The Game Awards 2023 Reveals Winners, Announcements, and More

The Game Awards (TGA) celebrated its 10th anniversary last Thursday, Dec. 7, and is now one of the only major replacements for what E3 was once in its heyday.

In his opening speech, TGA host and organizer Geoff Keighley remained positive about the state of the industry. “More than anything, this is a show about bringing our community together in this room, and online around the world, to focus on something we all can agree on: there’s nothing more powerful or more immersive than an extraordinary video game,” Keighley said in his introduction. “Great games comfort us, help us understand different perspectives on the world, and maybe even change us. That’s what makes this medium different. Games, the actual things we play, are insanely special, and we’re going to celebrate that for the next few hours.”

Keighley is constantly changing things up each year to address fan concerns, and there was plenty of criticism. Many felt that this year’s show blew through the awards portion of the event a bit too quickly, while prioritizing the world premier trailers and announcements instead.

There was an especially significant number of celebrities included in this year’s show, from Christopher Judge (Stargate SG-1, God of War) Matthew McConaughey (Interstellar), Anthony Mackie (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Altered Carbon, Twisted Metal), Jordan Peele (Writer and director of Get Out, Us, Nope), and Timothée Chalamet (Dune, Wonka). Which isn’t in and of itself a problem, but their increased stage time is what likely led to the limited speech time limit for award winners. Winners barely received 30 seconds of time before the music began to cue them to “Please wrap it up.” One day later, Keighley agreed with the overall consensus, and promised to address that concern at The Game Awards in 2024. “By the way – I do agree that the music was played too fast for award winners this year, and I asked our team to relax that rule as the show went on,” Keighly wrote on X. “While no one was actually cut off, it’s something to address going forward.”

Despite these concerns, The Game Awards is one of the last representations of organized gaming announcements and awards. E3, which used to be held annually in Los Angeles every June, was once the prime location for industry news and announcements, but as of Dec. 12 it has officially been cancelled for good after numerous attempts to revive it.

The Game Awards is still an exciting glimpse into the next year of video games, although it’s certainly not an exclusive list of the only games we’re looking forward to. Last week on Dec. 4, Grand Theft Auto VI trailer dropped (after an unfortunate leak the day before) but still managed to created a new record on YouTube with 93 million views in a 24-hour period, and reaching 144 million views as of Dec. 12. Other community driven awards show alternatives like OTK Video Game Awards (held one day after The Game Awards on Dec. 8) are putting the spotlight on small games and developers that deserve support.

The Game Awards 2023 Winners List:

Best Family Game: Super Mario Bros. Wonder

Innovation in Accessibility: Forza Motorsport

Best eSports Athlete: Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok

Best eSports Coach: Christin “Potter” Chi

Best eSports Event: 2023 League of Legends World Championship

Best eSports Game: Valorant

Best eSports Team: JD Gaming

Content Creator of the Year: IronMouse

Best Performance: Neil Newbon as Astarion in Baldur’s Gate 3

Best Narrative: Alan Wake 2

Best Debut Indie Game: Cocoon

Best Action: Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon

Best AR/VR: Resident Evil Village

Best Mobile Game: Honkai: Star Rail

Best Audio Design: Hi-Fi Rush

Games for Impact: Tchia

Best Score/Music: Final Fantasy XVI

Best Independent Game: Sea of Stars

Best Community Support: Baldur’s Gate 3

Best Fighting Game: Street Fighter 6

Most Anticipated Game: Final Fantasy VII Rebirth

Best Ongoing Game: Cyberpunk 2077

Best Adaptation: The Last of Us

Best Action/Adventure: The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Best RPG: Baldur’s Gate 3

Best SIM/Strategy Game: Pikmin 4

Best Sports/Racing Game: Forza Motorsport

Best Multiplayer Game: Baldur’s Gate 3

Players’ Voice: Baldur’s Gate 3

Best Game Direction: Alan Wake 2

Game of the Year: Baldur’s Gate 3

Also check out the list below for all of the announcements, updates, and teasers presented at The Game Awards. Keep in mind that release dates are always subject to change:

Harmonium: The Musical (Release Date: TBD)

Windblown (Release Date: TBD)

Thumper (Release Date: 2024)

David the Diver/Dredge DLC (Release Date: Dec. 15, 2023)

World of Goo 2 (Release Date: TBD)

Metaphor: Refantazio (Release Date: 2024)

Exodus (Release Date: TBD)

God Of War Ragnarök: Valhalla DLC (Release Date: Dec. 12, 2023)

Big Walk (Release Date: 2025)

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown (Release Date: Jan. 18, 2024)

Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II (Release Date: 2024)

Kemuri (Release Date: TBD)