The Game Awards continues to be a much-discussed end-of-year event in the realm of video games, though more attention is usually poured onto the new game announcements rather than the awards themselves. Nonetheless, it’s still interesting to see which titles make the cut every year for the finalists, and more interesting still to see which games end up winning their respective awards.
This year, Arkane Studios and Deathloop lead the nominations, and took out awards in Best Game Direction and Best Art Direction. The surprise winner for the coveted Game of the Year award was It Takes Two, led by the infamously entertaining Josef Fares, whose ‘fuck The Oscars’ remark at The Game Awards in 2017 remains a memorable moment.
You can find all the winners and finalists for The Game Awards 2021 below.
How are The Game Award winners decided?
The finalists for The Game Awards are chosen by a pool of over 100 gaming publications and ‘influencer outlets’ across the globe, each of which put forward 5 nominees in each category.
As a result, this means the more widely-played titles tend to dominate and, unfortunately, niche titles are rarely part of the conversation regardless of quality. It also means there’s usually some contention around categories like ‘Best Indie Game’
Winners are then voted on by the jury, as well as public voting, which makes up 10% of the vote.
Read: Every major game announcement at The Game Awards 2021
The Game Awards 2021 Winners
The Game Awards 2021: Game of the Year
- Deathloop
- It Takes Two [WINNER]
- Metroid Dread
- Psychonauts 2
- Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
- Resident Evil Village
Best Game Direction
- Deathloop [WINNER]
- It Takes Two
- Returnal
- Psychonauts 2
- Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
Best Narrative
- Deathloop
- It Takes Two
- Life is Strange: True Colors
- Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy [WINNER]
- Psychonauts 2
Best Art Direction
- Deathloop [WINNER]
- Kena: Bridge of Spirits
- Psychonauts 2
- Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
- The Artful Escape
Best Score/Music
- Cyberpunk 2077
- Deathloop
- Nier Replicant ver.1.22474487139 [WINNER]
- Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
- The Artful Escape
Best Audio Design
- Deathloop
- Forza Horizon 5 [WINNER]
- Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
- Resident Evil Village
- Returnal
Best Performance
- Erika Mori, Life is Strange
- Giancarlo Esposito, Far Cry 6
- Jason E. Kelley, Deathloop
- Maggie Robertson, Resident Evil Village [WINNER]
- Ozioama Akagha, Deathloop
Games for Impact
- Before Your Eyes
- Boyfriend Dungeon
- Chicory: A Colorful Tale
- Life is Strange: True Colors [WINNER]
- No Longer Home
Best Ongoing Game
- Apex Legends
- Call of Duty: War Zone
- Final Fantasy XIV Online [WINNER]
- Fortnite
- Genshin Impact
Best Indie Game
- 12 Minutes
- Death’s Door
- Kena: Bridge of Spirits [WINNER]
- Inscryption
- Loop Hero
Best Debut Indie Game
- Kena: Bridge of Spirits [WINNER]
- Sable
- The Artful Escape
- The Forgotten City
- Valheim
Best Mobile Game
- Fantasian
- Genshin Impact [WINNER]
- League of Legends
- MARVEL Future Revolution
- Pokemon Unite
Best Community Support
- Apex Legends: Escape
- Destiny 2: Beyond Light
- Final Fantasy XIV Online [WINNER]
- Fortnite
- No Man’s Sky
Best VR/AR Game
- Hitman III
- I Expect You To Die 2
- Lone Echo II
- Resident Evil 4 VR [WINNER]
- Sniper Elite VR
Innovation in Accessibility
- Far Cry 6
- Forza Horizon 5 [WINNER]
- Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
- Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
- The Vale: Shadow of the Crown
Best Action Game
- Back 4 Blood
- Chivalry II
- Deathloop
- Far Cry 6
- Returnal [WINNER]
Best Action/Adventure Game
- Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
- Metroid Dread [WINNER]
- Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
- Resident Evil Village
- Psychonauts 2
Best RPG
- Cyberpunk 2077
- Monster Hunter Rise
- Scarlet Nexus
- Shin Megami Tensei V
- Tales of Arise [WINNER]
Best Fighting Game
- Demon Slayer -Kimetsu no Yaiba- The Hinokami Chronicles
- Guilty Gear -Strive- [WINNER]
- Melty Blood: Type Lumina
- Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl
- Virtua Fighter 5: Ultimate Showdown
Best Family Game
- It Takes Two [WINNER]
- Mario Party Superstars
- New Pokémon Snap
- Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury
- WarioWare: Get It Together!
Best Sports/Racing Game
- F1 2021
- Fifa 22
- Hot Wheels Unleashed
- Forza Horizon 5 [WINNER]
- Riders Republic
Best Sim/Strategy Game
- Age of Empires IV [WINNER]
- Evil Genius 2: World Domination
- Humankind
- Inscryption
- Microsoft Flight Simulator
Best Multiplayer Game
- Back 4 Blood
- It Takes Two [WINNER]
- Knockout City
- Monster Hunter Rise
- New World
- Valheim
Content Creator of the Year
- Dream [WINNER]
- Fuslie
- Gaules
- Ibai
- TheGrefg
Best Esports Athlete
- Chris “Simp” Lehr
- Heo “ShowMaker” Su
- Magomed “Collapse” Khalilov
- Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev [WINNER]
- Tyson “TenZ” Ngo
Best Esports Coach
- Airat “Silent” Gaziev
- Andrey “ENGH” Sholokhov
- Andrii “B1ad3” Horodenskyi
- James “Crowder” Crowder
- Kim “kkOma” Jeong-gyun [WINNER]
Best Esports Event
- The International 2021
- 2021 League of Legends World Championship [WINNER]
- Valorant Champions Tour: Stage 2 Masters
- PGL Major Stockholm 2021
- PUBG Mobile Global Championship 2020
Best Esports Game
- Call of Duty
- CS:GO
- DOTA2
- League of Legends [WINNER]
- Valorant
Best Esports Team
- Atlanta FaZe, Call of Duty
- DWG KIA, League of Legends
- NAVI, CS:GO [WINNER]
- Team Spirit, DOTA2
- Sentinels, Valorant
Most Anticipated Game
- Elden Ring [WINNER]
- God of War: Ragnarok
- Horizon Forbidden West
- The Sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
- Starfield
