The 12th Pocket Gamer Awards winners and game of the year announced
Who won the big prize?
Phew. It's been a long road to get here, but the 12th Pocket Gamer Awards winners have finally been announced. I won't keep you long. James has spent a while making a fancy video for you all to watch, so check that out below:
Oh, you're still here. What's that? You want to read about the winners as well as watch our wonderful video? Okay, sure. Let me scribble something down for you, my fellow literature enthusiast.
Best Updated Game of the Year
You'd be hard-pressed to find a game that's as regularly updated with good content as Warhammer 40,000: Tacticus. Ever since it first launched, Snowprint Studios hasn't slacked on adding new things for players to do as they continue their grimdark adventures. There's always another faction on the horizon, and I'm sure fans are looking forward to what else arrives this year.
Best Multiplayer Game
When Team Jade announced that they were bringing back the tactical shooter Delta Force after a long hiatus, and to mobile no less, I was pretty sceptical. A first-person shooter on a phone? I'm sorry, but that's Call of Duty Mobile's territory. Good luck breaking through there. Oh, how wrong I was. Of course, I'm always happy to see something succeed. More choice and variety are always good, so it's great to see Delta Force forging a path and finding a dedicated player base.
Best Game We're Still Playing It's perhaps not too surprising that the Best Updated Game of the Year also takes home this award. The two categories all but go hand-in-hand, after all. Tacticus doesn't appear to be going anywhere anytime soon, and I wouldn't be surprised if it gets nominated in this category once again for the 13th Pocket Gamer Awards.
Best Digital Board Game of the Year
Ah, TCG Pocket. After a rocky start with trading and a lack of a compelling meta, it's come on in leaps and bounds ever since. Battles are now a lot more interesting, thanks to a greater variety of cards, and it's easier to complete your collection because of changes to trading. One thing that has always been brilliant, though, is the pack opening experience. All the animations DeNA has added here truly capture the thrill of getting a good pull. Sometimes that's all I do! The battling is secondary in many ways.
Best Family Game of the Year
Nothing brings families together before promptly tearing them apart like UNO. UNO Wonder is no exception. It's the classic you know and love in many ways, with a few twists and turns thrown in to keep you guessing.
Best Puzzle Game of the Year
When I first started working on PG back in 2019, one of the things that initially surprised me was that point-and-click adventures are popular on mobile. But then I spent some time thinking about it, and I quickly realised it makes perfect sense. You're free to tap about the screen looking for clues without needing a horrid UI blocking all of the lovely artwork. And wow, does Follow the Meaning have a great aesthetic. Each scene is like its own slightly sorrowful drawing, and the story's not bad either.
Best Action Game of the Year
We've already praised Delta Force above for bringing another multiplayer option to the mobile shooting realm. It also straddles multiple categories, giving people tense action on the go. It doesn't remain static either, with new seasons switching things up just enough to keep everything feeling fresh.
Best RPG of the Year
We're not exactly short of RPGs on mobile. It seems most weeks our news writers, Iwan and Tanish, are covering yet another gacha RPG based on some anime I've never heard of. So, you really have to do something special to stand out from that crowd, and it seems you all believe Seven Knights Re:Birth does exactly that.
Best Mobile Publisher
Now, I don't know about you, but my mind tends to think in games rather than developers and publishers. Scopely is one of a few exceptions, which is hardly surprising given their mobile dominance. Scopely and Monopoly are absolutely huge. And that's before you remember they acquired Niantic last year, adding Pokémon Go and Monster Hunter Now to their already impressive portfolio. Ahem. Sorry, I went a bit B2B there for a moment.
Best Strategy Game of the Year
Sometimes, there are things I inexplicably cannot get past in TV shows. One of them is Aang from Avatar. I want to support my fellow bald folk, but the arrow is just too ridiculous for my tastes. Anyway, my Aang angst takes nothing away from how successful Avatar Legends: Realms Collide has become. The developers haven't rested on their laurels either, providing a steady stream of updates to keep us invested. Shaun even dipped in simply because he could get Appa... whatever that is.
Best Sports Game of the Year
In one of the most obvious statements so far in 2026, extreme sports are pretty dangerous. Skiing can be more leisurely, of course. However, if we're all being honest, the idea of speeding down a slope and off a ramp to do a series of spins and somersaults is far more exciting. Thanks to Grand Mountain Adventure 2, we can experience all those thrills without the risk of breaking our necks. Hurray!
Best Platform Game of the Year
While Will might have given Prince of Persia: Lost Crown a bronze rating, it's taking home the top prize in the PGAs. This side-scrolling approach to the classic series obviously resonated with our readers, and, frankly, it's nice to see something from Ubisoft that isn't a dull open world that I have zero interest in exploring.
Best Simulation Game of the Year One of the great things about mobile is seeing classic indies eventually make their way over from PC. TABS Pocket Edition takes the silly fun of the original version and miniaturises it for phones. And it's not surprising it won a community-voted award either, given our App Army loved it when they played it last year.
Best Roblox Game - Coraline - Evade the Others
I'm not about to pretend I know much about Roblox. Or Coraline, for that matter. For the latter I've simply seen a few trailers from the now 15-year old movie and know that there are people with creepy button eyes. But it's incredibly clear that Toya have managed to create something wondeful with the Laika_Studios IP, something that captivates players through adapting the iconic movie to the burgeoning Roblox platform.
Best Mobile Port
I'm lowkey furious that the wonderful Dredge hasn't won this category. But I will swallow my anger and lock it away in a poor attempt to seem gracious. I jest. Suzerain is a worthy winner. Not only did Will enjoy his time with it, but our Editor-in-Chief, Dann, is also a fan, having mentioned it in many a Wrapp. So, it's no surprise it resonated with you, our readers, either.
Most Anticipated Game
Well, I suppose this is slightly awkward. When we first drew up the nominations, Arknights: Endfield was a highly anticipated game. And it looks as though you were all correct to be hyped. Not only has Endfield now been released, but it's proving pretty popular, particularly the factory mechanics. Now, as excited as we were, I don't think any of us predicted that would be the standout feature, did we?
Best Community Warhammer 40,000: Tacticus has completed the hattrick! I'm not sure what the PGA match ball looks like, but I suspect it will be wonderfully purple. Anyway, it's once again not too surprising it has won this particular award. Tacticus' fanbase has continually proven their loyalty whenever fan votes pop up, so it's great to see them get a win that acknowledges them personally.
Best Mobile Developer
At first glance, it might seem strange that Supercell has taken home Best Developer. After all, they did announce that Squad Busters is shutting down this year. However, we can't forget all the things they have done in the past 12 months. Alongside updating their popular offerings, we heard that a Clash of Clans show is on the way, alongside a board game. When you break outside of gaming, you're doing something right.
Best Innovation
Is there anything more innovative than bringing dinosaurs to life without them running around munching on humans? I think not! Jurassic World Alive sees you exploring your surroundings in search of these prehistoric beasts using AR. With the DNA you collect, you can even create hybrids in the lab. But remember, and say it with me: Just because you can, it doesn't mean you should.
Mobile Game of the Year
Snagging a rather respectable brace, we have Seven Knights Re:Birth taking home Mobile Game of the Year. As I mentioned earlier, we're not short of RPGs, so managing to stand out is a feat by itself. Equally, though, we're not short of games in general. Rising to the top of every fantastic release from 2025 is very impressive. A huge congratulations to the team at Netmarble on their win.
Congratulations to all of the winners, and thank you for reading and voting. It's been an amazing awards period this year, and I can't wait to see what we'll be celebrating next year.
