As for that coveted Game of the Year trophy, this year’s lineup is—wow is it just me or is this pretty light on PC games? The nominees for the year are Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Doom Eternal, Final Fantasy VII Remake, Ghost Of Tsushima, Hades, and The Last Of Us Part 2. Sure enough, that’s three current PS4 exclusives and a Nintendo Switch game. Only two of the six—Hades and Doom Eternal—are currently available on PC. Even for me, perpetual latecomer to trends, having only played one of the games on the list (and having it be the Switch game) is pretty rare. Hades, though I’ve not played it myself, is one that’s shown up on RPS a lot during its journey from early access to full launch this year. Our Hades review reckons that the Greek god roguelike was basically a game of the year contender when it launched in early access. Supergiant Games actually announced and launched it during The Game Awards in 2018, so it seems like a proper hero’s journey for protagonist Zagreus to see it up there in the nominees. As ever, there’s far more categories than just game of the year. There are lots of other trophies to take home for different genres, art and sound direction, mobile games, and gaming personalities. Hades has actually nabbed a nomination in quite a lot of them, as have the other GOTY contenders. On down, the category for Best Debut Game is often a favorite of mine. In the past it’s seen winners like Disco Elysium, Cuphead, and The Messenger. This year’s nominees are Carrion, Mortal Shell, Raji: An Ancient Epic, Röki, and Phasmophobia. It’s wild, but awesome, to see a weird breakout hit like Phasmophobia on that list. Full disclosure: I’ve really, really enjoyed Phasmophobia. I don’t even know that I’d say it deserves to win, as it’s still in early access itself, but it’s quite neat to see it in contention. You can vote for your own favorites in each category on The Game Awards website. Winners are chosen based on a blended vote between the press and the public. This year’s show will take place on Thursday, December 10th.
