There you have it, folks! Elden Ring is this year’s Game of the Year, as per the Game Awards. Most industry analysts and commentators had pegged this year’s GOTY award as a 2-game bout between God of War Ragnarok and Elden Ring.
Indeed, these were two of the highest-rated games of the year, and both ended up taking multiple awards home, but, in the end, Elden Ring’s open-world design and crushing combat were seemingly too good to snub for this year’s judges. It beat out the aforementioned God of War Ragnarok, A Plague Tale: Requiem, Horizon Forbidden West, Stray, and Xenoblade Chronicles 3.
Elden Ring took home Best Game Direction as well, a likely appreciated recognition, as this was the development studio’s (FromSoftware) first attempt at an open-world game. It beat out God of War Ragnarok, again, Horizon Forbidden West, Stray, and Immortality.
God of War Ragnarok was no slouch tonight, though. The Santa Monica Studio title won Best Narrative of the year. After its 2018 reboot, the series is now well-known for its cinematic and surprisingly emotional storytelling. The other nominees were Horizon Forbidden West, Immortality, A Plague Tale: Requiem, and Elden Ring.
God of War Ragnarok also took home Best Action/Adventure game of the year. DualShockers’ review praised the game’s combat, describing every fight as a flashy and stylish affair. The other nominees were A Plague Tale: Requiem, Horizon Forbidden West, Stray, and Tunic.
Best Indie Game was taken home by Stray. This feline-centric adventure, developed by BlueTwelve Studio, took the world by storm when it released back in July. As you can imagine, it had players take on the role of a cat, the novelty of which was appealing on its own, but it also had you explore neon-lit futuristic cities populated with robots and discover their tragic origin. Stray beat out Cult of the Lamb, Sifu, Neon White, and Tunic.
Finally, Best Action Game was won by PlatinumGames’ Bayonetta 3. Known for its high-quality action titles like Nier Automata and Astral Chain, PlatinumGames is perhaps best known for its Bayonetta series, and this third iteration was a critical darling. Bayonetta 3 beat out Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Neon White, Sifu, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge.
