42nd Golden Joystick Awards nominees announced
The nominees for the 42nd Golden Joystick Awards have been unveiled today.
Astro Bot and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth have the most nominations with five, including a battle for Console Game of the Year. Other game nominated include Helldivers 2 with four nominations and Balatro with three nominations.
For this year’s awards, the Best Audio award has been split into two new categories: Best Soundtrack and Best Audio Design. This isn’t the only category to find itself split into two new awards; the Still Playing award has been split into PC/Console and Mobile categories, and Best Indie Game - Self Published has been added to coexist with the Best Indie Game category.
Daniel Dawkins, Content Director - Games, Video and Digital Events said this about this year’s nominees:
“2023 was one of video-gaming’s best year’s ever, with Baldur’s Gate 3 and Larian Studios claiming a record seven trophies at last year’s Golden Joystick Awards. 2024 has been a challenging year for the games industry in so many ways, but the variety and diversity of releases over the last 12 months has made this one of the most difficult - and exciting - Golden Joystick Awards nominees list we’ve ever compiled.
We’ve introduced some new categories to reflect the changing ways we play, including Still Playing - PC & Console, and Still Playing - Mobile. We’ve wrestled with the definition of an indie game - we’ll save you the unedited debate! - before introducing a new Best Indie Game - Self Published category to (hopefully) better reflect how games reach the market.
Above all, this could be a year of BIG surprises - who saw Palworld, Helldivers 2 or Balatro coming? We can’t wait to see who you vote for as your games, studios and personalities of 2024!”
Gamers can vote for their favorite games right now here; fan voting will conclude on Friday, November 1 at 4pm PST / 7pm EST. Gamers will be able to vote for the Ultimate Game of the Year award, which unveils its nominees on Monday, November 4. Voting in that category will go live that same day.
The 42nd Golden Joystick Awards will take place in London on Thursday, November 21. Fans worldwide will be able to stream it online via Twitch and YouTube.
42nd Golden Joystick Awards nominees
Best Storytelling
1000xResist
Emio - The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
Lorelei and the Laser Eyes
Tactical Breach Wizards
Best Multiplayer Game
Abiotic Factor
EA Sports College Football 25
Helldivers 2
Sons Of The Forest
Tekken 8
The Finals
Best Visual Design
Astro Bot
Black Myth: Wukong
Harold Halibut
Metaphor: ReFantazio
Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2
Best Indie Game
Animal Well
Arco
Balatro
Beyond Galaxyland
Conscript
Indika
Lorelei and the Laser Eyes
Thank Goodness You’re Here!
The Plucky Squire
Ultros
Best Indie Game - Self Published
Arctic Eggs
Another Crab’s Treasure
Crow Country
Duck Detective: The Secret Salami
I Am Your Beast
Little Kitty, Big City
Riven
Tactical Breach Wizards
Tiny Glade
UFO 50
Still Playing Award - PC and Console
Apex Legends
Counter-Strike 2
EA Sports FC
Dota 2
Fortnite
GTA Online
Minecraft
Naraka: Bladepoint
Roblox
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege
Valorant
Warframe
Still Playing Award - Mobile
Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile
Free Fire
Honkai: Star Rail
Roblox
Marvel Snap
Monopoly Go!
Mini Motorways
PUBG: Battlegrounds
Squad Busters
Star Wars: Hunters
Subway Surfers
The Sims Mobile
Studio of the Year
11 Bit Studios
Arrowhead Game Studios
Capcom
Digital Eclipse
Team ASOBI
Visual Concepts
Best Game Expansion
Alan Wake 2 Expansion Pass
Destiny 2: The Final Shape
Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred
Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree
God of War Ragnarök: Valhalla
World of Warcraft: The War Within
Best Audio Design
Astro Bot
Balatro
Robobeat
Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
Star Wars Outlaws
Still Wakes the Deep
Best Soundtrack
A Highland Song
Astro Bot
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
Hauntii
Silent Hill 2
Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance
Best Lead Performer
Cody Christian as Cloud Strife in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
Kaiji Tang as Ichiban Kasuga in Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
Humberly Gonzalez as Kay Vess in Star Wars Outlaws
Luke Roberts as James Sunderland in Silent Hill 2
Melina Juergens as Senua in Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
Sonequa Martin-Green as Alvilda in Asgard’s Wrath 2
Best Supporting Performer
Abbi Greenland & Helen Goalen as The Furies in Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
Briana White as Aerith Gainsborough in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
Dawn M. Bennett as Aigis in Persona 3 Reload
Debra Wilson as Amanda Waller in Suicide Squad
Matt Berry as Herbert in Thank Goodness You’re Here!
Neve McIntosh as Suze in Still Wakes the Deep
PC Game of the Year
Animal Well
Balatro
Frostpunk 2
Satisfactory
Tactical Breach Wizards
UFO 50
Console Game of the Year
Astro Bot
Dragon’s Dogma 2
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
Helldivers 2
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
Best Early Access Game
Enshrouded
Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor
Hades II
Manor Lords
Lethal Company
Palworld
Best Gaming Hardware
Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024)
Backbone One (2nd Gen)
LG UltraGear 32GS95UE
Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Super
Turtle Beach Stealth Ultra
Steam Deck OLED
Best Game Trailer
Caravan Sandwitch - Launch trailer
Death Stranding 2 On The Beach - State of Play Announce Trailer
Helldivers 2 - “The Fight for Freedom Begins” Launch Trailer
Kingmakers - Official Announcement Trailer
Sid Meier’s Civilization VII - Narrator Reveal Trailer
The Plucky Squire - Launch Trailer
Most Wanted Game
Atomfall
Assassin’s Creed Shadows
Sid Meier’s Civilization VII
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Deadlock
Death Stranding 2: On The Beach
Doom: The Dark Ages
Exodus
Fable
Ghost of Yotei
Grand Theft Auto VI
Hollow Knight: Silksong
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
Light No Fire
Mafia: The Old Country
Monster Hunter Wilds
Skate.
Slay the Spire 2
South of Midnight
Additional category winners will be selected by a panel of journalists from brands including gamesradar.com, pcgamer.com, FGS, Edge magazine and Retro Gamer, plus Future’s trusted network of freelance writers. These winners will be revealed on the night.
Streamers’ Choice Award
Breakthrough Award
Best Game Adaptation
Critics’ Choice Award