The Game Awards 2025 Nominees Revealed

Last year, The Game Awards arrived in a surprising new form that many were taken back by. While its Game of the Year nominations like Balatro, Metaphor: ReFantazio, Astro bot, Black Myth: Wukong, and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth were expected, there was also Elden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree. 2024 introduced the new rule allowing DLC as eligible candidates for the ballot.

And now with the 2025 show on the way, many are anticipating to see titles like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Hollow Knight: Silksong, and other major releases to be featured alongside potential DLCs once more. Even more, there is a new deal struct with Amazon Prime for the first time in the show’s history. Subscribers will be able to broadcast the event live through the app.

On Monday, host Geoff Keighley revealed the candidates for 2025’s The Game Awards spanning across nearly two dozen categories. You can read the full list below:

Game of the Year

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive / Kepler Interactive)
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (Kojima Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Donkey Kong Bananza (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
Hades II (Supergiant Games)
Hollow Knight: Silksong (Team Cherry)
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II (Warhorse Studios / Deep Silver)

Best Game Direction

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive / Kepler Interactive)
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (Kojima Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Ghost of Yotei (Sucker Punch Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Hades II (Supergiant Games)
Split Fiction (Hazelight / Electronic Arts)

Best Narrative

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive / Kepler Interactive)
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (Kojima Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Ghost of Yotei (Sucker Punch Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II (Warhorse Studios / Deep Silver)
Silent Hill f (NeoBards Entertainment / Konami Digital Entertainment)

Best Art Direction

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive / Kepler Interactive)
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (Kojima Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Ghost of Yotei (Sucker Punch Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Hades II (Supergiant Games)
Hollow Knight: Silksong (Team Cherry)

Best Score and Music

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive / Kepler Interactive)
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (Kojima Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Ghost of Yotei (Sucker Punch Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Hades II (Supergiant Games)
Hollow Knight: Silksong (Team Cherry)

Best Audio Design

Battlefield 6 (Battlefield Studios / Electronic Arts)
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive / Kepler Interactive)
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (Kojima Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Ghost of Yotei (Sucker Punch Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Silent Hill f (NeoBards Entertainment / Konami Digital Entertainment)

Best Performance

Benn Star – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Charlie Cox – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Erika Ishii – Ghost of Yotei
Jennifer English – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Konatsu Kato – Silent Hill f
Troy Baker – Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

Innovation in Accessibility

Assassin’s Creed Shadows (Ubisoft)
Atomfall (Rebellion)
DOOM: The Dark Ages (id Software / Bethesda Softworks)
EA Sports FC 26 (EA Canada / EA Romania / Electronic Arts)
South of Midnight (Compulsion Games / Xbox Game Studios)

Games for Impact

Consume Me (Jenny Jiao Hsia / AP Thomson / Hexacutable)
despelote (Julian Cordero / Sebastian Valbuena / Panic)
Lost Records: Bloom & Rage (DON’T NOD Montreal / DON’T NOD)
South of Midnight (Compulsion Games / Xbox Game Studios)
Wanderstop (Ivy Road / Annapurna Interactive)

Best Ongoing Game

Final Fantasy XIV Online (Square Enix)
Fortnite (Epic Games)
Helldivers II (Arrowhead Game Studios / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Marvel Rivals (NetEase Games)
No Man’s Sky (Hello Games)

Best Community Support

Baldur’s Gate III (Larian Studios)
Final Fantasy XIV Online (Square Enix)
Fortnite (Epic Games)
Helldivers II (Arrowhead Game Studios / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
No Man’s Sky (Hello Games)

Best Independent Game

Absolum (Guard Crush Games / Supamonks / Dotemu)
BALL x PIT (Kenny Sun / Devolver Digital)
Blue Prince (Dogubomb / Raw Fury)
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive / Kepler Interactive)
Hades II (Supergiant Games)
Hollow Knight: Silksong (Team Cherry)

Best Debut Indie Game

Blue Prince (Dogubomb / Raw Fury)
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive / Kepler Interactive)
despelote (Julian Cordero / Sebastian Valbuena / Panic)
Dispatch (AdHoc Studio)
Megabonk (vedinad)

Best Mobile Game

Destiny: Rising (NetEase Games)
Persona 5: The Phantom X (Black Wings Game Studio / ATLUS / Perfect World Games / SEGA)
Sonic Rumble (SEGA)
Umamusume: Pretty Derby (Cygames)
Wuthering Waves (Kuro Games)

Best Virtual Reality/Augmented Reality

Alien: Rogue Incursion (Survios)
Arken Age (VitruviusVR)
Ghost Town (Fireproof Games)
Marvel’s Deadpool VR (Twisted Pixel Games / Oculus Studios)
The Midnight Walk (MoonHood / Fast Travel Games)

Best Action Game

Battlefield 6 (Battlefield Studios / Electronic Arts)
DOOM: The Dark Ages (id Software / Bethesda Softworks)
Hades II (Supergiant Games)
NINJA GAIDEN 4 (Team NINJA / Xbox Game Studios)
SHINOBI: Art of Vengeance (Lizardcube / SEGA)

Best Action/Adventure

Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (Kojima Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Ghost of Yotei (Sucker Punch Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (MachineGames / Bethesda Softworks)
Hollow Knight: Silksong (Team Cherry)
Split Fiction (Hazelight / Electronic Arts)

Best Role-Playing

Avowed (Obsidian Entertainment / Xbox Game Studios)
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive / Kepler Interactive)
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II (Warhorse Studios / Deep Silver)
Monster Hunter Wilds (Capcom)
The Outer Worlds 2 (Obsidian Entertainment / Xbox Game Studios)

Best Fighting

2XKO (Riot Games)
Capcom Fighting Collection 2 (Capcom)
Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves (SNK Corporation)
Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection (Digital Eclipse / Atari)
Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O. World Stage (Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio / SEGA)

Best Family

Donkey Kong Bananza (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
LEGO Party! (SMG Studio / Fictions)
LEGO Voyagers (Light Brick Studios / Annapurna Interactive)
Mario Kart World (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds (Sonic Team / SEGA)
Split Fiction (Hazelight / Electronic Arts)

Best Simulation / Strategy

The Alters (11 bit studios)
Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles (Square Enix)
Jurassic World Evolution 3 (Frontier Developments)
Sid Meier’s Civilization VII (Firaxis Games / 2K)
Tempest Rising (Slipgate Ironworks / 3D realms)
Two Point Museum (Two Point Studios / SEGA)

Best Sports/Racing

EA Sports FC 26 (EA Canada / EA Romania / Electronic Arts)
F1 25 (Codemasters / Electronic Arts)
Mario Kart World (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
REMATCH (Sloclap / Kepler Interactive)
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds (Sonic Team / SEGA)

Best Multiplayer

ARC Raiders (Embark Studios)
Battlefield 6 (Battlefield Studios / Electronic Arts)
Elden Ring Nightreign (FromSoftware / Bandai Namco Entertainment)
PEAK (Aggro Crab / Landfall)
Split Fiction (Hazelight / Electronic Arts)

Best Adaptation

A Minecraft Movie (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Devil May Cry (Netflix)
Splinter Cell: Deathwatch (Netflix)
The Last of Us Season 2 (HBO)
Until Dawn (Sony Pictures)

Most Anticipated Game

007 First Light (IO Interactive)
Grand Theft Auto VI (Rockstar Games)
Marvel’s Wolverine (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Resident Evil Requiem (Capcom)
The Witcher IV (CD Projekt RED)

Content Creator of the Year

Caedrel
Kai Cenat
MoistCr1TiKaL
Sakura Miko
The Burnt Peanut

Best eSports Game

Counter-Strike 2 (Valve)
DOTA 2 (Valve)
League of Legends (Riot Games)
Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (Moonton)
VALORANT (Riot Games)

Best eSports Athlete

brawk – Brock Somerhalder (VALORANT)
Chovy – Jeong Ji-hoon (League of Legends)
f0rsakeN – Jason Susanto (VALORANT)
Kakeru – Kakeru Watanabe (Street Fighter)
MenaRD – Saul Leonardo (Street Fighter)
Zyw0o – Mathieu Herbaut (Counter-Strike 2)

Best eSports Team

Gen.G (League of Legends)
NRG (VALORANT)
Team Falcons (DOTA 2)
Team Liquid PH (Mobile Legends: Bang Bang)
Team Vitality (Counter-Strike 2)

Of the nominees, we encourage you check our review for GOTY-nominated Donkey Kong: Bonanza. “I truly believe that Donkey Kong Bananza is another masterpiece from Nintendo. In the years to come, I can see this game being regarded as a classic, and that’s a rare distinction for many games,” we wrote; scoring it a 10/10.

Also, read our review for Best Action Game-nominated Shinobi: Art of Vengeance. “This is what a franchise revival should look like. Shinobi: Art of Vengeance honors its heritage while confidently establishing its own identity in the modern gaming landscape. It is a masterful blend of style and substance that feels both familiar and new,” scored 9/10. You can read the full review by heading here.

Are you excited for The Game Awards this December? 

2025’s The Game Awards will be held on December 11, 2025 at 4:30 PM PST / 7:30 PM EST.

Source: The Game Awards