The winners of the GamesBeat Summit 2025 Visionary and Up-and-Comer Awards
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Summary
GamesBeat has revealed the winners of its Visionary Awards for 2025, with Patricia Vance, president of the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), taking the Visionary Award, and Xalavier Nelson Jr, studio head of Strange Scaffold, the Up-and-Comer award.
The awards were presented at the annual GamesBeat Summit in Los Angeles, with the winners chosen by a panel of industry judges, including Xbox president Sarah Bond and Women-Led Games founder Charmaine Duff.
Vance has led the ESRB since 2002 and her work has involved age and content ratings on video games and apps, and the enforcement of marketing guidelines.
Xalavier Nelson Jr, who was unable to attend the summit in person, received his award from Cyan Worlds development director Hannah Gamiel, who described his creativity in game development as “refreshing” and said he harnesses meaning under a facade of absurd settings.
In his acceptance speech, Nelson Jr urged those present to look out for and support each other in the face of a lack of funding and job security in theindustry.