BIG Festival Rules
BIG Festival – Brazil’s Independent Games Festival ("Festival") is held by Bits Producoes Ltda. ("Production Company"), thanks to the sponsorship and support of the companies listed on this Website. The Festival is a cultural contest that will award the best games selected by the Guest Jury and by the Selection Committee, as described below in the Prizes section.
All information about the Festival will be available through the Website www.bigfestival.com.br ("Website"). The Website will also centralize all Festival information and communication, including registration for the Festival, activity dates, lists of finalists, and access to information about the games selected and submitted to the Festival.
All those who submit games to participate in the Festival ("Contestants") declare to know and accept the Festival Rules and the Terms of Use of this Website.
Who can participate?
We accept the participation of any person or company representative of any nationality that is interested in submitting games to compete for the prizes offered. Contestants who are underage must be properly authorized by their legal guardians.
The participation of employees, collaborators, partners, shareholders of the Production Company or of the companies sponsoring the Festival, as well as their respective relatives up to the second degree, spouses and any persons involved directly in the implementation of the Festival, is prohibited.
Which games can participate?
We will accept all kinds of digital games, for any platform, console or media that's officially available for purchase by the general public and provided they are in a state to be played and evaluated by the Selection Committee.
In the event the game has already been released commercially, the release must have taken place up to two years prior to the date of the Festival.
Each competitor can submit as many games as desired. However, a registration form must be completed for each title, free of charge.
How to participate
To participate, a Contestant must access the submission form at the Festival’s Website fill, and submit it according to the instructions.
The submission form may only be accessed through the pages http://www.bigfestival.com.br/inscrever and http://www.bigfestival.com.br/submit
Only one game is accepted for each submission form filled and submitted.
The Contestant has provide access to the game through any of the following means:
- direct download through a download URL
- direct access to a site where the game can be played through a URL
- submitting access codes or keys that grand access to the game
Registration is free, but the Selection Committee will not bear any cost to purchase or play the game. In the event payment is required in order to have access to the game, the Contestant must offer 3 coupons or free access codes.
Deadline for submitting games
Game submissions will be accepted for the Festival until the date described in the competition section of the BIG Festival Awards page.
Prizes
Prizes will be awarded as described in the awards section of the BIG Festival Awards page.
The prizes can be cumulative for the same game. The prize values are gross and the winners are responsible for any applicable taxes. It will be at the discretion of the jury and Selection Committee to determine which games will be indicated for each category in accordance with what is described below. The Contestant does not choose the category in which his/her game competes.
Selection process for finalists
In the first phase of the selection process, the Festival will evaluate if the games have submitted all the necessary information. After that, a first triage will be made by members of the Selection Committee, appointed by the Festival.
In order to do so, each game will receive a grade from 0 to 5 in the following categories: sound, art, narrative, gameplay, innovation. For the final average grade of each game. Games that are not centered around narrative will have their final average grade calculated excluding it. Submissions marked as VR or educational games & those that require VR equipment or contain educational content will be evaluated in their respective categories, with the same criteria above.
In the second selection phase, the 30 games with the highest average grade for each criteria (up to one decimal place) will be sent to the members of the Group of Specialists that especializes in these respective areas. The Festival may increase the number of games sent to specialists in case of any draws up to the 30th position.
The members of the Group of Specialists will be game professionals, journalists, critics, consultants and professionals that excel in the area related to one or more categories. Each member of the Group of Specialists is responsible for applying their expertise in the process producing an in-depth evaluation for every game received, as well as selecting 15 games to be sent to the third phase of the selection process.
In the third phase of the selection process, the 15 games selected for each category will be re-evaluated in conjunction by both the Selection Committee & the Group of Specialists, following the criteria used in the first phase. The highest grading games in each category will be selected for the Festival. The games with the highest grade average will be nominated to the Best Game awards. The Chairman of the Selection Committee will make the final decision in the event of a tie or any indecision in the nominations.
For the categories Best in VR, Best Game: Brazil, Best Game: Latin America and Best Educational or Learning Game, the participants with the highest average grade that also obey the category's requirements will be selected.
In the categories Brazilian Revelation and Educational the games with the highest average grades – that also respect the requirements of these categories, i.e. Brazilian and educational – will be selected.
At least 3 games will be nominated for each of the Festival’s categories. In the event it is not possible to select 3 games for a category, the Selection Committee may, at its discretion, remove the category. A game may be selected for more than one category. The Chairman of the Selection Committee will make the final decision in the event of a tie or any indecision in the nominations.
The list of selected games will be published on the Festival’s Website.
All finalists will be showcased to the general public for the duration of the event, as part of its games expo.
The Festival may also invite additional games to be part of its expo, for non-competitive or parallel showcases.
Selection process for winners
The International Jury will be composed of experts and outstanding professionals from the gaming area. The names of the jury members will be announced during the Festival. The International Jury will choose the Jury Awards.
Visitors at the Festival venue will choose The Best Game: Popular Vote award by voting for their favorite finalist. The finalist with the highest amount of votes will win the award.
Contestant Responsibilities
Upon submitting a game to the Festival, a Contestant expressly declares and warrants to be the owner or possessor of all rights and licenses necessary for the use and/or public execution of all material submitted (games, videos, pictures, texts and other materials submitted online), including, but not limited to:
a) All rights to the game's source code;
b) Licenses for the technology and software used for the development and execution of the game;
c) Rights to songs used as a soundtrack or incidental in the game and in other materials submitted;
c) Right to texts that appears in the game and in other materials submitted;
d) Rights to the script or texts that have served as inspiration for the game and the other materials submitted;
e) Rights to archive footage or third parties’ footage that appear in the game and in other materials submitted;
f) Rights to patents or licenses for use of third party information in the game and in other materials submitted;
g) Or any other copyrights that may prevent the implementation or the commercial or non-commercial execution, play or airing of the game or other materials submitted.
The Contestant further agrees:
a) Not to send any material containing images or sounds that are vulgar, defamatory, or prejudiced, or that disrespect the Brazilian Penal Code and the legislation in force;
b) Not to violate the privacy of third parties or racially, ethically, professionally, by gender or otherwise disrespect them.
c) Not to violate any copyright or any other law in submitting the game and other materials and information to the Festival.
d) Make their game – as well as the rights to use images and information of the game –available for showcasing at the Festival, at the Festival’s website and in promotional material and articles related to the participation in the Festival. The Festival also requires a video demonstration of the game’s gameplay and mechanics.
Finalist Games
Each Finalist agrees to grant to the Festival, free of charge and throughout the world, all rights of use and distribution to his/her game disclosure material, for disclosure and marketing in any format and on any media, including at the Festival venue and on its Website, including illustrative and explanatory game materials, videos, photos, texts, interviews with the game developers and other materials and information about the games.
Each Finalist authorizes the Festival to exhibit and run the Finalist game at the Festival venue, allowing any visitor of the Festival to play the game without any encumbrance, payment or limitation of any kind.
The assignment of rights described above is also valid for any eventual replications of the Festival in other cities and on other dates.
In the event of an invitation on the part of the Festival (i.e. If we have money to pay for their travel and lodging expenses), the Finalist agrees to appoint and send a representative to the Festival activities, which may include a press conference, networking sessions with industry professionals and presentation of the finalist game.
Curatorship and Omissions
All creative decisions of the Festival are the sole responsibility of the Production Company, or of the people, companies or partners to whom these decisions are delegated, and cannot be questioned in any circumstances.
The Organizing Committee of the Festival shall resolve events omitted or not foreseen in these Rules.
Disclaimer and Indemnity
Contestants agree to exempt the Festival, the Production Company and other companies and individuals involved in providing the Festival’s Website, as well as its partners, clients and sponsors, of any loss and damage arising from non-compliance with the Festival Rules, or any loss or damage derived from any kind of legal violation generated by the game(s) or other material(s) submitted.
Contestants shall indemnify any complainant for loss and damage, in addition to indemnification of the Festival, Production Company and the other companies and individuals involved in the realization of the Festival, as well as its partners and clients, for the damage caused.
Tolerance
Tolerance in relation to the provisions of Festival Rules and of the Website’s Terms of Use shall not constitute a precedent for non-compliance with what has been here agreed.
Jurisdiction
The Festival is governed by the laws of the Federative Republic of Brazil.
The parties elect the Forum of the Central District in São Paulo, Capital, to resolve any disputes arising from this contract, and expressly waives any other as competent as they may be.
BIG Festival – Brazil’s Independent Games Festival ("Festival") is held by Bits Producoes Ltda. ("Production Company"), thanks to the sponsorship and support of the companies listed on this Website. The Festival is a cultural contest that will award the best games selected by the Guest Jury and by the Selection Committee, as described below in the Prizes section.
All information about the Festival will be available through the Website www.bigfestival.com.br ("Website"). The Website will also centralize all Festival information and communication, including registration for the Festival, activity dates, lists of finalists, and access to information about the games selected and submitted to the Festival.
All those who submit games to participate in the Festival ("Contestants") declare to know and accept the Festival Rules and the Terms of Use of this Website.
Who can participate?
We accept the participation of any person or company representative of any nationality that is interested in submitting games to compete for the prizes offered. Contestants who are underage must be properly authorized by their legal guardians.
The participation of employees, collaborators, partners, shareholders of the Production Company or of the companies sponsoring the Festival, as well as their respective relatives up to the second degree, spouses and any persons involved directly in the implementation of the Festival, is prohibited.
Which games can participate?
We will accept all kinds of digital games, for any platform, console or media that's officially available for purchase by the general public and provided they are in a state to be played and evaluated by the Selection Committee.
In the event the game has already been released commercially, the release must have taken place up to two years prior to the date of the Festival.
Each competitor can submit as many games as desired. However, a registration form must be completed for each title, free of charge.
How to participate
To participate, a Contestant must access the submission form at the Festival’s Website fill, and submit it according to the instructions.
The submission form may only be accessed through the pages http://www.bigfestival.com.br/inscrever and http://www.bigfestival.com.br/submit
Only one game is accepted for each submission form filled and submitted.
The Contestant has provide access to the game through any of the following means:
- direct download through a download URL
- direct access to a site where the game can be played through a URL
- submitting access codes or keys that grand access to the game
Registration is free, but the Selection Committee will not bear any cost to purchase or play the game. In the event payment is required in order to have access to the game, the Contestant must offer 3 coupons or free access codes.
Deadline for submitting games
Game submissions will be accepted for the Festival until the date described in the competition section of the BIG Festival Awards page.
Prizes
Prizes will be awarded as described in the awards section of the BIG Festival Awards page.
The prizes can be cumulative for the same game. The prize values are gross and the winners are responsible for any applicable taxes. It will be at the discretion of the jury and Selection Committee to determine which games will be indicated for each category in accordance with what is described below. The Contestant does not choose the category in which his/her game competes.
Selection process for finalists
In the first phase of the selection process, the Festival will evaluate if the games have submitted all the necessary information. After that, a first triage will be made by members of the Selection Committee, appointed by the Festival.
In order to do so, each game will receive a grade from 0 to 5 in the following categories: sound, art, narrative, gameplay, innovation. For the final average grade of each game. Games that are not centered around narrative will have their final average grade calculated excluding it. Submissions marked as VR or educational games & those that require VR equipment or contain educational content will be evaluated in their respective categories, with the same criteria above.
In the second selection phase, the 30 games with the highest average grade for each criteria (up to one decimal place) will be sent to the members of the Group of Specialists that especializes in these respective areas. The Festival may increase the number of games sent to specialists in case of any draws up to the 30th position.
The members of the Group of Specialists will be game professionals, journalists, critics, consultants and professionals that excel in the area related to one or more categories. Each member of the Group of Specialists is responsible for applying their expertise in the process producing an in-depth evaluation for every game received, as well as selecting 15 games to be sent to the third phase of the selection process.
In the third phase of the selection process, the 15 games selected for each category will be re-evaluated in conjunction by both the Selection Committee & the Group of Specialists, following the criteria used in the first phase. The highest grading games in each category will be selected for the Festival. The games with the highest grade average will be nominated to the Best Game awards. The Chairman of the Selection Committee will make the final decision in the event of a tie or any indecision in the nominations.
For the categories Best in VR, Best Game: Brazil, Best Game: Latin America and Best Educational or Learning Game, the participants with the highest average grade that also obey the category's requirements will be selected.
In the categories Brazilian Revelation and Educational the games with the highest average grades – that also respect the requirements of these categories, i.e. Brazilian and educational – will be selected.
At least 3 games will be nominated for each of the Festival’s categories. In the event it is not possible to select 3 games for a category, the Selection Committee may, at its discretion, remove the category. A game may be selected for more than one category. The Chairman of the Selection Committee will make the final decision in the event of a tie or any indecision in the nominations.
The list of selected games will be published on the Festival’s Website.
All finalists will be showcased to the general public for the duration of the event, as part of its games expo.
The Festival may also invite additional games to be part of its expo, for non-competitive or parallel showcases.
Selection process for winners
The International Jury will be composed of experts and outstanding professionals from the gaming area. The names of the jury members will be announced during the Festival. The International Jury will choose the Jury Awards.
Visitors at the Festival venue will choose The Best Game: Popular Vote award by voting for their favorite finalist. The finalist with the highest amount of votes will win the award.
Contestant Responsibilities
Upon submitting a game to the Festival, a Contestant expressly declares and warrants to be the owner or possessor of all rights and licenses necessary for the use and/or public execution of all material submitted (games, videos, pictures, texts and other materials submitted online), including, but not limited to:
a) All rights to the game's source code;
b) Licenses for the technology and software used for the development and execution of the game;
c) Rights to songs used as a soundtrack or incidental in the game and in other materials submitted;
c) Right to texts that appears in the game and in other materials submitted;
d) Rights to the script or texts that have served as inspiration for the game and the other materials submitted;
e) Rights to archive footage or third parties’ footage that appear in the game and in other materials submitted;
f) Rights to patents or licenses for use of third party information in the game and in other materials submitted;
g) Or any other copyrights that may prevent the implementation or the commercial or non-commercial execution, play or airing of the game or other materials submitted.
The Contestant further agrees:
a) Not to send any material containing images or sounds that are vulgar, defamatory, or prejudiced, or that disrespect the Brazilian Penal Code and the legislation in force;
b) Not to violate the privacy of third parties or racially, ethically, professionally, by gender or otherwise disrespect them.
c) Not to violate any copyright or any other law in submitting the game and other materials and information to the Festival.
d) Make their game – as well as the rights to use images and information of the game –available for showcasing at the Festival, at the Festival’s website and in promotional material and articles related to the participation in the Festival. The Festival also requires a video demonstration of the game’s gameplay and mechanics.
Finalist Games
Each Finalist agrees to grant to the Festival, free of charge and throughout the world, all rights of use and distribution to his/her game disclosure material, for disclosure and marketing in any format and on any media, including at the Festival venue and on its Website, including illustrative and explanatory game materials, videos, photos, texts, interviews with the game developers and other materials and information about the games.
Each Finalist authorizes the Festival to exhibit and run the Finalist game at the Festival venue, allowing any visitor of the Festival to play the game without any encumbrance, payment or limitation of any kind.
The assignment of rights described above is also valid for any eventual replications of the Festival in other cities and on other dates.
In the event of an invitation on the part of the Festival (i.e. If we have money to pay for their travel and lodging expenses), the Finalist agrees to appoint and send a representative to the Festival activities, which may include a press conference, networking sessions with industry professionals and presentation of the finalist game.
Curatorship and Omissions
All creative decisions of the Festival are the sole responsibility of the Production Company, or of the people, companies or partners to whom these decisions are delegated, and cannot be questioned in any circumstances.
The Organizing Committee of the Festival shall resolve events omitted or not foreseen in these Rules.
Disclaimer and Indemnity
Contestants agree to exempt the Festival, the Production Company and other companies and individuals involved in providing the Festival’s Website, as well as its partners, clients and sponsors, of any loss and damage arising from non-compliance with the Festival Rules, or any loss or damage derived from any kind of legal violation generated by the game(s) or other material(s) submitted.
Contestants shall indemnify any complainant for loss and damage, in addition to indemnification of the Festival, Production Company and the other companies and individuals involved in the realization of the Festival, as well as its partners and clients, for the damage caused.
Tolerance
Tolerance in relation to the provisions of Festival Rules and of the Website’s Terms of Use shall not constitute a precedent for non-compliance with what has been here agreed.
Jurisdiction
The Festival is governed by the laws of the Federative Republic of Brazil.
The parties elect the Forum of the Central District in São Paulo, Capital, to resolve any disputes arising from this contract, and expressly waives any other as competent as they may be.
