The Game Awards today revealed its list of nominees across 29 categories. While everyone may have slightly different opinions about the games nominated in the different categories, I think this year’s nominees are largely devoid of controversy. The nomination of one particular game in three categories excited me the most because I predicted it after playing the game.
Neva by Nomada Studio bagged three nominations including Best Art Direction, Games for Impact, and Best Independent Game—and they are all well deserved. After playing the game a few weeks ago, I said it deserved the Games for Impact award owing to its clear message on climate change—kind of.
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In the Games for Impact category, Neva will fight for glory against Closer the Distance by Osmotic Studios, Indika by Odd Meter, Life is Strange: Double Exposure by Deck Nine, Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II by Ninja Theory, and Tales of Kenzera: Zau by Surgent Studios.
Full list of The Game Awards 2024 Nominees
This year, The Game Awards made a few changes to its categories. It was two categories less than the previous year. This is because the Best Esports Coach and Best Esports Event categories have both been axed.
Another major change made this year is that expansions, DLCs, remakes, and remasters were eligible for all categories if the jury deemed them “worthy”. Therefore, it was not surprising to find Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree featured in The Game of the Year Category. The base game won in that category two years ago. Here is the full list of the games nominated in all the categories.
Game of the Year
- Astro Bot
- Black Myth Wukong
- Balatro
- Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
- Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth
- Metaphor: ReFantaszio
Best Game Direction
- Astro Bot
- Balatro
- Black Myth
- Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
- Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
- Metapahor: ReFantazio
Best Narrative
- Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
- Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth
- Metaphor re Fantazio
- Senua’s Saga Hellblade II
- Silent Hill 2
Best Art Direction
- Astro Bot
- Black Myth: Waking
- Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
- Metaphor: ReFantazio
- Neva
Best Score/Music
- Astro Bot
- FF Rebirth
- Metabirth
- Silent Hill 2
- Stellar Blade
Best Audio Design
- Astro Bot
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
- Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
- Senua’s Saga Hellblade II
- Silent Hill 2
Best Performance
- Briana White (Final Fantasy VII Rebirth)
- Hannah Telle (Life Is Strange: Double Exposure)
- Humberly González (Star Wars Outlaws)
- Luke Roberts (Silent Hill 2)
- Melina Juergens (Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II)
Games for Impact
- Life is Strange Double Exposure
- Tales of Kenzera
- Closer the Distance
- Indika
- Neva
- Senua’s Saga Hellblade II
Best Ongoing Game
- Destiny 2
- Diablo IV
- Final Fantasy XIV
- Fortnite
- Helldivers 2
Best Indie Game
- Animal Well
- UFO 50
- Balatro
- Lorelei and the Laser Eyes
- Neva
Best Debut Indie Game
- Animal Well
- Manor Lords
- Pacific Drive
- The Plucky Squire
- Balatro
Best Mobile Game
- AFK Journey
- Balatro
- Withering Waves
- Zenless Zone Zero
- Pokemon TCG Pocket
Best Community Support
- Baldur’s Gate 3
- Final Fantasy XIV
- Fortnite
- Helldivers 2
- No Man’s Sky
Best VR/AR Game
- Arizona Sunshine Remake
- Asgard’s Wrath 2
- Batman Arkham Shadow
- Metal Hellsinger VR
- Metro Awakening VR
Innovation in Accessibility
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
- Diablo 4
- Dragon Age Veilguard
- Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
- Star Wars Outlaws
Best Action Game
- Black Myth Wukong
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
- Stellar Blade
- Warhammer 40 Space Marines 2
- Helldivers 2
Best Action/Adventure Game
- Astro Bot
- Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
- Silent Hill 2
- Star Wars Outlaws
- The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
Best RPG
- Dragon’s Dogma II
- Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
- Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
- Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth
- Metaphor: ReFantazio
Best Fighting Game
- Dragon Ball Sparking Zero
- Granblue Fantasy Versus Rising
- Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection Arcade Classics
- MultiVersus
- Tekken 8
Best Family Game
- Astro Bot
- Princess Peach Showtime
- Super Mario Party Jamboree
- The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
- The Plucky Squire
Best Sports/Racing Game
- NBA 2K25
- EA FC 25
- TopSpin 2K25
- WWE 2K24
- F1 24
Best SIM/Strategy Game
- Age of Mythology Retold
- Frostpunk 2
- Kunisu-Gami Patch of the Goddess
- Manor Lords
- Unicorn Overlord
Best Multiplayer Game
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
- Helldivers 2
- Super Mario Party Jamboree
- Tekken 8
- Warhammer 40,000 Space Marine 2
Content Creator of the Year
- Caseoh
- Illojuan
- Techno Gamerz
- Typical Gamer
- Usada Pekora
Best Esports Athlete
- 33
- alesksiB
- Chovy
- Faker
- zywoo
- zmjjkk
Best Esports Game
- Counter-Strike 2
- Dota 2
- League of Legends
- Mobile Legends Bang Bang
- VALORANT
Best Esports Team
- Bilibili Gaming
- Gen.G
- NAVI
- T1
- Team Liquid
Most Anticipated Game
- Death Stranding 2: On The Beach
- Ghost of Yotei
- GTA 6
- Metroid Prime 4 Beyond
- Monster Hunter Wild
Best Adaptation
- Arcane
- Fallout
- Knuckles
- Like a Dragon Yakuza
- Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft
Players’ Voice
- Will be announced on December 2
Which of the nominations excited you the most? Share your thoughts in the comment box below.
