The Game Awards show took place on December 7, 2023, and here are the winners. The tenth edition of the show honored the best games released this year (and other things besides that).
The Peacock Theatre in L.A. was packed with an audience eager to find out which games would come on top this year. So here follows the winners of this great show held in Los Angeles, with an honorable mention to the nominees (it’s the taking part that counts, you know).
Game of the Year
Baldur’s Gate 3
Some would say that Nintendo’s new Zelda game would have won the Game of the Year award if Baldur’s Gate 3 wasn’t around in 2023, and I’m inclined to agree. But the game’s biggest rival on the night was arguably Alan Wake 2.
Other games, such as Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 suffered due to being PlayStation only, while Capcom’s outstanding Resident Evil 4 remake probably deserved more attention than it got (it did not win a single award).
Nominees:
Alan Wake 2, Baldur’s Gate 3, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, Resident Evil 4 Remake, Super Mario Bros. Wonder, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Best Action/Adventure Game
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Nintendo’s colorful sequel to Breath of the Wild was a clear winner here. Boasting a Metacritic score of 96, the Japanese outfit did the seemingly impossible by delivering an even better game than its predecessor. Of course, Alan Wake 2 was always in contention for the prize here, and maybe Star Wars Jedi: Survivor could have picked this one up, if the PC version had not been such a disaster at launch.
Nominees:
Alan Wake 2, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, Resident Evil 4, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Best RPG
Baldur’s Gate 3
Baldur’s Gate 3 winning this one was something of a given, as it had already won Game of the Year. It’s the best role-playing game released in ages, a sequel that millions of people had been waiting more than 20 years to play.
Lies of P was an original Souls-like game with RPG elements, with a story inspired by Pinocchio, but clearly not good enough to win the award.
Also, one of the biggest games of the year (at least when it came to publicity) was largely ignored on the night. Starfield was seemingly another victim of Baldur’s Gate 3’s success. And it not quite living up to expectations hurt its chances at the Game Awards too… Any other year, though, Bethesda’s RPG would have come on top for sure.
Nominees:
Baldur’s Gate 3, Final Fantasy 16, Lies of P, Sea of Stars, Starfield
Best Fighting Game
Street Fighter 6
It was a hot contest here between heavyweights Street Fighter 6 and Mortal Kombat 1. But it was Capcom’s game that won the fight. Maybe the fact that Mortal Kombat 1 was a bit too similar to its predecessor Mortal Kombat 11 (it’s a reboot you see) hurt its chances, but it still boasted an entertaining and cinematic story mode. But Street Fighter 6 offered the better overall fighting package this time.
Nominees:
God of Rock, Mortal Kombat 1, Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2, Pocket Bravery, Street Fighter 6
Best Multiplayer Game
Baldur’s Gate 3
It is noteworthy that Baldur’s Gate 3 was the winner in this category, edging out Diablo 4 and Street Fighter 6. So Larian Studios’ game not only offered a deep single player role-playing experience, it was also great to play with others, as its winning of the Best Multiplayer Game award demonstrates.
Nominees:
Baldur’s Gate 3, Diablo 4, Party Animals, Street Fighter 6, Super Mario Bros. Wonder
Best Narrative
Alan Wake 2
Alan Wake 2 was one of the Game Awards 2023 strongest contenders. It’s a very different game than the show’s darling Baldur’s Gate 3, as it is a survival horror adventure set in modern times. But it still managed to scoop up a couple of awards on the night nonetheless, including this one. The game’s intriguing narrative set in an American Western town was judged better than Baldur’s Gate 3 fantasy tale or Marvel’s Spider-Man 2’s cinematic superhero story.
Nominees:
Alan Wake 2, Baldur’s Gate 3, Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty, Final Fantasy 16, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Best Score/Music
Final Fantasy 16
An epic fantasy game like Final Fantasy 16 needed an epic musical score, and Japanese composer Masayoshi Soken surely delivered here. This might have helped make up for the fact that Final Fantasy 16 maybe wasn’t as great as the best entries in the series. Although some of the other games nominated in this category (such as Baldur’s Gate 3, of course) had musical scores which definitely prove how far video game music has got.
Nominees:
Alan Wake 2, Baldur’s Gate 3, Final Fantasy 16, Hi-Fi Rush, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Best Family Game
Super Mario Bros. Wonder
With no disrespect to the other nominees, it really was a showdown between Sonic Superstars and Super Mario Bros. Wonder here. The Italian plumber and the blue hedgehog have been going at each other for decades now, but Mario has been the winner more often than not. And Super Mario Bros. Wonder definitely was one of the best games of the year too.
Nominees:
Disney Illusion Island, Party Animals, Pikmin 4, Sonic Superstars, Super Mario Bros. Wonder
Best Performance
Neil Newbon
Voice acting is now a key part of most video games, helping make characters come alive. But I thought Neil Newbon’s turn as elven vampire Astarion in Baldur’s Gate 3 slightly greasy and annoying. Maybe JK Simmons’ character (the game’s villain) could have won if he had more dialogue and the actor’s performance was more inspired. Also, Hollywood star Idris Elba was in contention for his role in Cyberpunk 2077, but apparently the Game Awards’ judges thought his work in CD Projekt’s game did not cut the mustard for the award…
Nominees:
Ben Starr – Final Fantasy 16
Cameron Monaghan – Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
Idris Elba – Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
Melanie Liburd – Alan Wake 2
Neil Newbon – Baldur’s Gate 3
Yuri Lowenthal – Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Most Anticipated Game
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth
It’s questionable that an award is given to a game that is yet to be released, but at least this category is fan voted. Like the Players’ Voice award, which unsurprisingly Baldur’s Gate 3 picked up, highlighting what a success the game has been in 2023. But at least the most anticipated game nominees look like they could turn out to be fantastic games, particularly Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, the much-awaited sequel to Final Fantasy 7 Remake (which won the award). Although personally I’m looking forward to playing the next Yakuza / Like a Dragon game.
Nominees:
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, Hades 2, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, Star Wars Outlaws, Tekken 8
The winners and nominees of the remaining categories were the following:
Best Sports/Racing Game
- EA Sports FC 24
- F1 23
- Forza Motorsport * WINNER *
- Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged
- The Crew Motorfest
Best SIM/Strategy Game
- Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp
- Cities: Skylines 2
- Company of Heroes 3
- Fire Emblem Engage
- Pikmin 4 * WINNER *
Best Mobile Game
- Final Fantasy 7: Ever Crisis
- Honkai: Star Rail * WINNER *
- Hello Kitty Island Adventure
- Monster Hunter Now
- Terra Nil
Best VR/AR Game
- Gran Turismo 7
- Humanity
- Horizon: Call of the Mountain
- Resident Evil Village * WINNER *
- Synapse
Best Indie Game
- Cocoon
- Dave the Diver
- Dredge
- Sea of Stars * WINNER *
- Viewfinder
Best Debut Indie Game
- Cocoon * WINNER *
- Dredge
- Pizza Tower
- Venba
- Viewfinder
Best Game Direction
- Alan Wake 2 * WINNER *
- Baldur’s Gate 3
- Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
- Super Mario Bros. Wonder
- The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
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
Best Audio Design
- Alan Wake 2
- Dead Space Remake
- Hi-Fi Rush * WINNER *
- Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
- Resident Evil 4 Remake
Best Community Support
- Baldur’s Gate 3 * WINNER *
- Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
- Destiny 2
- Final Fantasy 16
- No Man’s Sky
Innovation in Accessibility
- Diablo 4
- Forza Motorsport * WINNER *
- Hi-Fi Rush
- Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
- Mortal Kombat 1
- Street Fighter 6
Best Adaptation
- Castlevania: Nocturne
- Gran Turismo
- The Last of Us * WINNER *
- The Super Mario Bros. Movie
- Twisted Metal
Players’ Voice
- Baldur’s Gate 3 * WINNER *
- Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
- Genshin Impact
- Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
- The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Besides giving out awards to the best games in categories such as role-playing and action, esports athletes and online content creators were also nominated for their efforts on the night:
Content Creator of the Year
- IronMouse * WINNER *
- PeopleMakeGames
- Quackity
- Spreen
- SypherPK
Best Esports Athlete
- Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok * WINNER *
- Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut
- Max “Demon1” Mazanov
- Paco “HyDra” Rusiewiez
- Park “Ruler” Jae-hyuk
- Phillip ”ImperialHal” Dosen
Best Esports Coach
- Christine “potter” Chi * WINNER *
- Danny “zonic” Sorensen
- Jordan “Gunba” Graham
- Remy “XTQZZZ” Quoniam
- Yoon “Homme” Sung-young
Best Esports Event
- 2023 League of Legends World Championship * WINNER *
- Blast.tv Paris Major 2023
- EVO 2023
- The International Dota 2 Championships 2023
- VALORANT Champions 2023
Best Esports Game
- Counter-Strike 2
- Dota 2
- Leage of Legends
- PUBG Mobile
- Valorant * WINNER *
Best Esports Team
- Evil Geniuses
- Fnatic
- Gaimin Gladiators
- JD Gaming * WINNER *
- Team Vitality