Every Game of the Year Winner at The Game Awards
▼ Summary
– Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 won Game of the Year at The Game Awards, becoming the 12th title to receive the honor.
– Sony is the publisher with the most Game of the Year Awards, having won three times with titles like Astro Bot and God of War.
– Nintendo has only won the award once, for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, while Microsoft has never won it directly.
– Winning the award can significantly boost a studio’s status, as seen with CD Projekt after The Witcher 3’s win in 2015.
– Role-playing games (RPGs) are the most successful genre at the awards, having won six out of the twelve Game of the Year titles.
The Game Awards have become a defining moment for the video game industry, celebrating the year’s most outstanding titles. Since its launch in 2014, the coveted Game of the Year award has been claimed by only twelve different games. While major publishers often dominate the conversation, the ceremony has also provided a significant platform for independent studios to achieve global recognition.
To date, Sony stands as the publisher with the most victories, securing the top honor on three separate occasions. Their wins include Astro Bot last year, The Last of Us Part 2 in 2020, and the acclaimed God of War in 2018. In a notable contrast, Nintendo has only captured the award once, thanks to the groundbreaking The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild in 2017. Microsoft has yet to win, though its subsidiary Activision Blizzard earned the prize in 2019 for Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.
Earning this accolade can profoundly impact a studio’s trajectory. For instance, CD Projekt’s 2015 win for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt solidified its reputation as a premier developer and propelled that title into the ranks of history’s best-selling games. The award validates creative vision and often leads to a substantial commercial boost, cutting through the noise of the event’s many high-profile trailers.
A clear trend has emerged in the types of games that win. Role-playing games (RPGs) have been remarkably successful, claiming exactly half of all the Game of the Year awards. The most recent winner, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, continues this tradition for the genre. This pattern highlights a consistent appreciation among critics and fans for deep, narrative-driven experiences with complex worlds and character progression.
(Source: Gamespot)