PCG Article Game Awards 2022 winners and nominations

[Brian Boru]

ETA: The Game Awards 2022 results: All the winners

Alphabetized list of all game nominations below—duplicates removed, it's a long list.

What is 'Games for Impact' category about?

Nominations:
A Memoir Blue (Cloisters Interactive/Annapurna)
A Plague Tale: Requiem (Asobo Studio/Focus Entertainment)
After the Fall (Vertigo Games)
Among Us VR (Schell Games/InnerSloth)
Apex Legends (Respawn/EA)
Apex Legends Mobile (Lightspeed & Quantum/Respawn/EA)
Arcane: League of Legends (Fortiche/Riot Games/Netflix)
As Dusk Falls (Interior Night/Xbox Game Studios)
Bayonetta 3 (Platinum Games/Nintendo)
Bonelab (Stress Level Zero)
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (Infinity Ward/Activision)
Citizen Sleeper (Jump Over The Age/Fellow Traveller)
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (Valve)
Cult of the Lamb (Massive Monster / Devolver Digital)
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners (Studio Trigger/CD Projekt, Netflix)
Destiny 2 (Bungie)
Diablo Immortal (Blizzard/NetEase)
DNF Duel (Arc System Works/EIGHTING/NEOPLE/NEXON)
Dota 2 (Valve)
Dune: Spice Wars (Shiro Games/Funcom)
Elden Ring (FromSoftware)
Elden Ring (FromSoftware/Bandai Namco)
Endling - Extinction is Forever (Herobeat Studios/HandyGames)
F1 22 (Codemasters/EA Sports)
FIFA 23 (EA Vancouver/Romania/EA Sports)
Final Fantasy 14 (Square Enix)
Final Fantasy 16 (Square Enix)
Fortnite (Epic Games)
Genshin Impact (HoYoverse)
Genshin Impact (HoYovese)
God of War Ragnarök (Sony Santa Monica/SIE)
Gran Turismo 7 (Polyphony Digital/SIE)
Gran Turismo 7 (Polyphony/SIE)
Hindsight (Team Hindsight/Annapurna)
Hogwarts Legacy (Avalanche Software/WB Games)
Horizon Forbidden West (Guerrilla Games/SIE)
I Was a Teenage Exocolonist (Northway Games/Finji)
Immortality (Half Mermaid)
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: All Star Battle R (CyberConnect 2 Co. Ltd/Bandai Namco)
Kirby and the Forgotten Land (HAL Laboratory / Nintendo)
League of Legends (Riot Games)
Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga (Traveller’s Tales/WB Games)
Live a Live (Square Enix/Nintendo)
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope (Ubisoft Milan/Paris/Ubisoft)
Marvel Snap (Second Dinner Studios/Nuverse)
Moss: Book II (Polyarc)
MultiVersus (Player First Games/WB Games)
NBA 2K23 (Visual Concepts/2K Sports)
Neon White (Angel Matrix/Annapurna)
Nintendo Switch Sports (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)
No Man’s Sky (Hello Games)
OlliOlli World (Roll 7/Private Division)
Overwatch 2 (Blizzard)
Pokémon Legends: Arceus (Game Freak/Nintendo/TPCI)
Red Matter 2 (Vertical Robot)
Resident Evil 4 (Capcom)
Return to Monkey Island (Terrible Toybox/Devolver Digital)
Rocket League (Psyonix)
Scorn (Ebb Software/Kepler Interactive)
Sifu (Sloclap)
Sonic Frontiers (Sega)
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Sega Sammy Group/Paramount Pictures)
Splatoon 3 (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)
Starfield (Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda)
Stray (BlueTwelve Studio/Annapurna)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge (Tribute Games/Dotemu)
The Cuphead Show! (Studio MDHR/King Features Syndicate/Netflix)
The King of Fighters XV (SNK/Plaion)
The Last Of Us Part I (Naughty Dog/SIE)
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)
The Quarry (Supermassive Games/2K)
Total War: Warhammer 3 (Creative Assembly/Sega)
Tower of Fantasy (Hotta Studio/Perfect World/Level Infinite)
Triangle Strategy (Artdink/Square Enix)
Tunic (Tunic Team/Finji)
Two Point Campus (Two Point Studios/Sega)
Uncharted (PlayStation Productions/Sony Pictures)
Valorant (Riot Games)
Victoria 3 (Paradox Development Studio/Paradox Interactive)
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 (Monolith Soft/Nintendo)

 

[Zloth]

It seemed like a lot of awards had Horizon: Forbidden West and God of War: Ragnarök nominated, and God of War won almost every time. Forbidden West never won a single award!

Watching the Kratos voice actor get his award was... interesting. He went on SO long, but he was clearly very moved by the whole thing! Ever had anyone tell you how something nice you did moved them deeply, except you REALLY need to go to the bathroom right then? A lot like that.

What is 'Games for Impact' category about?

I think it means the game is supposed to have an impact on the way you view life.

 

[mainer]

Here's the list by category with the winners in bold type (list in spoiler tags to reduce post length):

Spoiler

Game of the Year

• A Plague Tale: Requiem (Asobo Studio/Focus Entertainment)
• Elden Ring (FromSoftware/Bandai Namco)
• God of War Ragnarök (Sony Santa Monica/SIE)
• Horizon Forbidden West (Guerrilla Games/SIE)
• Stray (BlueTwelve Studio/Annapurna)
• Xenoblade Chronicles 3 (Monolith Soft/Nintendo)

Player's Voice

• Sonic Frontiers (Sega)
• Genshin Impact (Hoyoverse)
• Elden Ring (FromSoftware)
• God of War Ragnarök (Sony Santa Monica/SIE)
• Stray (BlueTwelve Studio/Annapurna)

Best Game Direction

• Elden Ring (FromSoftware/Bandai Namco)
• God of War Ragnarök (Sony Santa Monica/SIE)
• Horizon Forbidden West (Guerrilla Games/SIE)
• Immortality (Half Mermaid)
• Stray (BlueTwelve Studio/Annapurna)

Best Narrative

• A Plague Tale: Requiem (Asobo Studio/Focus Entertainment)
• Elden Ring (FromSoftware/Bandai Namco)
• God of War Ragnarök (Sony Santa Monica/SIE)
• Horizon Forbidden West (Guerrilla Games/SIE)
• Immortality (Half Mermaid)

Best Art Direction

• Elden Ring (FromSoftware/Bandai Namco)
• God of War Ragnarök (Sony Santa Monica/SIE)
• Horizon Forbidden West (Guerrilla Games/SIE)
• Scorn (Ebb Software/Kepler Interactive)
• Stray (BlueTwelve Studio/Annapurna)

Best Score and Music

• Olivier Deriviere, A Plague Tale: Requiem
• Tsukasa Saitoh, Elden Ring
• Bear McCreary, God of War Ragnarök
• Two Feathers, Metal: Hellsinger
• Yasunori Mitsuda, Xenoblade Chronicles 3

Best Audio Design

• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (Infinity Ward/Activision)
• Elden Ring (FromSoftware/Bandai Namco)
• God of War Ragnarök (Sony Santa Monica/SIE)
• Gran Turismo 7 (Polyphony/SIE)
• Horizon Forbidden West (Guerrilla Games/SIE)

Best Performance

• Ashly Burch, Horizon Forbidden West
• Charlotte McBurney, A Plague Tale: Requiem
• Christopher Judge, God of War Ragnarök
• Manon Gage, Immortality
• Sunny Suljic, God of War Ragnarök

Games for Impact

• A Memoir Blue (Cloisters Interactive/Annapurna)
• As Dusk Falls (Interior Night/Xbox Game Studios)
• Citizen Sleeper (Jump Over The Age/Fellow Traveller)
• Endling - Extinction is Forever (Herobeat Studios/HandyGames)
• Hindsight (Team Hindsight/Annapurna)
• I Was a Teenage Exocolonist (Northway Games/Finji)

Best Ongoing Game

• Apex Legends (Respawn/EA)
• Destiny 2 (Bungie)
• Final Fantasy 14 (Square Enix)
• Fortnite (Epic Games)
• Genshin Impact (HoYoverse)

Best Indie Game

• Cult of the Lamb (Massive Monster / Devolver Digital)
• Neon White (Angel Matrix/Annapurna)
• Sifu (Sloclap)
• Stray (BlueTwelve Studio/Annapurna)
• Tunic (Tunic Team/Finji)

Best Mobile Game

• Apex Legends Mobile (Lightspeed & Quantum/Respawn/EA)
• Diablo Immortal (Blizzard/NetEase)
• Genshin Impact (HoYovese)
• Marvel Snap (Second Dinner Studios/Nuverse)
• Tower of Fantasy (Hotta Studio/Perfect World/Level Infinite)

Best Community Support

• Apex Legends (Respawn/EA)
• Destiny 2 (Bungie)
• Final Fantasy 14 (Square Enix)
• Fortnite (Epic Games)
• No Man’s Sky (Hello Games)

Innovation in Accessibility

• As Dusk Falls (Interior Night/Xbox Game Studios)
• God of War Ragnarök (Sony Santa Monica/SIE)
• Return to Monkey Island (Terrible Toybox/Devolver Digital)
• The Last Of Us Part I (Naughty Dog/SIE)
• The Quarry (Supermassive Games/2K)

Best VR/AR

• After the Fall (Vertigo Games)
• Among Us VR (Schell Games/InnerSloth)
• Bonelab (Stress Level Zero)
• Moss: Book II (Polyarc)
• Red Matter 2 (Vertical Robot)

Best Action Game

• Bayonetta 3 (Platinum Games/Nintendo)
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (Infinity Ward/Activision)
• Neon White (Angel Matrix/Annapurna)
• Sifu (Sloclap)
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge (Tribute Games/Dotemu)

Best Action/Adventure

• A Plague Tale: Requiem (Asobo Studio/Focus Entertainment)
• God of War Ragnarök (Sony Santa Monica/SIE)
• Horizon Forbidden West (Guerrilla Games/SIE)
• Stray (BlueTwelve Studio/Annapurna)
• Tunic (Tunic Team/Finji)

Best Role Playing Game

• Elden Ring (FromSoftware/Bandai Namco)
• Live a Live (Square Enix/Nintendo)
• Pokémon Legends: Arceus (Game Freak/Nintendo/TPCI)
• Triangle Strategy (Artdink/Square Enix)
• Xenoblade Chronicles 3 (Monolith Soft/Nintendo)

Best Fighting Game

• DNF Duel (Arc System Works/EIGHTING/NEOPLE/NEXON)
• JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: All Star Battle R (CyberConnect 2 Co. Ltd/Bandai Namco)
• The King of Fighters XV (SNK/Plaion)
• MultiVersus (Player First Games/WB Games)
• Sifu (Sloclap)

Best Family Game

• Kirby and the Forgotten Land (HAL Laboratory / Nintendo)
• Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga (Traveller’s Tales/WB Games)
• Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope (Ubisoft Milan/Paris/Ubisoft)
• Nintendo Switch Sports (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)
• Splatoon 3 (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)

Best Sim/Strategy Game

• Dune: Spice Wars (Shiro Games/Funcom)
• Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope (Ubisoft Milan/Paris/Ubisoft)
• Total War: Warhammer 3 (Creative Assembly/Sega)
• Two Point Campus (Two Point Studios/Sega)
• Victoria 3 (Paradox Development Studio/Paradox Interactive)

Best Sports/Racing Game

• F1 22 (Codemasters/EA Sports)
• FIFA 23 (EA Vancouver/Romania/EA Sports)
• NBA 2K23 (Visual Concepts/2K Sports)
• Gran Turismo 7 (Polyphony Digital/SIE)
• OlliOlli World (Roll 7/Private Division)

Best Multiplayer Game

• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (Infinity Ward/Activision)
• MultiVersus (Player First Games/WB Games)
• Overwatch 2 (Blizzard)
• Splatoon 3 (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge (Tribute Games/Dotemu)

Content Creator of the Year

• Karl Jacobs
• Ludwig
• Nibellion
• Nobru
• QTCinderella

Best Debut Indie Game

• Cult of the Lamb (Massive Monster / Devolver Digital)
• Neon White (Angel Matrix/Annapurna)
• Sifu (Sloclap)
• Stray (BlueTwelve Studio/Annapurna)
• Tunic (Tunic Team/Finji)

Best Adaptation

• Arcane: League of Legends (Fortiche/Riot Games/Netflix)
• Cyberpunk: Edgerunners (Studio Trigger/CD Projekt, Netflix)
• The Cuphead Show! (Studio MDHR/King Features Syndicate/Netflix)
• Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Sega Sammy Group/Paramount Pictures)
• Uncharted (PlayStation Productions/Sony Pictures)

Most Anticipated Game

• Final Fantasy 16 (Square Enix)
• Hogwarts Legacy (Avalanche Software/WB Games)
• Resident Evil 4 (Capcom)
• Starfield (Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda)
• The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)

Best Esports Game

• Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (Valve)
• Dota 2 (Valve)
• League of Legends (Riot Games)
• Rocket League (Psyonix)
• Valorant (Riot Games)

Best Esports Athlete

• Jeong "Chovy" Ji-hoon (Gen.G, LOL)
• Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok (T1, LOL)
• Finn "karrigan" Andersen ( (FaZe Clan - CS:GO)
• Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev (Natus Vincere, CS:GO)
• Jacob “Yay” Whiteaker (Cloud9, Valorant)

Best Esports Team

• DarkZero Esports (Apex Legends)
• FaZe Clan (CS:GO)
• Gen.G (League of Legends)
• LA Thieves (Call of Duty)
• LOUD (Valorant)

Best Esports Coach

• Andrii "B1ad3" Horodenskyi (Natus Vincere, CS:GO)
• Matheus “bzkA” Tarasconi (LOUD, VALORANT)
• Erik “d00mbr0s” Sandgren (FPX, VALORANT)
• Robert "RobbaN" Dahlström (FaZe Clan, CS:GO)
• Go "Score" Dong-bin (Gen.G, LOL)

Best Esports Event

• EVO 2022
• 2022 League of Legends World Championship
• PGL Major Antwerp 2022
• The 2022 Mid-Season Invitational
• Valorant Champions 2022

I always look at the various game awards for any given year because I find them interesting, but I look at the above lists and don't see a single game that I have an interest in, let alone played. It also feels like we, the gaming community, might be stretching these categories a bit thin with all the categories.

Like Best Esports Athlete, Best Esports Team, Best Esports Coach, Best Esports Event? What does that actually have to do with 2022s (or any given years) best games? Maybe my thinking is a bit old-fashioned, or maybe my dislike of the whole "Esports" culture is showing, but I think categories like that should have their own "best of" awards, separate from actual game awards.

What is 'Games for Impact' category about?

I think it means the game is supposed to have an impact on the way you view life.

I think @Zloth nailed it pretty well, but it's also pretty subjective when it comes to each individual gamer, as what's impactful to me may not be impactful to someone else. It could also mean a game that elicits an emotional response from the player, but again, those types of emotions are hard to pin down based on millions of players emotional reponses.

 

[Brian Boru]

I look at the above lists and don't see a single game that I have an interest in, let alone played

I haven't played any, and have a probable interest in 2, and possible interest in 1:
Horizon Forbidden West
Stray
and
No Man’s Sky

What does that actually have to do with 2022s (or any given years) best games?

I guess it's like the movie, TV and music awards—the more 'stuff' you can cram in, the bigger the audience you should pull, and therefore the more money you make. So you end up with categories like Best Actor and Best Director in the movies' shows.

I imagine actors and directors often have an ongoing financial relationship with movies, similar to how games people are also probably entwined in the esports scene. Wait until games have 4-5 big marketing extravaganzas every year, like the movies do!

game is supposed to have an impact on the way you view life

Oh dear, guess I'm missing out then
Altho… sniping has taught me the importance of deep rhythmic breathing—does that count?

It could also mean a game that elicits an emotional response

I doubt it, otherwise category would fill up with all the shock-horror games, plus a few caring pairs/couples on long arduous trek. Zloth is probably right—that's happened before…

 

[Colif]

clearly its Diablo Immortal. It wins if the idea is to kill a franchise and make as much money as possible in process.

How is Valorant this year? I been dealing with its virus like anti cheat since December last year?

No Man's Sky? Is that for an expansion as its got 40 of them by now?

 

[Zloth]

I like how this topic is saying I'm right. Maybe it should be pinned?

It could also mean a game that elicits an emotional response from the player, but again, those types of emotions are hard to pin down based on millions of players emotional reponses.

That was my first guess, but I don't think that's quite it. Making a game that tries to get you to question how you live will probably impact the feelings, too, because it's typically done by showing you the pain your choices cause others. But a game could do a sneaky thing, like get you to adopt the change it's after in the game world, let you use it for several hours, then morph the game world into the real world.

Not recognizing the games is nothing new to me. "Top 10 games that something something something!" I'll be lucky to know 3 of those games, though I might know another five from all the previous top 10 lists I've watched on YouTube.

 

[WoodenSaucer]

A few of those games in that list haven't even been released yet. Is there a category for upcoming games, or something?

I've only played A Memoire Blue, A Plague Tale: Requiem, Genshin Impact, No Man's Sky, and Tunic. I didn't care for Tunic, but the rest were pretty good experiences.

 

[Brian Boru]

Is there a category for upcoming games

Yep, 'Most Anticipated Game'.
Gotta reward the hype train