Rules and Regulations

Chapter 1
Description

1. 1. Gaming Video Awards recognizes and rewards the work of the best gaming content creators in Romania across YouTube, Twitch, and TikTok. The competition also rewards the efforts of companies that have chosen to engage and communicate with gaming communities.
   2. Through its categories, Gaming Video Awards rewards the quality of the individual videos submitted to the competition, rather than the overall activity of a content creator. The exception is the Legendary Content Creator category, where the distinction will be awarded to the content creator with more than 8 years of experience in the gaming industry who receives the highest number of public votes.
   3. Gaming Video Awards consists of 27 categories:
      • Content Creator of the Year
      • Legendary Content Creator
      • Best Gaming Video
      • Best Stream
      • Newcomer of the Year
      • Best Video by a Female Content Creator
      • Best Tech Video (Review / Product Integration)
      • Best Mobile Gaming Video
      • Best Sports Games Video
      • Best Longplay Video
      • Best Kid-Friendly Video
      • Best Minecraft Video
      • Best GTA Video
      • Best Brawl Stars Video
      • Best Fortnite Video
      • Best Roblox Video
      • Best Tactical Shooter Video
      • Best League of Legends Video
      • Best Gaming Video on TikTok
      • Short Video of the Year
      • Most Popular Streamer
      • Best Communication Campaign with Content Creators
      • Best Gaming Content Campaign
      • Best Brand Communication Campaign Through Gaming Events
      • Best In-Game Advertising Campaign
      • Best Educational Campaign Through Gaming Content
      • Gaming Communicator of the Year

Gaming Video Awards 2026 will take place in four stages:

• • Submission Period: July 1 – August 22, 2026 (for both content creators and agencies)
  • Public Voting Period: September 10 – October 6, 2026 (applicable only to the Video of the Year, Legendary Content Creator, and Most Popular Streamer categories)
  • Jury Voting Period: September 3 – September 31, 2026
  • Winners Announcement Gala: October 28, 2026, on www.gamingvideoawards.ro

All stages of the event can be followed on www.gamingvideoawards.ro

Chapter 2
Submissions

1. If you are a gaming content creator, you may submit your representative video to a specific category. Members of the public may also submit a content creator’s video to a particular category.
2. Brands that have developed a gaming-related campaign may submit their project (case study and supporting video) to the appropriate category.
3. Submission Methods:

• Select Category: The content creator or member of the public will choose the category in which they wish to submit the proposed link.
• Content Creator Name: The content creator or member of the public will enter the creator’s stage name (the name by which the creator is known to the public, not their legal name).
• Who Are You?: The content creator will select the „Content Creator” option, while members of the public will select the „Supporter” option.
• Link: The content creator or member of the public will enter a SINGLE representative link. Important! The submission must be a specific video that meets the requirements of the selected category. Links to a creator’s channel will NOT be accepted.

• Select Category: The content creator or member of the public will select the Legendary Content Creator category.
• Content Creator Name: The content creator or member of the public will enter the creator’s stage name (the name by which the creator is known to the public, not their legal name).
• Who Are You?: The content creator will select the „Content Creator” option, while members of the public will select the „Supporter” option.
• YouTube / Twitch Link: The content creator or member of the public will provide a link to the creator’s channel, not to a specific stream or video.
• Social Media Link: The content creator or member of the public will provide a single link to the creator’s Instagram or TikTok account.

• Select Category: The brand representative or agency will choose the category in which the campaign will be entered.
• Campaign Name: The brand representative or agency will enter the name of the campaign.
• Who Are You?: Brand Representative / PR Agency / Advertising Agency.
• Case Study Link: The brand representative or agency will provide a link to the PDF document (case study of a maximum of 2 A4 pages, font size 12, Romanian language).
• Video Link: The brand representative or agency will provide a YouTube link containing the campaign support video (unlisted videos are also accepted). The video must not exceed 5 minutes in length and must include a compilation of the campaign’s key moments (for example: TV spots, digital ads, content creator involvement, etc.).

4. For brands, the number of submissions is unlimited. Content creators, however, may submit or be nominated in a maximum of five categories. The Legendary Content Creator category has a special status and will not be included in this count. Furthermore, it will not be taken into account when calculating the final score used to determine Content Creator of the Year, as Legendary Content Creator is considered a special distinction.

Chapter 3
Eligibility of Entries

A. Eligibility of Entries in Content Creator Categories

1. Any content creator who produces video content with gaming as its primary subject may enter the competition. Video links may be submitted either by the content creators themselves or by members of the public. In both cases, the event organizers will verify the eligibility of the submissions. Entries submitted by the public will subsequently be approved by the organizers together with the nominated content creator. If, within a category, a content creator has submitted one video while the public has nominated the same creator with a different video, the creator will be notified and will decide which submission (their own or the public’s) will move forward.

2. Only links to specific videos from the nominated content creator’s channel may be submitted, whether by the creator or by the public. Links to a creator’s channel will not be accepted.
3. Gaming content creators must reside in Romania. Content created in Romanian and English is accepted.
4. Accepted platforms: videos must be published on YouTube, Twitch, or TikTok.
5. All participants are fully responsible for the videos they submit.
6. Participants may submit videos to one or more categories, depending on the nature of the video and the requirements of the category. Any submission that does not match the category description will be automatically removed (for example, submitting an FC 24 video to the Best League of Legends Video category).
7. Content creators’ channels must have been created at least three months before the opening date of submissions for Gaming Video Awards.
8. Content creators may enter (and be entered into) the competition as follows: Newcomer of the Year: minimum 1,000 subscribers on the channel. Best Tech Video (Review / Product Integration): minimum 1,000 views on the submitted video. Best Video by a Female Content Creator and Best League of Legends Video: minimum 2,000 subscribers on the channel. Best Gaming Video: minimum 20,000 views on the submitted video. Best Sports Games Video: minimum 5,000 subscribers on the channel. Short Video of the Year and Best Gaming Video on TikTok: minimum 10,000 views on the submitted video. Best Mobile Gaming Video, Best Tactical Shooter Video, Best Longplay Video, Best Kid-Friendly Video, Best Minecraft Video, Best GTA Video, Best Brawl Stars Video, Best Fortnite Video, and Best Roblox Video: minimum 10,000 subscribers on the channel. Legendary Content Creator: minimum 100,000 subscribers on the channel. Videos created between September 1, 2025 and July 31, 2026 are eligible. For TikTok, content creators must have a minimum of 200 followers and must have published at least 5 original videos. Eligible videos must also have been published between September 1, 2025 and July 31, 2026.
9. For the Newcomer of the Year category, content creators who started their activity on the two platforms on or after January 1, 2025 may enter (or be entered into) the competition. Content creators may submit videos created up to July 31, 2025.
10. Submitted links must remain valid and active throughout both the submission and judging periods. For Twitch videos, streams must be saved as Highlights in order to extend their availability (guide for permanently saving streams: https://www.reddit.com/r/Twitch/comments/6sz4na/stop_twitch_from_deleting_my_past_broadcasts/) or re-uploaded to YouTube (guide: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZ1ksGL7Izo). If a stream is re-uploaded to YouTube, the title must follow this format: “Twitch Livestream Title and the Date It Was Broadcast Live”.
11. Before being published on the competition website, all submissions will be validated by the organizers – see Chapter 4, Point 2.

B. Eligibility of Entries in Brand / Agency Categories

1. Any brand, PR agency, or advertising agency that has developed a communication campaign involving gaming content may enter the competition. Campaigns are submitted through a link to a PDF document (case study of a maximum of 2 A4 pages, font size 12, Romanian language) and a YouTube link containing the campaign support video (unlisted videos are also accepted). The video must not exceed 5 minutes and must contain a compilation of the campaign’s key moments (for example: TV spots, digital spots, content creator involvement, etc.). If the submission is made by a brand, the PDF file must be saved as: Campaign Name_Brand Name.pdf and the video as: Campaign Name_Brand Name. If the submission is made by an agency, the PDF file must be saved as: Brand Name_Agency Name.pdf and the video as: Brand Name_Agency Name.
2. Submissions may be made by anyone within the brand or agency team, and each submission will be reviewed by the organizers to ensure that it fits the selected category.
3. Only communication campaigns dedicated to audiences in Romania may be submitted.
4. All participants are fully responsible for the case studies and videos they submit.
5. Brands and agencies may submit campaigns carried out between September 1, 2025 – July 31, 2026, as well as campaigns that are still ongoing, provided they can demonstrate measurable results at the time of submission.
6. A submission must include both the campaign case study and a campaign video.
7. Materials submitted in the brand categories will be evaluated exclusively by the jury and not by the public.
8. If any jury members are part of agencies that have submitted one or more campaigns to the competition, they will not be permitted to judge the relevant category or categories. In such cases, the final score will be calculated based on the average scores of the remaining jurors.
9. In the Best Communication Campaign with Content Creators category, both the brand/agency and the involvement of the content creator will be recognized and rewarded.
10. In the Best Gaming Content Campaign category, brands and agencies may submit game launches, competitions, gaming awareness campaigns, and other initiatives related to the gaming industry.
11. The Best Brand Communication Campaign Through Gaming Events category rewards the creativity with which a brand communicates its participation in a gaming event (content creator activations, social media communication, etc.).
12. The Best In-Game Advertising Campaign category rewards campaigns executed directly within games, whether static or dynamic. The jury will evaluate the execution, the way the campaign was integrated into the game, the relevance of the targeting, and, last but not least, creativity.
13. Before being published on the competition website, all submissions will be validated by the organizers – see Chapter 4, Point 2.

Chapter 4
Ineligible Entries

1. The organizers will not accept links to videos or campaigns that contain illegal content, abuse, obscenity, threats, or racist, homophobic, or sexual content.
2. The organizers reserve the right to reject a submission after reviewing the overall conduct of the content creator, regardless of the specific video entered into the competition. More specifically, if a content creator who has submitted an entry has displayed violent, obscene, xenophobic, racist, or similar behavior during the period between September 1, 2025 – July 31, 2026, the event organizers reserve the right to reject the submission. The same mechanism applies to submissions made by brands or agencies.
3. The organizers will not accept content that has not been produced in Romania by Romanian content creators, brands, or agencies.
4. For Content Creator Categories
   • The organizers will not accept videos or content creators who do not have a presence within the video through voice, face, or any other form of personal expression. For example, videos in which a content creator simply plays a game without contributing anything additional to the content (such as commentary, interaction with members of the community they are playing with, etc.) will not be accepted.
   • The organizers will not accept content creators who are under the age of 15.
   • The organizers will not accept submissions whose links are not functional (for example, links that do not open or are no longer available after a certain period of time).
5. For Brand / Agency Categories
   • Incomplete submissions will not be accepted. This includes submissions that contain only a case study or only a video.

Chapter 5
Judging and Judging Criteria

Public Voting:

1. The public will be able to vote in the following categories: Legendary Content Creator, Video of the Year, and Most Popular Streamer.
2. Each user is entitled to vote for one content creator once per day until the end of the judging period.
3. Any suspicion of fraud will result in disqualification.
4. The winners of the Legendary Content Creator and Most Popular Streamer categories will be determined through public voting. These categories will not be evaluated by the jury.
5. The Video of the Year category will be determined through a combination of public voting (80% weight) and jury evaluation (20% weight).
6. All other content creator categories will be judged directly by the jury, as will all campaigns submitted in the brand categories.
7. The jury will review all other nominated entries and will determine the winners of each category, with the exception of the popularity category.

Jury Evaluation:

1. At the end of the submission period, all entries validated by the organizers and meeting the selection criteria set out in these Rules and Regulations will be published on the website.
2. Following the judging process, which concludes on September 31, the final nominations advancing to the competition for the grand prize will be published on the website (five nominees per category).
3. The jury members will be divided into two groups: one for the content creator categories and one for the categories dedicated to brands.
4. For the categories dedicated to brands, the jury will determine the winner of each category.

Chapter 6
Gaming Video Awards Stages

1. Submission Period: July 1 – August 22, 2026

During this stage, content creators, members of the public, brands, and agencies may enter one or more competition categories, in accordance with the eligibility criteria.

2. Public Voting Period: September 10 – October 6, 2026 (applicable only to the Video of the Year, Legendary Content Creator, and Most Popular Streamer categories)

During this stage, the public may vote for their favorites, and at the end of the voting period the five nominees for each category will be determined.

3. Jury Voting Period: September 3 – September 31, 2026

The jury, composed of some of the most respected professionals from the gaming, esports, marketing, and communications industries, will evaluate only the five nominees in each category. From these five nominees per category, the jury will select the final winner of each category.

For the categories dedicated to brands, the jury will determine the winner of each category.

4. Winners Announcement Gala – October 28, 2026

The winners announcement gala will take place on October 28 at ARCUB, in Bucharest. The gala will also be streamed live on www.gamingvideoawards.ro.

Chapter 7
Winners

Each category will have two winners: the creator ranked in second place based on the jury’s scores and the creator who achieves the highest score overall. The creator ranked in second place will receive an Excellence Diploma, while the creator ranked in first place will receive both a diploma and the trophy dedicated to that category.

The exceptions are the Legendary Content Creator, Content Creator of the Year, and Most Popular Streamer categories, which will each have a single winner. The prize for these categories consists of a trophy.

The winners of the Legendary Content Creator and Most Popular Streamer categories will be determined entirely by public voting. The public will vote for their favorites, and the winners will receive the trophy for their respective category.

At the end of the competition, in order to determine the Content Creator of the Year, each participating streamer will receive points based on the awards won, as follows: 2 points for winning first place in any competition category; 1 point for receiving an Excellence Award in any competition category. The Legendary Content Creator category has a special status and will not be taken into account when calculating the final score, as it is determined exclusively by public vote.

Therefore, the content creator who wins the most awards and accumulates the highest number of points at the Gaming Video Awards Gala will also receive the Content Creator of the Year award.

The winner of the Newcomer of the Year category will receive a support prize consisting of a gaming product.

Each category will have two winners: the two highest-scoring campaigns. The agency or brand ranked in second place will receive an Excellence Diploma, while the first-place winner will receive both a diploma and the trophy dedicated to the category.

The Gaming Communicator of the Year distinction will be awarded to the brand or agency that achieves the highest overall score across all entered categories.

Chapter 8
Event Communication

1. Content creators whose submissions have been approved, as well as campaigns that have been approved as official nominees in the competition categories, agree that their image and/or images from the nominated videos may be used in the event’s promotional materials. The event’s promotional materials may include the logos of the event partners.
2. Content creators, brands, and agencies agree to associate their names and nominated content with the name of the competition and its partners through promotional videos announcing the categories and nominations, online interview opportunities branded with partner logos, the promotion of videos and materials on social media, and their use during the awards gala.

For any questions, please contact: contact@gamingvideoawards.ro