The Ion Award is the largest board game design competition in the United States. It is held annually in Utah at the SaltCON board game convention. The competition started in 2009 for unpublished game designs, with the intent to bring designers and publishers together, and to recognize excellence in game design. The first Ion Awards had the support of national publishers including Eagle-Gryphon Games, Mayday Games, Rio Grande Games, and Out of the Box Publishing, and has continued to get national and international support.
The competition has received game design entries from all over the world. Board game designs that have won the Ion Award or have been selected as finalists have been published every year since its inception.
Each year local and international board game publishers are selected as judges for the competition, including longtime judges Eagle-Gryphon Games, Mayday Games, Gamelyn Games and others.
The competition has two rounds of judging. First all the entering designers submit rules, images, videos, and summaries of their unpublished game designs. Those entries are then reviewed by judges all over the world, and finalists are selected. The 4 finalists in each category are invited to attend the final round of judging at the SaltCON convention, where they present their game design in person to the final judges. After the final judging, the winners are announced at the Awards Ceremony at the convention.
The Ion Award at first featured only a single Best Game winner each year, but since 2011, it has featured both a Light Game category and a Strategy Game category.
Finalists are announced about a month before the live event. Winners are announced a few days after the final judging.
Strategy Game Category Winners
2026 - Pocket Zoo - Corin Elliott 2025 - Magmapunk - Jeff Grisenthwaite 2024 - Plutocrats - Micah Sturr 2023 - Gempire: Zarmund's Demands - Paul Elpers 2022 - Clima - solving the climate crisis - Carlos Flores 2021 - Dynasty - Jason Riddell 2020 - Oros (Pangaea) - Brandt Brinkerhoff 2019 - Loads of Roads - Joshua, Nick, and Anthony Winegar 2018 - American Steel - Joshua Mills and Nat Levan 2017 - Palooka Precinct - Glen Dresser 2016 - Scarlet Pimpernel - Brian Kelley 2015 - Race to Innovation - Mike Holyoak 2014 - Xenon Profiteer - T. C. Petty, III 2013 - Nika - Josh Raab 2012 - Karesansui (Rocks) - Joseph Kisenwether 2011 - Pizza Theory - Greg Powers and Brian Powers
Light Game Category Winners
2026 - On the Teche - Christopher Stelly 2025 - Wildcrafters - Katie Tam 2024 - Moon Bunny - Pauline Kong and Marie Wonghttps://saltcon.com/ion-award-winners/ 2023 - Gumball World - Aaron Kempkes 2022 - Capetalism - Chris Chan 2021 - Steam Up: A Feast of Dim Sum - Pauline Kong and Marie Wong 2020 - Super Truffle Pigs! - Jason Corace 2019 - The Night Cage - Rosswell Saunders, Chris McMahon, Chris Chan 2018 - The Deadlies (Seven Deadly Sins) - Paul Saxberg 2017 - Bad Doctor! - Eric Magnan & Dan Germachrin 2016 - Cypher - Adam Wyse 2015 - Stalag Escape - Matthew Jensen 2014 - Yardmaster (Payload) - Steven Aramini 2013 - Hold Your Breath - Daniel Jenkins & Christopher Urinko 2012 - Rigamaroles - Shane Larsen 2011 - Snake Eyes -T. Alex Davis
Best Game Category Winners
2010 - (Title Withheld) - Jason Fullen 2009 - King's Vineyard - David Haslam and Sandeep Kharkar
References