The Game Awards 2024 Recap

On December 12th, the gaming world gathered to celebrate its brightest stars at the 2024 Game Awards, and the night was nothing short of spectacular. The event highlighted the gaming industry's amazing talent and innovation in 25 categories. Surprise wins and killer performances — this year's game awards proved gaming is the ultimate entertainment. Here is a look back at the moments that made this year’s ceremony truly memorable:

Game of the Year

Winner: Astro Bot – This little platformer turned into the biggest winner of the night, capturing hearts with its incredible design, gameplay, and sheer fun. It was an upset to many but understood as it was PlayStation’s 30 Year Anniversary. 

Nominees:

• Balatro
• Black Myth: Wukong
• Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
• Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth
• Metaphor: Refantazio

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Innovation in Accessibility

• Winner: Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown (Accessibility is the new word for innovation and The Prince showed exactly that!)
• Nominees:
  • Diablo IV
  • Star Wars Outlaws
  • Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
  • Dragon Age: The Veilguard

Best Community Support

• Winner: Baldur’s Gate III (I mean, come on. It’s addicting.)
• Nominees:
  • Helldivers 2
  • Final Fantasy XIV
  • Fortnite
  • No Man’s Sky

Best VR/AR Game

• Winner: Batman: Arkham Shadow (Let's face it, everyone wants to be Batman.)
• Nominees:
  • Arizona Sunshine Remake
  • Asgard’s Wrath 2
  • Metal: Hellsinger VR
  • Metro Awakening

Best Mobile Game

• Winner: Balatro (A little game that's a lot of fun.)
• Nominees:
  • AFK Journey
  • Poke’mon Trading Card Game Pocket
  • Wuthering Waves
  • Zenless Zone Zero

Games for Impact

• Winner: Neva (It's a real tearjerker that'll stick with you.)
• Nominees:
  • Life is Strange: Double Exposure
  • Indika
  • Closer the Distance
  • Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
  • Tales of Kenzera: Zau

Best Esports Game

• Winner: League of Legends (Still the king of competitive gaming.)
• Nominees:
  • Counter-Strike 2
  • Dota 2
  • Mobile Legends: Bang Bang
  • Valorant

Best Esports Athlete

• Winner: Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok (The legend still killing it.)
• Nominees:
  • Mathieu "Zywoo" Herbaut
  • Neta “33” Shapira
  • Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen
  • Jeong “Chovy” Ji-hoon
  • Zheng “ZMJJKK” Yongkang

Best Esports Team

• Winner: T1 (League of Legends) – T1 emerged as the winner in League of Legends thanks to their top-notch teamwork and strategy.
• Nominees:
  • BiliBili Gaming (League of Legends)
  • Gen.G (League of Legends)
  • Navi (Counter-Strike)
  • Team Liquid (Dota 2)

Best Content Creator of the Year

• Winner: Caseoh 
• Nominees:some text
  • Illojuan
  • Techo Gamerz
  • Typical Gamer
  • Usada Pekora

Best Fighting Game

• Winner: Tekken 8 (Combos are on point!)
• Nominees:
  • Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero
  • Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising
  • Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics
  • Multiversus

Best Sports/Racing Game

• Winner: EA Sports FC 25  (Soccer at its finest.)
• Nominees:
  • WWE 2K24
  • F1 24
  • Top Spin 2K25
  • NBA 2K25

Best Sim/Strategy Game

• Winner: Frostpunk 2 (A super intense strategy game that's tricky to conquer.)
• Nominees:
  • Unicorn Overlord
  • Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess
  • Manor Lords
  • Age of Mythology: Retold

Best Indie Game

• Winner: Balatro (Proof that tiny teams can deliver big fun.)
• Nominees:
  • Animal Well
  • Neva
  • Lorelei and the Laser Eyes
  • UFO 50

Best Action Game

• Winner: Black Myth: Wukong (Epic mythical fighting.)
• Nominees:
  • Stellar Blade
  • Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
  • Helldivers 2
  • Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2

Best Role-Playing Game

• Winner: Metaphor: ReFantazio (A fantasy RPG with a story that grips. Atlus never miss.)
• Nominees:
  • Dragon’s Dogma 2
  • Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
  • Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth
  • Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree

Best Action/Adventure Game

• Winner: Astro Bot (Astro Bot takes the prize for being a blast with its charm, fun, and exciting adventures.)
• Nominees:
  • Silent Hill 2
  • Star Wars Outlaws
  • Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
  • The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom

Best Art Direction

• Winner: Metaphor: Refantazio (You can simply get lost in the menu screen with how alluring the art is!)
• Nominees:
  • Astro Bot
  • Black Myth: Wukong
  • Neva
  • Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree

Best Audio Design

• Winner: Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 (You just have to play this game with headphones to understand WHY this has the best audio!)
• Nominees:
  • Astro Bot
  • Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
  • Silent Hill 2
  • Final Fantasy VII Rebirth

Best Score and Music

• Winner: Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (The music captures all the emotions of the story.)
• Nominees:
  • Astro Bot
  • Stellar Blade
  • Metaphor: ReFantazio
  • Silent Hill 2

Best Narrative

• Winner: Metaphor: ReFantazio (A story that had players hooked with its twists and turns.)
• Nominees:
  • Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth
  • Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth
  • Silent Hill 2
  • Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II

Best Performance

• Winner: Melina Juergens as Senua (An emotional, haunting performance that made Hellblade II unforgettable.)
• Nominees:
  • Aidan Gallagher as the Baker – Alan Wake 2
  • Hassan Manji as Fiza – Starfield
  • Melina Juergens as Senua – Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
  • Neil Newbon as Matthias – Spider-Man 2
  • Troy Baker as Finn – Final Fantasy VII Rebirth

Best Ongoing Game

• Winner: Helldivers 2 (The game just released this year but the journey is worth it!)
• Nominees:
  • Destiny 2
  • Diablo IV
  • Final Fantasy XIV
  • Fortnite

Most Anticipated Game

• Winner: Grand Theft Auto VI (Everyone was talking about the next chapter in this iconic series.)
• Nominees:
  • Death Stranding 2: On The Beach
  • Ghost of Yotei
  • Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
  • Monster Hunter Wilds

Best Multiplayer Game

• Winner: Helldivers II (It’s perfectly chaotic fun, especially in multiplayer.)
• Nominees:
  • Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
  • Super Mario Party Jamboree
  • Tekken 8
  • Palia
  • Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2

Best Game Direction

• Winner: Astro Bot (Masterfully crafted with unique gameplay mechanics that set it apart from everything else.)
• Nominees:
  • Balatro
  • Black Myth: Wukong
  • Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
  • Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth
  • Metaphor: Refantazio

Altogether, this year’s awards were captivating and made a historical record of 154 million global livestreams! Gaming has become an integral part of life over the years and the production has allowed the ability for games to be at the forefront as tournaments. You can take part in different genres competitively at Dream Con 2025 for a chance to win a grand sum of money. Be sure to check out these games to prepare for the chance to be a winner just like these nominees!

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