Since The Game Awards detached from Spike TV in 2014 they’ve garnered a much larger following from gamers around the world and for the most part is respected amongst gamers. Think of it like the Oscars for Gaming. While it has become a place for gaming announcements we can’t forget that it is first and foremost an awards ceremony.
By now I’m sure everyone has heard that The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild snagged the coveted Game of the Year, but there are plenty of other awards up for grabs. Luckily for you we’ve taken the time to collect all the winners of each category together in one handy list. If you’re interested to see what each winner was up against you can check out our coverage of the nominations.
So let’s jump in to the winners and don’t forget to tune into Checkpoint on Joy 94.9 in Melbourne, Australia at 3pm next Saturday the 16th to hear the teams top 10 Games for 2017.
Game of the Year
Recognizing a game that delivers the absolute best experience across all creative and technical fields.
- The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Our Review)
Best Game Direction
Awarded to a game studio for outstanding creative vision and innovation in game direction and design.
- The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Our Review)
Best Narrative
For outstanding storytelling and narrative development in a game.
- What Remains of Edith Finch (Our Review)
Best Art Direction
For outstanding creative and/or technical achievement in artistic design and animation.
- Cuphead (Our Review)
Best Score / Music
For outstanding music, inclusive of score, original song and/or licensed soundtrack.
- NieR: Automata (Our Review)
Best Audio Design
Recognizing the best in-game audio and sound design.
- Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (Our Feature)
Best Performance
Awarded to an individual for voice-over acting, motion and/or performance capture.
- Melina Juergens – Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (Our Feature)
Games for Impact
For a thought provoking game with a profound pro-social meaning or message.
- Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (Our Feature)
Best Ongoing Game
Awarded to a game for outstanding development of ongoing content that evolves the player experience over time.
- Overwatch (Our Review)
Best Mobile Game
For the best game playable on a dedicated mobile device.
- Monument Valley 2
Best Handheld Game
For the best game playable on a dedicated portable gaming system.
- Metroid: Samus Returns (Our Review)
Best VR / AR Game
For the best game experience playable in virtual or augmented reality, irrespective of platform.
- Resident Evil VII: Biohazard (Our Review)
Best Action Game
For the best game in the action genre focused on combat.
- Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus (Our Review)
Best Action/Adventure Game
For the best action/adventure game, combining combat with traversal and puzzle solving.
- The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Our Review)
Best Role Playing Game
For the best game designed with rich player character customization and progression, including massively multiplayer experiences.
- Persona 5 (Our Review)
Best fighting Game
For the best game designed primarily around head-to-head combat.
- Injustice 2 (Our Review)
Best Family Game
For the best game appropriate for family play, irrespective of genre or platform.
- Super Mario Odyssey (Our Review)
Best Strategy Game
Best game focused on real time or turn-based strategy gameplay, irrespective of platform.
- Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle (Our Review)
Best Sports / Racing Game
For the best traditional and non-traditional sports and racing game.
- Forza Motorsport 7 (Our Review)
Best Multiplayer
For outstanding online multiplayer gameplay and design, including co-op and massively multiplayer experiences, irrespective of game genre.
- PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds
Most Anticipated Game
Awarded to an upcoming game that has shown significant ambition and promise. Title must be announced and scheduled for release after December 7, 2017.
- The Last of Us Part II
Best Independent Game
For outstanding creative and technical achievement in a game made outside the traditional publisher system.
- Cuphead (Our Review)
Best Student Game
For the best student project created at the high school or college level.
- Level Squared
Trending Gamer
For a streamer, influencer or media member who has made an important impact on the industry this calendar year.
- Guy Beahm (Dr. Disrespect)
Best eSports Game
For the game that has delivered the best overall eSports experience to players (inclusive of tournaments, community support and content updates), irrespective of genre or platform.
- Overwatch (Our Review)
Best eSports Player
The eSports player judged to be the most outstanding performer in 2017, irrespective of game.
- Lee sang-hyoek “Faker”
Best eSports Team
The eSports team judged to be the most outstanding for performance in 2017, inclusive of multi-team organizations.
- Cloud 9
Best Debut Indie Game
Recognizing a new independent studio that released its first game in 2017. Winner selected by fan voting.
- Cuphead (Our Review)
Best Chinese Game
A fan-voted award to recognize the most popular game in China, as judged by The Game Awards viewers in China.
- jx3 HD
So concludes another year of The Game Awards, did your favourite win big? Did anything win that you think should not have? Let us know and be sure to keep an eye out this week as we announce the Checkpoint Top 10 Games for 2017.