The Golden Joystick Awards nominees revealed – Baldur’s Gate 3 and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom lead the charge

There are quite a few gaming award ceremonies to keep track of, and The Golden Joystick Awards is one of the most prestigious. It’s also one of the few events where winners are determined by the votes of gamers around the world.

This year’s TGJA ceremony will take place on Friday, November 10, in Royal Lancaster London. It’s the 41st TGJA event, and with the nominees revealed, voting is now open!

The Golden Joystick Awards 2023 at a glance

The headliners this year are Baldur’s Gate 3 and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom which both received four nominations. Anyone who’s been paying attention to the gaming world won’t be too surprised by this. Larian Studios’ game has received unanimous critical acclaim and is considered one of the best CRPGs of all time. Tears of the Kingdom turned heads by achieving the incredible feat of surpassing its predecessor which was already considered a masterpiece.

There are other titles that stand out in the list of nominations. Street Fighter 6, Dave the Diver, and Hi-Fi Rush received three nominations each. Bethesda’s latest game and quite possibly Xbox’s biggest game this year, Starfield, also received three nominations.

It’s a big year for VR gaming thanks to the launch of Sony’s PS VR2 and the upcoming Quest 3 from Meta. Plenty of high-quality games are up against each other, including Horizon: Call of the Mountain and Synapse. The PS VR2 has also been nominated in the Best Gaming Hardware category.

All The Golden Joystick Awards 2023 Nominees

Nominees are chosen by TGJA’s judging panel, and all nominated games were released between November 23, 2022 and September 29, 2023 (with some exceptions, such as the nominees of the Still Playing category). It appears that this year will be one filled with some pretty tight competition due to the astounding number of major titles released. Regardless of what platform you’re looking at, it’s possible to find at least a couple of titles and studios that are worthy of awards.

Here’s the full list of nominees:

Best Audio

• Stray Gods
• Hi-Fi Rush
• Bomb Rush Cyberfunk
• Starfield
• The Legend Of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom
• Final Fantasy XVI

Best Storytelling

• Baldur’s Gate 3
• The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood
• Armored Core VI: Fires Of Rubicon
• Oxenfree II: Lost Signals
• PARANORMASIGHT: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo
• Star Wars Jedi: Survivor

Best Game Community

• Final Fantasy XIV
• Warframe
• Baldur’s Gate 3
• Deep Rock Galactic
• Dreams
• The Legend Of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom

Best Game Expansion

• Power Wash Simulator DLC
• Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
• The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom
• The Case of the Golden Idol Mysteries: The Lemurian Vampire and Spider of Lanka
• Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania
• A Little to the Left: Cupboards & Drawers

Best Gaming Hardware

• PlayStation VR2
• Turtle Beach Stealth Pro Headset
• Alienware 34 AW3423DWF
• Nitro Deck
• ASUS ROG Strix Scope II 96
• Samsung 990 PRO

Best Indie Game

• Dave the Diver
• Pizza Tower
• Dredge
• Cocoon
• Viewfinder
• Sea of Stars

Best Multiplayer Game

• Exoprimal
• Diablo IV
• Street Fighter 6
• Remnant II
• Mortal Kombat 1
• We Were Here Expeditions: The FriendShip

Best Visual Design

• Baldur’s Gate 3
• Starfield
• Hi-Fi Rush
• Viewfinder
• Lies Of P
• Street Fighter 6

Nintendo Game of the Year

• Pikmin 4
• The Legend Of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom
• Fire Emblem Engage
• Metroid Prime Remastered
• Octopath Traveller II
• Fae Farm

PC Game of the Year

• Baldur’s Gate 3
• Diablo IV
• Dave the Diver
• Tchia
• System Shock
• Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew

PlayStation Game of the Year

• Final Fantasy XVI
• Resident Evil 4 Remake
• Street Fighter 6
• Humanity
• Armored Core VI: Fires Of Rubicon
• Star Wars Jedi: Survivor

Xbox Game of the Year

• Starfield
• Chants of Sennaar
• Hi-Fi Rush
• Planet of Lana
• Dead Space
• Pentiment

Still Playing Award

• No Man’s Sky
• Genshin Impact
• The Sims 4
• Fortnite
• Naraka: Bladepoint
• GTA: Online
• Warframe
• Valorant
• Counter-Strike: Global Offensive / Counter-Strike 2
• Apex Legends
• Dota 2
• Call of Duty

Studio of the Year

• Larian Studios
• Digital Eclipse
• Nintendo EPD
• Mimimi Games
• Remedy Entertainment
• CD Projekt Red

Best Game Trailer

• Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty – Official Cinematic Trailer
• Alan Wake 2 – The Dark Place Gameplay Trailer
• The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom – Official Trailer #3
• Baby Steps Reveal Trailer
• Mortal Kombat 1 – Official It’s In Our Blood Trailer
• Dave the Diver – Official Release Month And Accolades Trailer

Most Wanted Game

• Death Stranding 2
• Star Wars Outlaws
• Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
• Tekken 8
• Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2
• S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl
• Hades II
• Fable
• Hollow Knight: Silksong
• EVERYWHERE
• Frostpunk 2
• ARK 2
• METAL GEAR SOLID Δ: SNAKE EATER
• Persona 3 Reload
• Bulwark: Falconeer Chronicles
• Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League
• Pacific Drive
• Black Myth: Wukong
• Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden
• Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin

Best VR Game

• C-Smash VRS
• Horizon: Call of the Mountain
• Synapse
• Vertigo 2 VR
• F1 23 VR
• The Light Brigade

You’ll be able to vote until October 20 for most categories. The exceptions are the Ultimate Game of the Year, Best Lead Performer and Best Supporting Performer categories which will be revealed on October 23, and you’ll have until October 27 to vote.

To cast your vote, follow this link to Games Radar+ and click “Start Voting.” By voting, you get to show support for your favorite games, and you’ll receive a free gaming ebook for your troubles, though you’ll have to give your email address to claim it.

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