The Nominees For The Game Awards 2025 Have Been Announced

The nominees for The Game Awards 2025 have been announced.

Oh boy, this is going to be a big year for game of the year conversations. We knew that old mate Geoff Keighley’s Game Awards would feature some hotly contested categories this year, and now that the lid has been lifted on the nominees, we can get to speculating and preparing to defend our choices. 2025 has been an enormous year for game releases, so get set for a big show on December 12.

Here are The Game Awards 2025 nominees:

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 Yōtei (Sucker Punch Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
• Hades II (Supergiant Games)
• Split Fiction (Hazelight Studios/EA)

Best Narrative

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

Best Art Direction

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

Best Score and Music

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

Best Audio Design

• Battlefield 6 (Battlefield Studios/EA)
• Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive/Kepler Interactive)
• Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (Kojima Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
• Ghost of Yōtei (Sucker Punch Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
• Silent Hill f (Neobards Entertainment/Konami)

Best Performance

• Ben Starr (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33)
• Charlie Cox (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33)
• Erika Ishii (Ghost of Yōtei)
• 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/EA)
• 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

• Final Fantasy XIV (Square Enix)
• Fortnite (Epic Games)
• Helldivers 2 (Arrowhead Game Studios/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
• Marvel Rivals (NetEase/ NetEase Games)
• No Man’s Sky (Hello Games)

Best Community Support

• Baldur’s Gate 3 (Larian Studios)
• Final Fantasy XIV (Square Enix)
• Fortnite (Epic Games)
• Helldivers 2 (Arrowhead Game Studios/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
• No Man’s Sky (Hello Games)

Best Independent Game

• Absolum (Dotemu)
• Ball x Pit (Kenny Sun and Friends/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 Studios)
• Megabonk (vedinad)

Best Mobile Game

• Destiny: Rising (NetEase)
• Persona 5: The Phantom X (Atlus/Sega/Arc Games Inc)
• Sonic Rumble (Rovio Entertainment/Sega)
• Umamusume: Pretty Derby (Cygames/Kakao Games)
• Wuthering Waves (Kuro Games)

Best VR/AR Game

• Alien Rogue Incursion (Survios)
• Arken Age (VitruviousVR)
• 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/EA)
• Doom: The Dark Ages (ID Software/Bethesda Softworks)
• Hades II (Supergiant Games)
• Ninja Gaiden 4 (Platinum Games/Team Ninja/Xbox Game Studios)
• Shinobi: Art of Vengeance (Lizardcube/Sega)

Best Action/Adventure Game

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

Best RPG

• 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 Gam Studios)

Best Fighting Game

• 2KXO (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/Sega)

Best Family Game

• Donkey Kong Bananza (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)
• LEGO Party! (SMG Studios/Fictions)
• LEGO Voyagers (Light Brick Studios/Annapurna Interactive)
• Mario Kart World (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)
• Sonic Racing: Crossworlds (Sonic Team/Sega)
• Split Fiction (Hazelight Studios/EA)

Best Sim/Strategy Game

• 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)
• The Alters (11 bit studios)
• Two Point Museum (Two Point Studios/Sega)

Best Sports/Racing Game

• EA Sports FC 26 (EA Canada/EA Romania/EA)
• F1 25 (Codemasters/EA)
• Mario Kart World (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)
• Rematch (Sloclap/Kepler Interactive)
• Sonic Racing: Crossworlds (Sonic Team/Sega)

Best Multiplayer Game

• Arc Raiders (Embark Studios)
• Battlefield 6 (Battlefield Studios/EA)
• Elden Ring Nightreign (FromSoftware/Bandai Namco Entertainment)
• Peak (Aggro Crab/Landfall)
• Split Fiction (Hazelight Studios/EA)

Best Adaptation

• A Minecraft Movie
• Devil May Cry
• The Last of Us: Season 2
• Splinter Cell: Deathwatch
• Until Dawn

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)
• Forsaken – Jason Susanto (Valorant)
• Kakeru – Kakeru Watanabe (Street Fighter)
• Menard – Saul Leonardo (Street Fighter)
• Zywoo – 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)

Surprising absolutely no one, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 leads the pack with 12 nominations, with Death Stranding 2: On the Beach and Ghost of Yōtei nipping on its heels with seven nominations each. Sony Interactive Entertainment must be pleased, as the publisher is sitting on top of the mountain with 19 nominations.

Remember, fan votes count for 10% of the overall score, so head over to The Game Awards website and cast your votes for each category.

Do you agree with these nominations? Which games are you hoping will take home a trophy? Let us know in the comments or on our social media.