Develop Magazine's Industry Excellence Awards broke records after gathering 500 games industry executives last night. Among them, 17 different companies and individuals claimed the 18 awards over 15 categories.

A panel of industry experts voted for the best in different categories to reward various creative achievements in game development - from visual arts to innovation. The diversity of the list gives us nothing but a positive outlook, and assurance that the market won't run out of good games if these guys are around.

Here's the list of winners that deserve our cheers:

• New Console IP - MotorStorm (Evolution/SCEE External Development)
• New Handheld IP - Crush (Zoe Mode)
• Best Use of a License - Lego Star Wars II (Traveller's Tales)
• Visual Arts - Rare (for Viva Piñata)
• Audio Accomplishment - FreeStyle (for B-Boy)
• Publishing Hero - Sega
• Innovation - Real Time Worlds (for Crackdown)
• Tools Provider - Havok
• Best Use of Online - Eden Studios (for Test Drive Unlimited)
• Services & Outsourcing - Babel Media
• Recruitment Company - Datascope
• New UK Studio - Realtime Worlds
• Handheld Studio - Rockstar Leeds
• Business Development - Blitz
• Independent Developer - Traveller's Tales
• In-house Developer - Ubisoft France
• Development Legend - Ian Hetherington
• Grand Prix - Sony

We're not sure about the exact criteria, but a good guess would say Sega earned the "Publishing Hero" award for having plenty of titles in all flavors under its belt. With Rockstar Leeds' big games in its arsenal (GTA: Liberty City/Vice City Stories), it's no surprise why the company is branded the best "Handheld Studio."

Sony's Grand Prix Award is due to 12 months of extensive support for internal and external developers to create cutting edge next-gen games.

Developer Zoe Mode yesterday hinted that they're considering bringing video game Crush to other platforms. Currently, the adventures of "Danny the troubled insomniac" is exclusive to the PlayStation Portable owners. Zoe Mode's Paul Mottram said that to have versions for Wii, DS, and PlayStation 2 is not impossible.

Some of Mottram's exact words include "It's something we'd all love to do since there are so many features we didn't get the opportunity to put into this version". However, Crush's publisher Sega refused to comment on the matter. Gaming site Eurogamer tried to contact Sega for an official statement but was unable to get a response.

If you ask me, the DS and PS2 version is highly feasible provided that Zoe Mode is really serious about it. The interesting part here is whether Nintendo will allow it on the Wii. The thing with Crush is that it has this 3D to 2D gig going on for it but Super Paper Mario already has that.

Will Nintendo let its most-famed plumber befriend a troubled insomniac?

We know video game title Crush has been available for a couple of weeks now but this recent interview with Zoe Mode Senior Producer Paul Mottram is really interesting as it gives some insights regarding the game and possible future versions.

According to Mottram, Zoe Mode really wanted Crush to become a handheld game because of its very nature. In this game, the objective is for players to help Danny get rid of his sleeping disorders and rather troubling past by solving various puzzles. The main thing about this title is that it allows players to change the 3D world into a 2D one and vice versa to accomplish the goals.

When asked about their plans on porting Crush to other platforms, Mottram answered,

There is no reason why it couldn't be transferred to multiple different platforms especially the Wii, DS, and PS2 and this is something we are thinking about. If we do move Crush onto new platforms, we'd want to ensure that each version fully utilizes the strengths of the platform and alternate controls and mechanics it can offer.

The senior producer also mentioned that there are actually a lot of features they originally planned to include but weren't able to because of time constraints. One such example he gave was something to do with a "blue hedgehog" that will allow players create their own levels.

Paul Mottram then shared that given Crush's success even this early, Zoe Mode is already considering a sequel to the title. He explained,

It's something we'd all love to do since there are so many features we didn't get the opportunity to put into this version. The feedback from players has been phenomenal, and we really believe that we have so much more crushing features and puzzles to explore.