All Game of the Year Winners at The Game Awards

Every year, more and more outlets are paying attention to The Game Awards, and for good reason. The organization launched in 2014 to honor the year’s best innovations in video games, and they cover a bunch of categories. In the decade since its founding, The Game Awards have brought a great deal of focus to the artistry of gaming, the people who create the titles players spend much of their free time enjoying, and so much more. The most coveted trophy is the Game of the Year, awarded to only one of a select group of nominees. Since the first award ceremony in 2014, these are the games that have taken the top prize.

2014 – Dragon Age: Inquisition

BioWare developed Dragon Age: Inquisition as a direct sequel to Dragon Age II, released three years earlier. The game features an expansive, engrossing story spread across several open-world areas. Gameplay utilizes a third-person perspective, though players can opt for a more traditional RPG-style top-down camera. The game was praised particularly for its combat system, story, characters, exploration, and customization. It was a huge success, selling more than 12 million copies. When Dragon Age: Inquisition won Game of the Year, it beat out Bayonetta 2, Dark Souls II, Hearthstone, and Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor.

2015 – The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

The Witcher franchise has always been popular, but it was The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt that completely broke the mold, smashing expectations and redefining the action RPG genre. The game’s story and characters, taken straight out of the books, are captivating, and the adventure offers phenomenal quests and numerous cutscenes, making gameplay as cinematic as possible. The game’s complexity across every aspect is impressive, and it was an incredible success. Since its release, more than 60 million copies of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt have sold, which is an astounding number. When it won Game of the Year, it beat Bloodborne, Fallout 3, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, and Super Mario Maker.

2016 – Overwatch

Every so often, a new first-person shooter comes along, and it’s all anyone can talk about or play. That describes Blizzard Entertainment’s Overwatch, which arrived in 2016 and seemingly took the attention from every other FPS on the market. Since its release, the so-called “hero shooter” has added cross-platform play and boasts a massive roster of heroes, each with unique abilities. Post-release updates have kept the game from going stale in the years since its debut, and Overwatch has been incredibly successful, selling over 50 million copies. Blizzard earned $1+ billion in revenue from Overwatch during its first year. It won Game of the Year, beating out Doom, Inside, Titanfall 2, and Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End.

2017 – The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

The Zelda franchise has boasted some strong entries since the first arrived on the NES in 1986. For most of its titles, Zelda games followed similar formats, but then along came The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and it completely redefined the franchise. The game boasts a beautifully rendered open world, tons of hidden content, diverse combat, equipment, upgrades, and crafting systems, and so much more. Players often get lost for hours just exploring the environment, and Nintendo has sold more than 33 million copies across several consoles. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild won Game of the Year, beating Horizon Zero Dawn, Persona 5, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, and Super Mario Odyssey.

2018 – God of War

The God of War franchise is another that existed for many years before a recent entry completely reshaped it. God of War transformed the series from its roots into a truly cinematic action-adventure, keeping plenty of combat mechanics while opening up the game’s lore into an entirely new pantheon. The game’s focus is on its characters and their place in the world of Norse Mythology, taking Kratos from his usual surroundings of the Greek pantheon, and it worked beautifully. The game sold around 23 million copies and revitalized the franchise. It had stiff competition, but won Game of the Year against Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, Celeste, Marvel’s Spider-Man, Monster Hunter: World, and Red Dead Redemption 2.

2019 – Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

FromSoftware’s Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is an action-adventure game that focuses on Wolf, a shinobi who sets out to rescue his lord, but soon finds himself caught up in a much broader tale as the game progresses. It’s set during the Sengoku period and is filled with historical references to Japanese culture, Buddhism, and philosophy. The game was widely praised for its setting and gameplay. It marked an interesting departure from the studio’s Dark Souls franchise, which was also incredibly successful. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice sold over 10 million copies and beat out plenty of competition to claim Game of the Year. It competed against Control, Death Stranding, The Outer Worlds, Resident Evil 2, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

2020 – The Last of Us Part II

When The Last of Us ended, there was no possibility that the story wouldn’t continue, and The Last of Us Part II picks up where its predecessor left off in a brutal and surprising way. The game is as good, if not better than the first title in the franchise, and it’s no wonder, as it boasts a complex storyline that’s told in such a way as to make the player side with opposing views. Not only is it an excellent game filled with brilliant level design, controls, characters, and more, but it’s storytelling at its finest. Sony sold more than 10 million copies, and The Last of Us Part II took home Game of the Year, beating Animal Crossing, Doom Eternal, Final Fantasy VII Remake, Ghost of Tsushima, and Hades.

2021 – It Takes Two

The title of It Takes Two isn’t lying, as the game was designed for cooperative multiplayer and uses split-screens. The game is about a couple transformed into living dolls, so they work together to find a way out of their situation while building their relationship, and it’s truly unique. It Takes Two utilizes game mechanics from multiple genres, though it’s primarily a platformer. Still, it has minigames and other tools to accomplish tasks that genuinely set it apart. It Takes Two has sold more than 23 million copies and won Game of the Year after beating Deathloop, Metroid Dread, Psychonauts 2, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, and Resident Evil Village.

2022 – Elden Ring

If you’ve never played Elden Ring, odds are someone told you how difficult it is. That’s because the game is punishing, but that’s also what makes it great — it doesn’t pull any punches, leaving gameplay entirely up to the player. It boasts a massive open world with six primary areas to explore, requiring stealth and strategy to survive. Elden Ring is based on FromSoftware’s Dark Souls world and adds considerably to the lore. Since its 2022 release, the game has sold over 30 million copies and is often cited among the greatest games ever made. It won Game of the Year, beating A Plague Tale: Requiem, God of War Ragnarök, Horizon Forbidden West, Stray, and Xenoblade Chronicles 3.

2023 – Baldur’s Gate III

When it comes to adapting Dungeons & Dragons’ fifth edition into a video game, Larian Studios could teach a Master Class by simply firing up Baldur’s Gate III. The game utilizes the rulebook to perfection, but it’s more than D20 rolls and fighting Mind Flayers. Baldur’s Gate III features an immersive story with so much content that it would take a ridiculous amount of time to play through it all. There’s the main quest, and so many branching sidequests and storylines, a standard playthrough is easily going to take between 100-200+ hours. Baldur’s Gate III sold more than 15 million copies, and it took home the Game of the Year award, beating Alan Wake 2, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, Resident Evil 4, and Super Mario Bros. Wonder.

2024 – Astro Bot

Astro Bot is a platformer developed by Team Asobi, and is the fifth game in the franchise. The player controls Astro on a quest to save lost robots, tapping into the same PlayStation elements as previous entries. The game has been lauded for its gameplay, level design, and more. In many ways, Astro Bot has risen to the level of perfection found in Nintendo’s Super Mario games, which is high praise for a franchise that’s not been around for very long. Astro Bot took the highest rating of 2024 on Metacritic and sold more than 2.3 million copies. When Astro Bot won Game of the Year, it beat Balatro, Black Myth: Wukong, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, and Metaphor: ReFantazio.

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