After several individuals notoriously invaded two of his events including The Game Awards, event creator and host Geoff Keighley addressed security concerns in a recent live stream and stated that he and his team are trying to do all they can to keep him safe, “but also everyone watching the show, the audience, people participating in the show and everything.” Keighley had his first security issue when an unknown person successfully went on stage last year during Elden Ring director Hidetaka Miyazaki’s acceptance speech for Game of the Year. He then had another unknown person walk on stage at the Gamescom Opening Night Live event this year, but they were quickly taken off stage by security. The Game Awards 2023 will premiere on December 7. Nominees include Alan Wake II, Baldur’s gate III, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, and more for Game of the Year, Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty, Final Fantasy XVI, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, and more for best narrative, Lies of P, Hi-FI Rush, and more for best direction, and more.
The full list of The Game Awards 2023 nominations can be seen below:
Game of the Year
Recognizing a game that delivers the absolute best experience across all creative and technical fields.
- Alan Wake II (Remedy Entertainment / Epic Games Publishing)
- Baldur’s Gate III (Larian Studios)
- The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
- Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- Resident Evil 4 (Capcom)
- Super Mario Bros. Wonder (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
Best Game Direction
Awarded for outstanding creative vision and innovation in game direction and design.
- Alan Wake II (Remedy Entertainment / Epic Games Publishing)
- Baldur’s Gate III (Larian Studios)
- The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
- Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- Super Mario Bros. Wonder (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
Best Narrative
For outstanding storytelling and narrative development in a game.
- Alan Wake II (Remedy Entertainment / Epic Games Publishing)
- Baldur’s Gate III (Larian Studios)
- Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty (CD Projekt RED)
- Final Fantasy XVI (Creative Business Unit III / Square Enix)
- Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Best Art Direction
For outstanding creative and/or technical achievement in artistic design and animation.
- Alan Wake II (Remedy Entertainment / Epic Games Publishing)
- Hi-Fi RUSH (Tango Gameworks / Bethesda Softworks)
- The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
- Lies of P (Round8 Studio / Neowiz)
- Super Mario Bros. Wonder (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
Best Score and Music
For outstanding music, inclusive of score, original song and/or licensed soundtrack.
- Alan Wake II Composer Petri Alanko (Remedy Entertainment / Epic Games Publishing)
- Baldur’s Gate III Composer Borislav Slavov (Larian Studios)
- Final Fantasy XVI Composer Masayoshi Soken (Creative Business Unit III / Square Enix)
- Hi-Fi RUSH Audio Director Shuichi Kobori (Tango Gameworks / Bethesda Softworks)
- The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Composer Nintendo Sound Team (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
Best Audio Design
Recognizing the best in-game audio and sound design.
- Alan Wake II (Remedy Entertainment / Epic Games Publishing)
- Dead Space (Motive / Electronic Arts)
- Hi-Fi RUSH (Tango Gameworks / Bethesda Softworks)
- Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- Resident Evil 4 (Capcom)
Best Performance
Awarded to an individual for voice-over acting, motion and/or performance capture.
- Ben Starr in Final Fantasy XVI
- Cameron Monaghan in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
- Idris Elba in Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
- Melanie Liburd in Alan Wake II
- Neil Newbon in Baldur’s Gate III
- Yuri Lowenthal in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Innovation in Accessibility
Recognizing software and / or hardware that is pushing the medium forward by adding features, technology and content to help games be played and enjoyed by an even wider audience.
- Diablo IV (Blizzard Entertainment)
- Forza Motorsport (Turn 10 Studios / Xbox Game Studios)
- Hi-Fi RUSH (Tango Gameworks / Bethesda Softworks)
- Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- Mortal Kombat 1 (NetherRealm Studios / Warner Bros. Games)
- Street Fighter 6 (Capcom)
Games for Impact
For a thought-provoking game with a pro-social meaning or message.
- A Space for the Unbound (Mojiken Studio / Toge Productions / Chorus Worldwide)
- Chants of Sennaar (Rundisc / Focus Entertainment)
- Goodbye Volcano High (KO_OP)
- Tchia (Awaceb / Kepler Interactive)
- Terra Nil (Free Lives / Devolver Digital / Netflix)
- Venba (Visai Games)
Best Ongoing Game
Awarded to a game for outstanding development of ongoing content that evolves the player experience over time.
- Apex Legends (Respawn Entertainment / Electronic Arts)
- Cyberpunk 2077 (CD Projekt RED)
- Final Fantasy XIV (Square Enix)
- Fortnite (Epic Games)
- Genshin Impact (miHoYo)
Best Community Support
Recognizing a game for outstanding community support, transparency and responsiveness, inclusive of social media activity and game updates / patches.
- Baldur’s Gate III (Larian Studios)
- Cyberpunk 2077 (CD Projekt RED)
- Destiny 2 (Bungie)
- Final Fantasy XIV (Square Enix)
- No Man’s Sky (Hello Games)
Best Independent Game
For outstanding creative and technical achievement in a game made outside the traditional publisher system.
- COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive)
- DAVE THE DIVER (MINTROCKET)
- DREDGE (Black Salt Games / Team17)
- Sea of Stars (Sabotage Studio)
- Viewfinder (Sad Owl Studios / Thunderful Games)
Best Debut Indie Game
For the best debut game created by a new independent studio.
- COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive)
- DREDGE (Black Salt Games / Team17)
- Pizza Tower (Tour De Pizza)
- Venba (Visai Games)
- Viewfinder (Sad Owl Studios / Thunderful Games)
Best Mobile Game
For the best game playable on a mobile device.
- Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis (Applibot / Square Enix)
- Hello Kitty Island Adventure (Sunblink)
- Honkai: Star Rail (miHoYo)
- Monster Hunter Now (Niantic / Capcom)
- Terra Nil (Free Lives / Netflix)
Best Virtual Reality / Augmented Reality
For the best game experience playable in virtual or augmented reality, irrespective of platform.
- Gran Turismo 7 (Polyphony Digital / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- Horizon Call of the Mountain (Guerrilla Games / Firesprite / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- HUMANITY (tha ltd. / Enhance Games)
- Resident Evil Village VR Mode (Capcom)
- SYNAPSE (nDreams)
Best Action Game
For the best game in the action genre focused primarily on combat.
- Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon (FromSoftware / Bandai Namco Entertainment)
- Dead Island 2 (Dambuster Studios / Deep Silver)
- Ghostrunner II (One More Level / 505 Games)
- Hi-Fi RUSH (Tango Gameworks / Bethesda Softworks)
- Remnant II (Gunfire Games / Gearbox Publishing)
Best Action / Adventure
For the best action / adventure game, combining combat with traversal and puzzle solving.
- Alan Wake II (Remedy Entertainment / Epic Games Publishing)
- The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
- Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- Resident Evil 4 (Capcom)
- Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (Respawn Entertainment / Electronic Arts)
Best Role-Playing
For the best game designed with rich player character customization and progression, including massively multiplayer experiences.
- Baldur’s Gate III (Larian Studios)
- Final Fantasy XVI (Creative Business Unit III / Square Enix)
- Lies of P (Round8 Studio / Neowiz)
- Sea of Stars (Sabotage Studio)
- Starfield (Bethesda Game Studios / Bethesda Softworks)
Best Fighting
For the best game designed primarily around head-to-head combat.
- God of Rock (Modus Studios Brazil / Modus Games)
- Mortal Kombat 1 (NetherRealm Studios / Warner Bros. Games)
- Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2 (Ludosity / Fair Play Labs / GameMill Entertainment)
- Pocket Bravery (Statera Studio / PQube)
- Street Fighter 6 (Capcom)
Best Family
For the best game appropriate for family play, irrespective of genre or platform.
- Disney Illusion Island (Dlala Studios / Disney)
- Party Animals (Recreate Games)
- Pikmin 4 (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
- Sonic Superstars (Arzest / Sonic Team / SEGA)
- Super Mario Bros. Wonder (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
Best Simulation / Strategy
Best game focused on real time or turn-based simulation or strategy gameplay, irrespective of platform.
- Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp (WayForward Technologies / Nintendo)
- Cities: Skylines II (Colossal Order / Paradox Interactive)
- Company of Heroes III (Relic Entertainment / SEGA)
- Fire Emblem Engage (Intelligent Systems / Nintendo)
- Pikmin 4 (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
Best Sports / Racing
For the best traditional and non-traditional sports and racing game.
- The Crew Motorfest (Ubisoft Ivory Tower / Ubisoft)
- EA Sports FC 24 (Electronic Arts Vancouver / Electronic Arts Romania / Electronic Arts)
- F1 23 (Codemasters / Electronic Arts)
- Forza Motorsport (Turn 10 Studios / Xbox Game Studios)
- Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged (Milestone)
Best Multiplayer
For outstanding online multiplayer gameplay and design, including co-op and massively multiplayer experiences, irrespective of game genre or platform.
- Baldur’s Gate III (Larian Studios)
- Diablo IV (Blizzard Entertainment)
- Party Animals (Recreate Games)
- Street Fighter 6 (Capcom)
- Super Mario Bros. Wonder (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
Best Adaptation
Recognizing outstanding creative work that faithfully and authentically adapts a video game to another entertainment medium.
- Castlevania: Nocturne (Powerhouse Animation / Netflix)
- Gran Turismo (PlayStation Productions / Sony Pictures)
- The Last of Us (PlayStation Productions / HBO)
- The Super Mario Bros. Movie (Illumination / Nintendo / Universal Pictures)
- Twisted Metal (PlayStation Productions / Peacock)
Most Anticipated Game
Recognizing an announced game that has demonstrably illustrated potential to push the gaming medium forward.
- Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (Square Enix)
- Hades II (Supergiant Games)
- Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth (Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio / SEGA)
- Star Wars Outlaws (Massive Entertainment / Ubisoft)
- Tekken 8 (Arika / Bandai Namco Entertainment)
Content Creator of the Year
For a streamer or content creator who has made an important and positive impact on the community in 2021.
- Ironmouse
- People Make Games
- Quackity
- Spreen
- Sypherpk
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.
- Counter-Strike 2 (Valve)
- Dota 2 (Valve)
- League of Legends (Riot Games)
- PUBG Mobile (Lightspeed Studios)
- Valorant (Riot Games)
Best eSports Athlete
The eSports athlete judged to be the most outstanding for performance and conduct in 2021, irrespective of game.
- Lee “Faker” Sang-Hyeok (League of Legends)
- Mathieu “Zywoo” Herbaut (Counter-Striker: Global Offensive)
- Max “Demon1” Mazanov (Valorant)
- Paco “Hydra” Rusiewiez (Call of Duty)
- Park “Ruler” Jae-Hyuk (League of Legends)
- Phillip “ImperialHal” Dosen (Apex Legends)
Best eSports Team
Recognizing a specific eSports team (not the full organization) judged the most outstanding for performance and conduct in 2021.
- Evil Geniuses (Valorant)
- Fnatic (Valorant)
- Gaimin Gladiators (Dota 2)
- JD Gaming (League of Legends)
- Team Vitality (Counter-Strike)
Best eSports Coach
The eSports coach judged to be the most outstanding for performance and conduct in 2021.
- Christine “Potter” Chi (Evil Geniuses – Valorant)
- Danny “Zonic” Sorensen (Team Falcons – Counter-Strike)
- Jordan “Gunba” Graham (Florida Mayhem – Overwatch)
- Remy “XTQZZZ” Quoniam (Team Vitality – Counter-Strike)
- Yoon “Homme” Sung-Young (JD Gaming – League of Legends)
Best eSports Event
Recognizing an event (across single or multiple days) that delivered a best-of-class experience for participants and the broadcast audience.
- 2023 League of Legends World Championship
- BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023
- EVO 2023
- The International Dota 2 Championships 2023
- Valorant Champions 2023
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