17 members. NZGA focuses on physical games, including games with boards, cards, dice, tiles, blocks etc. These include all common board, card & family games, as well as quiz games, dexterity games and more. It does not include electronic or computer games, or jigsaw puzzles.
