Photo by: Brenden Cowan
The nominees for the 2022 Game Awards have been announced, with 31 awards being presented this year. Here are some of the most noteworthy awards and most nominated games this year.
Since The Game Awards’ start back in 2014, the most discussed award has been the “Game of the Year” (GOTY) award. This year’s nominees are A Plague Tale: Requiem, Elden Ring, God of War: Ragnarök, Horizon Forbidden West, Stray and Xenoblade Chronicles 3. Additionally, all but Elden Ring and Xenoblade are also competing for the “Best Action/Adventure” award, with the indie game Tunic as the fifth nominee.
One of the other biggest awards is for the best indie game of the year. The 2022 nominees are Cult of the Lamb, Neon White, Sifu, Stray and Tunic. There’s also an award for the best debut indie — an indie game developed by a new studio — featuring Neon White, Norco, Stray, Tunic and Vampire Survivors.
There are also awards for best games in a particular genre. “Best Role Playing” features GOTY nominees Elden Ring and Xenoblade Chronicles 3, as well as Live A Live, Pokémon Legends: Arceus and Triangle Strategy.
The “Best Fighting” category has had some controversy, as several prominent figures in the gaming community have expressed that the GOTY nominee Sifu should not qualify as a fighting game, arguing that it is far more in-line with the single-player “beat-em-up” genre and not the multiplayer-focused fighting game model. It is competing for this award against DNF Duel, Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: All Star Battle R, The King of Fighters XV and MultiVersus.
As for the individual games nominated this year, there are several games competing for multiple awards. God of War: Ragnarök has been nominated for 10 awards, two of which are for best actor performance. Elden Ring and Horizon Forbidden West are tied for the second-highest number of nominations, each holding seven. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Tunic are tied for the most nominations for non-GOTY contenders, with three each.
The Game Awards are not only there to reward existing games but also to highlight upcoming ones, as many games have had their first trailer debut during a Game Awards livestream. Additionally, there will be a category this year for the most anticipated game, with the nominees being Final Fantasy XVI, Hogwarts Legacy, Resident Evil 4, Starfield and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
The Game Awards will be streamed on Dec. 8 from their official site, YouTube and Twitch. Gamers can cast their votes for each category on The Game Awards’ site until Dec. 7.