Yeah, the Last of Us Part II came in with the most nominations, which I’ll argue they didn’t deserve (though I’ll talk about that more in the 2020 recap post). There was a huge flurry of games announced, and we’re not going to cover them all here, some because they weren’t interesting, some because they were already announced, and some because I just missed them. This is a mix of me going through stuff while watching, and filling in details later, so… enjoy!
It opened with the New Smash fighter… Sephiroth. Still awesome theme song for him though. Did anyone else catch the point in the trailer where he came in and tried to pull an Aerith on Princess Zelda? The Mario part with the sword was one of the best parts, though, even if they went a bit tame with it through his overalls.
Best Performance – Laura Bailey as Abby for TLOU2. It was a well acted and performed game, and all of the actors did a great job (which is surprising, considering Troy Baker seemingly did it with his foot in his mouth the entire time). The toxic response to her and the character was the worst part of gaming, but hard to argue with this choice. I may not have really cared much for the game itself, but it was well done.
Reveal trailer for Perfect Dark an a Sci-Fi alt-future anti-capitalism game that’s presumably made by capitalist stuff. Obviously an Xbox Exclusive, as Microsoft owns the IP. The first two games were very underrated.
Okay, this is gory and gross. Some zombie game, that’s a genre that’s way played out. Looks almost like Valve’s Left 4 Dead, but Valve doesn’t really make games… it’s by the devs who reformed as Turtle Rock and made the absolutely terrible Evolve game. Back4Blood… by the same team, so I guess they’re just doing a full spiritual successor. The original game was fine, but not my jam.
A multiplayer game, called Hood Outlaw (so, Robin Hood, but it’s by Focus Home Interactive, so janky and buggy too). It looks like a touch of Skyrim and a touch of the parts of Assassin’s Creed most people complain about. Probably a hard pass for me… Robin Hood didn’t need to go all grimdark and co-op.
Best Ongoing Game – No Man’s Sky, which I guess is how you say “Live Service” now. I mean, I think this is a lot more deserving than the others. It doesn’t have the whole service/microtransaction loot… it’s just a game you buy and they keep adding a whole ton too it.
The Callisto Protocol, in 2020. From Glen Schofield’s studio… he was behind Dead Space, and it’s story-driven Sci-Fi horror. If it’s like the first Dead Space… they could actually deliver something scary. I’m not one for horror, but I am one for Sci-Fi. So kind of torn…
Warhammer 40k Darktide… I’ve only ever played two Warhammer Video Games (Online and Space Marine… they were okay). I mean, some people may love it, but I doubt I’ll bother.
A flurry of award winners…
Best Art Direction – Ghost of Tushima. Stunningly gorgeous, and well deserving
Best Action Game – Hades. So deserving of all the awards… not the last you will hear about this game. Tune in for the end-of-year article, because I know more than one of us has been playing it.
Best VR/AR – Half-Life: Alyx. I don’t do VR, so will never play this.
Best Sports/Racing Game – Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1/2. I really need to get and play this. I love the original games, and have heard nothing but good things about this.
Most Anticipated Game – Elden Ring… this feels rigged by Eric.
Disco Elysium The Final Cut – Some expansion or updates, I guess. Free for all existing players, and apparently coming to PS4/PS5, with a Collector’s Edition. Switch, where it’s been announced, was absent from the crawl, as was the Xbox. I have it on PC, and need to play it more than I have. I was really hoping to get it on the Switch, because it’s a game that just lends itself to handheld.
Dragon Age 4, just called Dragon Age, because screw you and your numbers. I love the Dragon Age series… even the second one (which, again, to pitch Blood, Sweat, and Pixels, is a marvel that it even happened). Fun fact… the upcoming story for the game likely makes no sense to anyone who played the third game, Inquisition. I mean, they’ll recognize Solas, a companion and potential romance interest.
But unless you played the DLC releases, played to the end, and watched a post-credit scene, you wouldn’t know that he was also Fen’Harel, the trickster god of the Elven Pantheon. In a world where the gods are kind of… absent, he’s literal proof that they still exist, but so few would have known it.
Endless Dungeon… looks interesting. I don’t know all that much about it, other than it’s a roguelike (how many people know that Rogue-like actually refers to a game, Rogue, that very few have ever played) tactical game. Probably means it looks cool, but I wouldn’t ultimately enjoy it.
Crimson Desert – Open World MMO by Pearl Abyss, makers of Black Desert. Likely just a relaunch of their bombed Battle Royale mode, but with story slapped on it. It looks nice, as Black Desert was absolutely gorgeous… but also likely full of a ton of expensive microtransactions and P2W stuff. Combat looks similar to what was in Black Desert, which was… interesting, especially in the genre. Feels very Skyrim-ish.
Best Narrative – The Last of Us Part II
Call of Duty: Cold War had a Season One announcement. This wasn’t new, the cinematic dropped last week. I’m mildly interested, as it’s the only game I’ve actually bought for my Xbox Series X… but the lack of challenges, missions, etc, haven’t really grabbed me. I know, I know, Live Service, Activision, and all that… but the gameplay is calming in a year that’s anything but.
Season is a PlayStation exclusive, looks like Journey. Never heard of the studio, but it looks interesting.
Impact Awards – Socially Progressive Project. I didn’t recognize any of them, Tell Me Why was the winner.
Vin Diesel in a caveman speedo… apparently for Ark II. The look design has a touch of Horizon, Seluna’s Sacrifice… but also dinosaurs. Also, why do people push someone out of the way, only to stand in the spot of the thing that’s coming? Like the lady who was eaten by the T-Rex. Don’t know what Ark is? It was a survival game, popular for a few minutes back in 2018, that was promptly forgotten by almost everyone. I like Vin Diesel, but this looks way too much like a Horizon ripoff.
Outriders is a new game published by Square|Enix… a 3-person co-op sci-fi shooter. I look forward to them announcing that it missed expectations sometime in the future. Doesn’t look all that special, in a sea of similar games.
Best Multiplayer game, presented by Instagram. Cause when I think multiplayer… I think… Instagram? Won by Among Us… and I love these people, as they’re all wearing masks, and going full inception with a Zoom within a Zoom. I’ve heard so much about this game, but never played it. I need to…
Wait, an Evil Dead game? Really? For basically all consoles, including Switch. I know I’ll lose nerd cred for this… but I’ve never really cared for Evil Dead as a thing. I mean, I get the appeal, but it’s just never grabbed me.
Switch announcement, for Capcom… Ghosts & Goblins, which I wouldn’t call a “classic franchise” as much as I would that game you all remember fondly right up until the moment you play it. There was also a tag for Capcom Arcade Stadium, a free game with paid DLC for classic arcade games, like 1943 and Street Fighter II
Best Indie Game – Hades. Still deserving of the win.
Best Audio Design – The Last of Us Part II. Yeah, there were better games for audio, but they’re stacking this game pretty hard.
Best Role Playing Game – Final Fantasy VII Remake. I loved this game, but it does really show exactly how far the concept of “role playing” has fallen in games.
Best Sim/Strategy – How far has it fallen that those get grouped together. Microsoft Flight Simulator takes the win, likely by holding all of our hard drives hostage.
Player’s Voice – Ghost of Tsushima. Community vote
Best Fighting Game – Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate. Yawn. More notable for Ralph Macchio, getting a bit more time, most likely because Cobra Kai is such a hit. That being said William Zabka is the reason to watch the show.
Flight Simulator gets some more time, right after winning an award, with the Xbox Series X announcement. Are they going to sell it bundled with the expandable memory card? Because the game is absolutely gigantic.
Returnal was a Playstation exclusive, which is… I don’t know. Timeloop game? A roguelike 3rd person shooter, and one of many games sporting the look of Mass Effect-style armor.
A Walking Simulator with a bit of Borderlands style, that looks mostly like an “Escape this country. Road 96… actually looks kind of interesting. I’m getting over a lot of the endless combat games, so it’s always interesting to see new takes on stuff.
It Takes Too, a platformer game, which looks weird and kind of interesting. Doubt I’ll get around to playing it, but I like a good stylitic game. Plus, this is the style of game where tons of innovation happen.
Reggie presenting the first award for Innovation in Accessibility. There has been a lot of work in this space to make it so more people can enjoy games. Last of Us Part II does deserve this award, as they did an amazing amount of customization and tweaks to make it possible to play the game and come away unhappy.
Best Mobile Game… Among Us. They’re winning everything they go up for. Given how my friends feel about this game, likely deserved. Personally, I’m just glad stuff like Fortnite isn’t taking awards.
Monster Hunter: Rise… an upcoming Switch game, gets a new trailer. Never played a Monster Hunter game, though I do have it installed on my Xbox Series X (it’s on Game Pass). Just haven’t gotten around to playing it.
After Eddie Vedder, we get a western game that looks vaguely Van Helsing-ish at first glance, and another Focus Home Interactive published game. Evil West, which… okay. I know nothing for it.
Content Creator of the Year… Valkyrie. I only recognized one of the people up for it, as I’m not really one for watching streams (I’ve watched Alanah Pearce do a couple of reviews).
There were some Fortnite updates… a game I don’t care about but recognize that it’s one of the biggest games in the world. It’s a bunch of Halo stuff, which, okay… Red vs. Blue was funny about 12 years ago. There’s also a couple of Walking Dead characters coming, so… I guess have fun if you play Fortnite. There was also something about a new Rocket League season, which, fine. I played that game for a few minutes, got my butt kicked, and uninstalled it. Apparently I got too old at some point to enjoy these things.
The Xbox Game Pass trailer showing off, yet again, why it’s absolutely the best deal in gaming right now. Yakuza, Control, Skyrim, and over a hundred other games on PC and Console (not the same ones, frequently).
Best Game Direction, presented by a man who needs no introduction but still got one, Keanu Reeves. Gives a shout-out to CDPR, who isn’t really present at the awards because their buggy-as-hell game just came out. The Last of Us Part II wins it over four games that likely deserved it more. Apparently crunching and abusing your workers, lasting out at critics, and inciting trolling and harassment against people is considered “best game direction” now.
Humankind, looks like a more extreme Civilization clone. I’m all for it, given how the last couple of Civ titles have been okay, but not at all groundbreaking. Weird trailer, but enough that I’m curious.
Ugh, Medal of Honor is back? It’s by Respawn, which is the one saving grace here, but the series has always been a rolling disappointment. This looks kind of interesting, in that it looks to be based on true stories, and interviews with vets. It’s a VR game, so I won’t play it, and it’s got weird floating hands… but I’m just never going to get another Titanfall game, am I? Still, the interview part is a great touch… the most powerful part of the Band of Brothers miniseries was the interviews that started and ended each episode.
The One Last reveal is… sci-fi? Is this HOLY CRAP HOLY CRAP HOLY CRAP HOLY CRAP HOLY CRAP. Mass Effect teaser, finally says where it’s set (after the events of the 3rd game), and it looks like the Citadel done got wrecked entirely. Andromeda got a bad shake from EA and Bioware… it was a better game than it gets credit for, but I’m so glad that the IP isn’t dead. That looked like Liara as well, gathering up some N7 wreckage on a snowy world. No idea when it’s coming out, and Bioware has lost the luster, and it’s EA… BUT I AM STILL EXCITED!
From that high, we get the Game of the Year award, unfortunately going to The Last of Us Part II. I mean… I’ve said what I need to. The story was written well, it was just… frustrating to play. I wanted to love it, I really did, but just got frustrated with how railroaded you were to their story beats.
Game Awards 2020 List of Winners
Game of the Year
- DOOM Eternal
id Software/Bethesda - Final Fantasy VII Remake
Square Enix - Ghost of Tsushima
Sucker Punch/SIE - Hades
Supergiant Games - Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Nintendo - The Last Of Us Part II
Naughty Dog/SIE
Best Game Direction
- Final Fantasy VII Remake
Square Enix - Ghost of Tsushima
Sucker Punch/SIE - Hades
Supergiant Games - Half-Life: Alyx
Valve - Winner – The Last Of Us Part II
Naughty Dog/SIE
Best Narrative
- 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim
written by George Kamitani - Final Fantasy VII Remake
written by Kazushige Nojima, Motomu Toriyama, Hiroaki Iwaki, and Sachie Hirano - Ghost of Tsushima
writers Ian Ryan, Liz Albl, Patrick Downs, Jordan Lemos, Nate Fox - Hades
writer Greg Kasavin - Winner – The Last of Us Part II
writers Neil Druckmann and Halley Gross
Best Art Direction
- Final Fantasy VII Remake
Square Enix - Winner – Ghost of Tsushima
Sucker Punch/SIE - Hades
Supergiant Games - Ori and the Will of the Wisps
Moon Studios/Xbox Game Studios - The Last Of Us Part II
Naughty Dog/SIE
Best Score and Music
- DOOM Eternal
composed by Mick Gordon - Winner – Final Fantasy VII Remake
composed by Nobuo Uematsu, Masashi Hamauzu and Mitsuto Suzuki - Hades
composed by Darren Korb - Ori and the Will of the Wisps
composed by Gareth Coker - The Last of Us Part II
composed by Gustavo Santaolalla, additional music by Mac Quayle
Best Audio Design
- DOOM Eternal
id Software/Bethesda - Half-Life: Alyx
Valve - Ghost of Tsushima
Sucker Punch/SIE - Resident Evil 3
Capcom - Winner – The Last Of Us Part II
Naughty Dog/SIE
Best Performance
- Ashley Johnson as Ellie
The Last of Us Part II - Winner – Laura Bailey as Abby
The Last Of Us Part II - Daisuke Tsuji as Jin Sakai
Ghost of Tsushima - Logan Cunningham as Hades
Hades - Nadji Jeter as Miles Morales
MARVEL’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales
Games for Impact
- If Found…
DREAMFEEL - Kentucky Route Zero: TV Edition
Cardboard Computer - Spiritfarer
Thunder Lotus Games - Winner – Tell Me Why
Dontnod Entertainment/Xbox Game Studios - Through the Darkest of Times
Paintbucket Games
Best Ongoing Game
- Apex Legends
Respawn/EA - Destiny 2
Bungie - Call of Duty: Warzone
Infinity Ward/Activision/Raven Software - Fortnite
Epic Games - Winner – No Man’s Sky
Hello Games
Best Indie
- Carrion
Phobia Game Studio/Devolver - Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout
Mediatonic/Devolver - Winner – Hades
Supergiant Games - Spelunky 2
Mossmouth, LLC - Spiritfarer
Thunder Lotus Games
Best Mobile Game
- Winner – Among Us
InnerSloth - Call of Duty Mobile
TiMi Studios/Activision - Genshin Impact
miHoYo - Legends of Runeterra
Riot Games - Pokémon Cafe Mix
Genius Sonority
Best Community Support
- Apex Legends
Respawn/EA - Destiny 2
Bungie - Winner – Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout
Mediatonic/Devolver - Fortnite
Epic Games - No Man’s Sky
Hello Games - Valorant
Riot Games
Best VR/AR
- Dreams
Media Molecule/SIE - Winner – Half-Life: Alyx
Valve - MARVEL’S Iron Man VR
Camouflaj/SIE - STAR WARS: Squadrons
Motive Studios/EA - The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners
Skydance Interactive
Innovation in Accessibility
- Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
Ubisoft Montreal - Grounded
Obsidian Entertainment - HyperDot
Tribe Games - Winner – The Last Of Us Part II
Naughty Dog/SIE - Watch Dogs Legion
Ubisoft Toronto
Best Action
- DOOM Eternal
id Software/Bethesda - Winner – Hades
Supergiant Games - Half-Life: Alyx
Valve - Nioh 2
Team Ninja - Streets of Rage 4
DotEmu
Best Action/Adventure
- Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
Ubisoft Montreal - Ghost of Tsushima
Sucker Punch/SIE - Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales
Insomniac Games/SIE - Ori and the Will of the Wisps
Moon Studios/Xbox Game Studios - Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
Respawn/EA - Winner – The Last Of Us Part II
Naughty Dog/SIE
Best Role Playing
- Winner – Final Fantasy VII Remake
Square Enix - Genshin Impact
miHoYo - Persona 5 Royal
Atlus/P Studio/SEGA - Wasteland 3
inXile/Deep Silver - Yakuza: Like a Dragon
Ryu Ga Gotoku/SEGA
Best Fighting
- Granblue Fantasy: Versus
Arc System Works/Cygames/XSEED - Winner – Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate
NetherRealm Studios/WB Games - Street Fighter V: Champion Edition
Dimps/Capcom - One Punch Man: A Hero Nobody Knows
Spike Chunsoft/Bandai Namco - UNDER NIGHT IN-BIRTH Exe: Late[cl-r]
French Bread/Arc System Works/Aksys
Best Family
- Winner – Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Nintendo - Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time
Toys for Bob/Activision - Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout
Mediatonic/Devolver - Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit
Velan Studios/Nintendo - Minecraft Dungeons
Mojang/Double Eleven/Xbox Game Studios - Paper Mario: The Origami King
Intelligent Systems/Nintendo
Best Sim/Strategy
- Crusader Kings III
Paradox Development Studio/Paradox - Desperados III
Mimimi Games/THQN - Gears Tactics
Splash Damage/The Coalition/Xbox Game Studios - Winner – Microsoft Flight Simulator
Asobo/Xbox Game Studios - XCOM: Chimera Squad
Firaxis/2K
Best Sports/Racing
- Dirt 5
Codemasters Cheshire/Codemasters - F1 2020
Codemasters Birmingham/Codemasters - FIFA 21
EA Vancouver/EA Romania - NBA 2K21
Visual Concepts/2K - Winner – Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2
Vicarious Visions/Activision
Best Multiplayer
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Nintendo - Winner – Among Us
InnerSloth - Call of Duty: Warzone
Infinity Ward/Activision/Raven Software - Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout
Mediatonic/Devolver - Valorant
Riot Games
Content Creator of the Year
- Alanah Pearce
- Jay Ann Lopez
- NickMercs
- TimTheTatman
- Winner – Valkyrae
Best Debut Game
- Carrion
Phobia Game Studio/Devolver - Mortal Shell
Cold Symmetry/Playstack - Raji: An Ancient Epic
Nodding Heads Games - Röki
Polygon Treehouse - Winner – Phasmophobia
Kinetic Games
Best Esports Athlete
- Ian “Crimsix†Porter
Call of Duty - Winner – Heo “Showmaker†Su
League of Legends - Kim “Canyon†Geon-bu
League of Legends - Anthony “Shotzzy†Cuevas-Castro
Call of Duty - Matthieu “ZywOo†Herbaut
CSGO
Best Esports Coach
- Winner – Danny “zonic†Sorensen
CSGO - Dae-hee “Crusty†Park
OWL - Fabian “Grabbz†Lohmann
LOL - Lee “Zefa†Jae-min
LOL - Raymond “rambo†Lussier
COD
Best Esports Event
- BLAST Premier: Spring 2020 European Finals
CS:GO - Call of Duty League Championship 2020
Call of Duty - IEM Katowice 2020
CS:GO - Winner – League of Legends World Championship 2020
League of Legends - Overwatch League Grand Finals 2020
Overwatch
Best Esports Game
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
Infinity Ward/Raven/Activision - Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
Valve - Fortnite
Epic Games - Winner – League of Legends
Riot Games - Valorant
Riot Games
Best Esports Host
- Alex “Goldenboy†Mendez
- Alex “Machine†Richardson
- Winner – Eefje “Sjokz†Depoortere
- James “Dash†Patterson
- Jorien “Sheever†van der Heijden
Best Esports Team
- DAMWON Gaming
League of Legends - Dallas Empire
Call of Duty - Winner – G2 Esports
League of Legends - San Francisco Shock
Overwatch League - Team Secret
DOTA2
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