The Game Awards is like the Academy Awards of gaming. It recognises and celebrates the best video games of the year, as well as people and teams in the gaming industry. Hosted by gaming journalist Geoff Keighley and broadcast live across Twitch, YouTube and several television networks, The Game Awards has been followed by gamers everywhere, as well as a million gaming YouTube channels too!
While there are lots of different categories, the one every one waited for is Game of The Year. This is the award that all game developers and studios want, as it can work wonders for sales and reputation in the gaming industry. Even the nominated list becomes a checklist of must-plays for gaming fans. And since past winners include Witcher 3, God of War and Elden Ring, every GOTY winner is played and talked about for years.
This year, there was a good spread of games available on PS5, Xbox Series X and Series S, Switch and PC - so everybody has something to play! We’ll take you through the winners and nominations from the night.
When were The Game Awards 2023?
The Game Awards 2023 took place on December 8, 2023 - during the build up to Christmas. So that list of nominations is an amazing gift ideas list if there’s a special gamer is your life! You can also get some more ideas from our list of upcoming games.
What were the GOTY (Game of the Year) nominations?
1. Baldur’s Gate 3 (PC, PS5, Xbox) - WINNER
Unless you’re a hardcore tabletop RPG fan, this game really came out of nowhere. It’s a sprawling, epic where you’re given incredible freedom to create your character, explore the world and beat the game in seemingly endless ways. And with a metacritic score of 96, it was the favourite this year with both fans and industry experts.
2. The Legend of Zelda - Tears of a Kingdom (Nintendo Switch)
If the GOTYs had been held in summer, this latest Zelda epic would have likely scooped it up. Back in 2017, Breath of the Wild redefined Zelda, nailing the open world genre and giving Nintendo a Game of the Year. And this triumphant follow up also scored a 96 on metacritic. It might still happened for them this year, but the quality of games this year has been high.
3. Alan Wake 2 (PC, PS5, Xbox)
It’s been 13 years since the last Alan Wake game, and Alan Wake 2 has made it worth the wait. Combining creeping fear with all-out survival horror action, Alan Wake 2 isn’t going to be on everybody’s Christmas list. But for horror story fans, it’s a must play. The judges thought so too, as Alan Wake 2 took three awards - Best Game Direction, Best Narrative and Best Art Direction.
4. Super Mario Bros. Wonder (Nintendo Switch)
How can it be, in 2023, that a 2D Mario adventure was in the running for Game of the Year? It’s simply because Super Mario Bros. Wonder is crammed with constant surprises, clever mechanics and plenty of wacky wonder. For fans of platformers, it’s not going to get much better than this.
5. Resident Evil 4 (PC, Playstation, Xbox)
Although a remake of the 2005 fan favourite, Resident Evil 4 did enough differently to warrant GOTY recognition. The third-person survival horror has been rebuilt from the ground up enhancing its intense action sequences, innovative game play mechanics and compelling storyline on just about every level.
6. Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 (PS5)
No surprises that Insomniac Games’ latest web-slinging adventure was on this list. Spider-Man has become something of an unofficial mascot for PlayStation, and Spider-Man 2’s latest round of swinging from skyscraper to skyscraper and beating up the baddies has surpassed expectations yet again.
Other Game of the Year 2023 results:
Best Game Direction
Alan Wake 2 - WINNER!
Baldur’s Gate 3
Spider-Man 2
Super Mario Bros. Wonder
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Best Performance
Neil Newbon, Baldur’s Gate 3 - WINNER!
Ben Starr, Final Fantasy XVI
Cameron Monaghan, STAR WARS Jedi: Survivor
Idris Elba, Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
Melanie Liburd, Alan Wake 2
Yuri Lowenthal, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Best Adaptation
The Last of Us (PlayStation Productions/HBO) - WINNER!
Castlevania: Nocturne (Powerhouse Animation/Netflix)
Gran Turismo (PlayStation Productions/Sony Pictures)
The Super Mario Bros. Movie (Illumination/Nintendo/Universal Pictures)
Twisted Metal (PlayStation Productions/Peacock)
Best Narrative
Alan Wake 2 - WINNER!
Baldur’s Gate 3
Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
Final Fantasy XVI
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Best Score and Music
Final Fantasy XVI, Composer Masayoshi Soken (Square Enix) - WINNER!
Alan Wake 2, Composer Petri Alanko (Remedy Entertainment/Epic Games Publishing)
Baldur’s Gate 3, Composer Borislav Slavov (Larian Studios)
Hi-Fi Rush, Audio Director Shuichi Kobori (Tango Gameworks/Bethesda Softworks)
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Composed by Nintendo Sound Team (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)
Best Audio Design
Hi-Fi Rush - WINNER!
Alan Wake 2
Dead Space
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Resident Evil 4
Best Art Direction
Alan Wake 2 - WINNER!
Hi-Fi Rush
Lies of P
Super Mario Bros. Wonder
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Games for Impact
Tchia - WINNER!
A Space for the Unbound
Chants of Sennaar
Goodbye Volcano High
Terra Nil
Venba
Best Ongoing Game
Cyberpunk 2077 - WINNER!
Apex Legends
Final Fantasy XIV
Fortnite
Genshin Impact
Best Community Support
Baldur’s Gate 3 - WINNER!
Cyberpunk 2077
Destiny 2
Final Fantasy XIV
No Man’s Sky
Best Independent Game
Sea of Stars - WINNER!
Cocoon
Dave the Diver
Dredge
Viewfinder
Innovation in Accessibility
Forza Motorsport - WINNER!
Diablo IV
Hi-Fi Rush
Spider-Man 2
Mortal Kombat 1
Street Fighter 6