Just months after its global launch, Pixel Federation’s 3D truck tycoon was named one of the four best mobile games of the year in Central & Eastern Europe. Our Lead Game System Designer Roman Ďuriga was there for the ceremony.
By Roman Ďuriga, Lead Game System Designer, Pixel Federation · Nov 3, 2026
Summary: key facts
- Highway Heroes by Pixel Federation (Bratislava, Slovakia) was recognized as one of the best mobile games of the year as it was nominated for Best Mobile Game at the Central & Eastern European Game Awards (CEEGA) 2026.
- CEEGA 2026 was the 9th edition of the awards. The ceremony took place on 23 October 2026 at Poznań Game Arena in Poznań, Poland.
- The four Best Mobile Game nominees were Highway Heroes (Pixel Federation, Slovakia), Off The Road 2 (DogByte Games, Hungary – winner), A Difficult Game About Letters (Georgia) and Uanamon: Hero Ranking Survivor (Wowky Games, Ukraine).
- Highway Heroes launched globally on iOS and Android in July 2026, only a few months before the ceremony.
- It’s the second year in a row a Pixel Federation game has been nominated for Best Mobile Game, after TrainStation 3 in 2025.
📷 [PHOTO by Roman Ďuriga at the CEEGA 2026 ceremony, Poznań Game Arena]
Below, Roman Ďuriga tells the story of the night in his own words.
Hi, I’m Roman Ďuriga, Lead Game System Designer at Pixel Federation in Bratislava. In October, I travelled to Poznań to represent our team at the CEEGA 2026 ceremony.
A brand-new game, already on the shortlist
A quick intro if you haven’t come across it yet: Highway Heroes is a fully 3D truck tycoon for mobile. You build a freight company across hand-crafted regions of the USA, complete contracts and customise your trucks. My team and I spent months creating it, so seeing it on this shortlist was a great moment for all of us.
Why this nomination matters
CEEGA covers a region with more than 1,000 game studios and close to 30,000 game professionals. Nominees are picked by a jury of industry professionals and games journalists from across Central and Eastern Europe.
There’s one rule I really like: jurors can’t vote for games from their own country. So Highway Heroes didn’t get onto the list thanks to a friendly Slovak vote. Industry professionals and journalists from other countries in the region looked at our truck tycoon and put it on the shortlist of the year’s four top mobile games.
Hearing from people outside our own bubble that we’re on the right track is great feedback, and a good push to keep improving the game.
Inside the ceremony: not your average awards night
I’ve been to plenty of game dev conferences, and they’re usually pretty chill. This was something else. The awards were held in the pavilion where Poznań Game Arena was in full swing. PGA is a huge consumer gaming show with esports, hardware and crowds of players, so there was a big audience watching.
I’d never been to anything like it. At one point I actually got nervous. What would I even say if we won and I had to go up on stage? 😄
Big names, and games taken seriously
We were in very good company. The developers of some of the region’s biggest AAA games were there, including the teams behind Dying Light: The Beast and Mafia: The Old Country. Most categories are aimed at console and PC games, so it was great just to be in that room as one of the mobile nominees.
The night’s top award, Best Game, was presented by Poland’s Minister of Culture. Her speech stuck with meas she talked about games as art, as culture and as serious business. It was inspiring to see the industry treated with that much respect at government level, and I’d love to see more of it back home in Slovakia.
Going for the hattrick
Last year, our TrainStation 3 was nominated for Best Mobile Game. This year it was Highway Heroes. That’s two years in a row, and we’re already thinking about a hat-trick. If our next tycoon, Wasteland Tycoon: New Hope, gets on the list next year, that’s three. No pressure, team. 😉
We didn’t bring home the statuette this time. It went to Off The Road 2, an off-road driving game, so big vehicles had a good night either way. Congratulations to the DogByte Games team! Still, I left Poznań happy, and being on this shortlist is a nice encouragement for the whole team as we keep working on it.
So what is Highway Heroes?
You start with a single garage and one truck, and grow it into a freight company that covers the United States. Here’s what we focused on:
- Realistic 3D trucks. Every rig is hand-crafted, highly detailed and fully 3D. You can even follow your trucks in real time as they travel across the map.
- Smart planning. Strategy beats speed. The game rewards careful decisions rather than quick reflexes.
- Truck customisation. Make your fleet your own with custom paint schemes, decals, lighting rigs and performance parts.
- A map inspired by the real USA. The hand-crafted 3D map features iconic American regions and landmarks, and you expand your company region by region.
- A relaxing atmosphere. The gameplay is low-stress, and the look and feel draw you into the feel-good culture of American trucking. The tougher challenges are there if you want them, but they’re optional.
If you’d like to see what got the jury’s attention, Highway Heroes is free to play on the App Store and Google Play.
DOWNLOAD HIGHWAY HEROES HERE
See you on the road!
About Pixel Federation
Pixel Federation is a game studio based in Bratislava, Slovakia, founded in 2007. It’s best known for the TrainStation series of transport tycoons and the puzzle adventure Diggy’s Adventure, played by millions around the world. Its newest title is the 3D truck tycoon Highway Heroes for iOS and Android.
