The DEP is the oldest award for outstanding computer games and has been presented since 2004. The award is organized by games.nrw e.V., which represents the interests of the digital games industry in North Rhine-Westphalia. The award is supported by the great commitment of the games industry. Numerous experts from the industry work voluntarily on the juries. In addition, many companies support the prize as partners and sponsors.

The prize will be awarded in 2023 in 14 categories. With three nominations each, Games Dome Keeper from Bippinbits in Radeberg and SIGNALIS from rose-engine in Hamburg have the highest hopes of winning awards. Of the 33 nominations known so far, eleven are from North Rhine-Westphalia, followed by seven from Hamburg and six from Berlin.

The best games of the year are selected in a two-stage jury process. In a first step, expert juries deliberate on the best games and projects in twelve categories. Then the "Grand Jury" determines the "Best German Game" and the nominees in these categories from the games nominated in the specialist categories. The "Grand Jury" also decides on the reintroduced "Studio of the Year" category. Games that were developed primarily in the German-speaking region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) are eligible for the award.

The nominated games and their developer teams:

Best German Game and Studio of the Year

• The nominees in the categories "Best German Game" and "Studio of the Year" will be determined by the Grand Jury and announced on November 16, 2023.

Best Indie Game

• Chained Echoes (Matthias Linda, Ratingen - NRW)
• Dome Keeper (Bippinbits, Radeberg - Saxony)
• SIGNALIS (rose-engine, Hamburg)

Best Casual Game

• Spells & Secrets (Alchemist Interactive, Düsseldorf - NRW)
• Sticky Business (Spellgarden Games, Stuttgart - Baden-Wuerttemberg)
• Fall of the Throne (Grizzly Games, Berlin)

Best Game Beyond Entertainment

• Duru - About Mulle and Depressions (Twisted Ramble Games, Berlin)
• Friedrich Ebert - The Way to Democracy (Playing History, Berlin)
• Nature? Political. (Tiny Crocodile Studios, Berlin)

Best Game Design

• Chained Echoes (Matthias Linda, Ratingen - NRW)
• Dome Keeper (Bippinbits, Radeberg - Saxony)
• EVERSPACE 2 (ROCKFISH Games, Hamburg)

Best Audio Design

• The Settlers: New Alliances (Ubisoft Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf - NRW)
• Fall of Porcupine (Critical Rabbit, Cologne - NRW)
• Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew (Mimimi Games, Munich - Bavaria)

Best Graphics

• The Settlers: New Alliances (Ubisoft Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf - NRW)
• SIGNALIS (rose-engine, Hamburg)
• Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew (Mimimi Games, Munich - Bavaria)

Best Story

• Ad Infinitum (Hekate, Berlin)
• Fall of Porcupine (Critical Rabbit, Cologne - NRW)
• SIGNALIS (rose-engine, Hamburg)

Best Technical Achievement

• EVERSPACE 2 (ROCKFISH Games, Hamburg)
• Farming Simulator 22 - Platinum Edition (GIANTS Software, Schlieren - Switzerland)
• Railway Empire 2 (Gaming Minds Studios, Gütersloh - NRW)

Innovation Award

• Dome Keeper (Bippinbits, Radeberg - Saxony)
• Marble Maze (Fox-Assembly, Hamburg)
• Touch Type Tale - Strategic Typing (Pumpernickel Studio, Münster - NRW)

Special prize for social commitment

• Andreas Gottschalt (Halberstadt - Saxony-Anhalt)
• GAME:IN (Cologne - NRW)
• Loot for the World (Berlin)

Ubisoft Newcomer Award

• Misgiven (Symmetry Break Studio, Hamburg)
• Tiny Bookshop (neoludic Games, Cologne - NRW)
• Tom the postgirl (Oopsie Daisies Studio, Zurich - Switzerland)

As in previous years, the NRW Promotional Award for Young Female Developers will be awarded without nominations.