Last week marked the debut of Gamescom Latam in Sao Paulo, Brazil, an event designed to spotlight Latin America's burgeoning gaming scene while also celebrating the global gaming industry. A highlight of the event was the game awards, held in collaboration with the BIG Festival, where winners were unveiled during a glamorous presentation.

The awards spanned 13 categories, with finalists selected by a panel of 49 judges. Attendees had the opportunity to play all the nominated games at the Sao Paulo Expo, where a prominent booth showcased both mobile and PC games together, emphasizing the importance of mobile gaming in the industry.

The "Best Mobile Game" category, naturally of great interest, saw Triband ApS' "What the Car?" emerge as the winner. This accolade is well-deserved, as highlighted by Jupiter Hadley in a previous article featuring ten lesser-known yet remarkable games. The recognition of "What the Car?" at Gamescom Latam further solidifies its status, though it might soon need to be removed from lists of undiscovered gems as it gains more widespread acclaim.

While "What the Car?" took home the top prize, it's important to acknowledge the other nominees, all of which are noteworthy for making it to the shortlist:

• Junkworld – Ironhide Game Studio
• Bella Pelo Mundo – Plot Kids
• An Elmwood Trail – Techyonic
• Sibel's Journey – Food for Thought Media
• Residuum Tales of Coral – Iron Games
• SPHEX – VitalN

In addition to the mobile category, other awards were given out, showcasing a diverse range of excellence in gaming:

• Game of the Year – Chants of Sennar - Rundisc
• Best Game from Latin America – Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure – Furniture & Mattress
• Best Brazilian Game – Momodora: Moonlit Farewell - Bombservice
• Best Casual Game – Station to Station – Galaxy Groove Studios
• Best Audio – Dordogne - UMANIMATION and UN JE NE SAIS QUOI
• Best Art – Harold Halibut – Slow Bros. UG.
• Best Multiplayer – Extremely Powerful Capybaras – Studio Bravarda and PM Studios
• Best Narrative – Once Upon A Jester – Bonte Avond
• Best XR/VR – Sky Climb - VRMonkey
• Best Gameplay – Pacific Drive – Ironwood Studios
• Best Pitch from Regional Game Development Associations – Dark Crown – Hyper Dive Game Studio

For those eager to experience the award-winning "What the Car?", it is available on the App Store via Apple Arcade, a subscription service priced at $6.99 per month (or your local equivalent). You can download it directly from the link below.