MegaBonk Developer Withdraws from Best Debut Nomination at TGA 2025: This Isnt My First Game

The game **MegaBonk**, inspired by **Vampire Survivors**, has emerged as one of the biggest indie hits of 2025. It managed to sell its first million copies in just a few weeks. Recently, the project was nominated for The Game Awards; however, the creator of **MegaBonk** felt that the game wasn’t suitable for the category in question.

The developer, known as **john megabonk**, tweeted that he was withdrawing his game from the “Best Debut Indie Game” nomination. While he appreciates that **MegaBonk** is in contention for an award at TGA, he believes it does not meet the criteria. The reason is simple: **MegaBonk** is not the developer’s first game.

The release trailer for the game.

Geoff Keighley, producer and host of The Game Awards, responded to the developer’s request, promising to remove **MegaBonk** from the list of nominees and thanking him for his honesty. “He will share more details when ready, and we respect his decision—he didn’t want to draw attention away from other deserving debut teams. Nonetheless, his game is undoubtedly excellent,” Keighley stated in a post.

This incident recalls the situation with **Dave the Diver**, which was categorized as “Best Indie” at both the Golden Joystick Awards 2023 and The Game Awards 2023. Following this, the game director, Jaeho Hwang, explicitly stated that **Mintrocket** is certainly not an indie studio, and **Dave the Diver** is not an indie title.

It’s worth noting that voting for TGA is still open, and the awards ceremony will take place on December 12 at 03:30 Moscow time. The event will be streamed live on platforms such as YouTube and Twitch.