A big day for us! We won the Unity Awards 2025 in the category "Social Impact"!
#videogames #gamesdevelopment #citybuilders #strategygames #UnityAwards
We made a press release about it, it's a big thing for us. See below:
Oslo, Norway, 10 December 2025 - Norwegian game studio Megapop has won at the Unity Awards 2025 with its upcoming game Life Below. The Unity Award is one of the major global recognitions in gaming, presented by Unity, the world’s most widely used game engine.
The award honors projects that excel in creativity, technical quality, and player engagement. Life Below secured the win in the Social Impact category, a theme deeply rooted in Megapop’s mission both in Life Below and in several commissioned game productions. The game was hand-selected by a panel of expert judges, as one of the standout Social Impact productions.
Life Below is a strategy game within the city-builder genre. But…instead of building cities or fortresses, players create a thriving coral reef, complete with systems and lifeforms. A Reef-builder, in other words.
Players experience the ocean from nature’s perspective, facing the consequences of natural forces and human actions. The game has been developed in close collaboration with marine biologists, with several core mechanics built directly on natural principles. The result is a powerful and engaging game experience, which promotes a deeper understanding of marine ecosystems. The game has already gained significant international attention.
“We want to show that games can open eyes and spark wonder. Every mechanic, every creature, every glimmer of light beneath the surface is there to give players the feeling of discovering life,” says Lise Hagen Lie, Game Director on Life Below. “Life Below is an idea that has followed me since childhood, spending summers on our family boat and watching the life in the Oslo Fjord. Receiving this kind of international recognition for the work we’ve put in means the world to us.”
Publisher
@KasedoGames highlights the uniqueness of the project. “There is something truly special about Life Below, and from the first time we saw the game, our team felt connected and compelled to help bring such a wonderful idea to the gaming audience. It combines very solid city-builder gameplay with a completely original setting and a unique visual expression,” says Jonathan Hales, CEO of Kasedo Games. “Megapop has created a game that truly stands out, and all playtests so far confirm our strong belief in the project. We are genuinely excited to launch the game globally in 2026.”
“Today we are very thankful that Unity selected Life Below. It is a major recognition for us as a studio, and an extra boost of motivation as we move towards launch,” says Jørgen Tharaldsen, CEO of Megapop. “We’ve worked for over three years to craft a special game experience that takes you beneath the waves, exploring the life and hope that still remains. If we can inspire just one player to care more about the ocean around us, then we have already succeeded.”
Life Below will be released on Steam in 2026