Controlling the Narrative

I did it! I did a pun. And you thought I didn't have it in me anymore...

Have you ever been screwed over? I'm being facetious, of course you have been. Everybody has, at some point, tasted what it feels like to have one straight trick fly under the radar and catch you unawares. It's hardly a pleasant feeling, but once it happens to you enough one reaches the point where they can begin sensing the very next grift from a mile away, either that or they become so jaded and mistrusting that they push away everyone and become something of a modern day hermit. Maybe both, I can see both. And when it comes to the entertainment industry, specifically in gaming, customers have become very well acquainted with what it feels like to have a PR team mug you in broad daylight whilst telling you that they're in the middle of cutting the finest deal imaginable with you. We've seen it all, which is why it's so baffling that the critical darling of last year, 'Control', seems to be in the middle of a blatant money grubbing scheme whilst everyone involved is acting like we're the crazy ones.

Control, if you don't remember, is a title that basically adapted the premise of the SCP Containment Breech game and turned it into a narrative adventure title. Helmed by Remedy, the team behind many a  'love it or hate it' style game like Quantum Break and the Alan Wake games, (Does 3 count as 'many'?) Control completely swept up with the critics and even was in the running for Ultimate Game of the Year. (Which, as I recall, ended up going to Sekiro.) However, these guys are cursed to make the sorts of games that never really translate over to crazy commercial success, so whilst I don't believe Control was a flop by any means, it wasn't a resounding hit either. That's a fact that fans lament as many have argued that it's easily Remedy's best title yet. Which of course paints the picture as to why the publisher would be in the market for shoring up profits with a little recycle job, now wouldn't it?

But enough beating around the bush, what exactly is the problem with Control and 505 that everyone is going on about? Well it has to do with the next gen. With the jump to a new generation of consoles there's a big conversation to be had about backwards compatibility as well as up-scaling from one generation to the next. The games which can nail this post haste are going to be essential for those first few months of the next gen's launch as a good chunk of exciting next gen titles aren't due out for a long while. This spurred Xbox's free upgrade program which allows for many next gen versions of current gen games to be automatically redeemed by their owners, and for companies like EA to wantonly spit in the face of that ideal and charge a ludicrous amount of money for an upgrade to an inferior package deal. (It's a long stupid story, I don't wanna get into it.) But perhaps the most befuddling is what's happening with Control right now.

Control has pretty much run the majority of it's life cycle right now, with the game having been released and post-launch DLC having filled the months since. There was even a 'deluxe edition' re-release of the title which bundled everything together neatly. Basically, there's not really much more life in this development cycle. Thus it makes the perfect title to port over to the next generation for people to play in it's entirety, and that's exactly what's happening; provided you're willing to buy the game again. Dubbed 'Control Ultimate Edition', the next gen upgrade will not be provided to anyone who purchased a previous version of the game, nor will they be able to buy it as an upgrade for a discounted price. Previous owners are subject to the full price alongside new comers. What's more, the price for Ultimate edition is actually 2/3rds of the full price which the deluxe edition of the game is still being charged for; thus punishing early adopters of the title and rewarding those that came to it later. Needless to say, this ruffled a few feathers.

If you want to really upset a fanbase all you have to do is mess with their money, ask them to pay too much or mess with their perceived value of something and you're practically spitting sparks into a tinder box. Whatsmore, folk don't like the idea of having loyalty and fandom punished by being asked to buy the game again for the benefit of some upscaled visuals and a frame-rate that's probably not that much better than you can already get on the Pro or One X. That's right, this new release offers absolutely no new content beyond the upgrades, which makes the 40$ asking price ridiculous for current owners. The really sad part about all of this, is that it erodes the trust between the consumers and the developers, even though it's highly likely that Remedy weren't involved with any of this nonsense beyond maybe working on the upgrades. (though they could have just as easily been outsourced) No, this is 505's web of confusion that they're spinning, and what makes things even more headscratching is the excuses that they have.

Up on the official Control website there's a little blog on the matter entitled 'Control Ultimate Edition- An explanation' which just sounds like the most ominous title in the world, doesn't it? It sounds like you've been caught cheating and decided to pen an entire power point presentation to pseudo-apologise whilst really trying to subconsciously suggest that your partner is the bad one for being upset in the first place. In this blog they confused the hell out of me, at least, by revealing that whilst Control would be backwards compatible on both new consoles, 'Control Ultimate Edition' would apparently be an entirely separate product and the only purchasable version on those console's stores. Apparently the intention was to provide an 'easy' and 'convenient' way for the entire game and all of it's content to be bought. (Okay, I'll give you 'easy' but I don't really know what's 'convenient' about this from the perspective of current fans)

And then they launch into victimising themselves. Yes, I'm being serious. These guys straight-up try to argue that they are the one's who tried to be the good-guys here and offer upgrades but they just couldn't, no matter how hard they tried! "We spent several months exploring all of our launch options for Control Ultimate Edition and no decision was taken lightly. While it is challenging bringing any game to next gen platforms, we quickly realised it was even more difficult to upgrade our current user base to next gen with full parity across platforms with our year-old game." Yes, apparently that thing which every other high profile AAA game is doing? It's really hard to do with Control because it's one whole year old. (Wow, this new tech must be space-age if resolution updates and optimisation is a noticeable headache.)

As someone who has never tried to code a game on the scale of Control, I'd have to defer to their better knowledge of the subject matter here. Let's assume everything they say is trustworthy, then here's the kicker. "Every avenue we pursued, there was some form of blocker and those blockers meant that at least one group of players ended up being left out of the upgrade for various reasons. As of today, we can’t offer an upgrade to everyone, and leaving any one group out feels unfair." So with the merit of going into as few specifics as humanely possible, the Control team are claiming that there was no one-way to upgrade all 3 versions of the game (for both consoles and for PC) which should have been obvious. For months we've been hearing how distinctly different these new generation consoles are, so it makes sense that working on games for them will be different, but somehow this hasn't stopped other games, like Cyberpunk 2077, from offering free upgrades.

You see, the problem here (and forgive me for accusing this blog of strawmanning a bit) is that the angle taken here seems to arguing that the tech isn't there, but this isn't an argument about tech, it's about policy. When Skyrim Special Edition was released it was using a very updated version of the engine which the original game ran on, making it a new SKU. But that didn't suddenly mean that Bethesda's hands were tied and they automatically had to charge owners of the old game full price to play this new one, the upgrade was free on PC. That wasn't the case for consoles, however, and I think that is what 505 is driving at, claiming that said quirk of the console marketplaces makes it difficult for them to provide an upgrades path for games with a different SKU. Kinda understandable, I guess, if warped beyond feasible comprehension. But then the other shoe drops.

505 screwed up with the launch of Ultimate Edition, they put out pre-orders but owners of the Deluxe edition of Control ended up automatically receiving the new version out of nowhere. What's more, they could launch this new version and it would open up the Deluxe version of the game. The SKU was the same, 505's excuses are starting to grow a little thin, huh? And so it seems that Control Ultimate Edition very much could have been offered to owners of the base title but actively was not in order for a quick buck. And just quick: even if that wasn't a possibility, they still could have pulled a Bethesda and made the update free on PC. This argument that "It's unfair, thus we must punish everybody equally" is so unfathomably dumb that it's hardly worth a retort. So that, if you were wondering, is what it feels like to be screwed over by a publisher. Hope you all enjoyed, as 505 are very unlikely to be the last who try something like this.

Control

Whatever you do, don't blink.

Towards the end of last year there popped out a little game from a much storied studio that garnered quite a bit of praise and even a few awards, although that didn't quite translate to sales. The Studio in question, Remedy, have always held a trajectory that I find myself at odds with in the strangest ways and whilst I celebrate their commercial victories I must admit that I cannot enjoy their games no matter how much I attempt to. Such would have been inconsequential if it hadn't been for their prominent presence at the VGA's alongside their announcement of DLC, meaning that I have to speak about this particular title at least once. (It's only fair.) Before I do, however, bear in mind that I trusted my gut and avoided this game, so all of my opinions are educated but inexperienced.

Control is a title that takes a very fringe pop culture topic and drags it into the forefront with a heavily funded AAA game. The topic in question would be the concept of Internet camp-fire stories, or as they are titled 'Creepypastas', and the specific pasta in general is the long running tale of the SCP foundation. (Secure Contain Protect.) To be clear, this isn't an a game that takes place within the canon of The Scarlett King (as far as I am aware, at least.), rather a title that mimics the setup of that story and makes something unique with it; but the similarities are too distinct for us to discount it as coincidence. Not that I condemn such an act, afterall it is said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and the SCP community has had too much of a marked effect on horror culture throughout the years for us to start splitting hairs now. But I digress, let's get into what 'SCP' ostensibly is.

In it's most widely known form, SCP is a website that details the research documents of a fictional secret government agency known as the SCP foundation. It is the task of this foundation to capture and catalogue all extra-normal 'entites' in our everyday world with the ultimate goal of keeping their existence secret and protecting humanity. (For a couple SCP's in particular, the very act of keeping them secret is the thing that keeps humanity from becoming extinct.) From this amalgamation of weird and creepy horror monsters spawned a few well-received horror games that are still worthy of a playthrough today. (Although only if you have a strong constitution when it comes to horror games.)

SCP-087-B was one such game that followed the exploration of an SCP that was realized in the form of an endless downwards staircase. The deeper down you went, the more likely it became that you would never come back up again, dead or alive. (In hindsight I've having trouble figuring out how SCP both found out about and managed to contain that one. Did they relocate the entire building or just seize it and convert it into a government facility?) 'SCP Containment Breach' is probably the most famous game, however, as it takes a more traditional Horror game approach of forcing players to survive an incredibly hostile environment as they desperately attempt to escape. The entire SCP facility ended up losing it's 'secure' status and this meant that the creators had free reign to stick as many game-able SCP's into thier title as humanly possible. (Pretty sure they invented a few specifically for the game too.) But this 'Creepypasta' has had a profound effect outside of the world of gaming too.

Perhaps one of the most iconic SCP's of all time would be SCP-173, a seemingly immobile (and indistinguishable) statue that moves whenever it's not in direct line of site, ultimately resulting in death for whoever is unfortunate enough to be caught by it. Does any of that ring a bell? Mayhaps you think this whole concept is but a shameless rip off of the Weeping Angels from the 'Blink' episode of Doctor Who. A sound conclusion if it wasn't for the fact that the original SPC story predated that episode by a few months. Now, I'm not saying that Russel.T.David read that story and adapted it for his series, but I wouldn't be surprised if someone anecdotally relayed it to him in a manner that lit inspiration. Whatever the truth, Weeping Angels or 173, are some of the scariest monsters in horror and I like to think that we owe their existence to the SCP world.

But why am I talking about SCP in a blog entitled 'Control'? Well... because they are kinda one-and-the-same. The story in question revolves around a young woman who inadvertently finds herself becoming the director of the Federal Bureau of Control, a secret government branch dedicated to capturing and categorizing otherworldly threats. Unfortunately, this promotion comes at the exact same time that a large scale containment breech has swept the facility leaving the player with the unenvious task of having to "Clean house". The premise fuels the wild array of surreal imagery that the title then thrives on. (Which won it the VGA for visual design, incidentally.)

Of course, being Remedy, SCP isn't the only inspiration that this title leans on. Just like Alan Wake before it, Control borrows a lot of themes and ideas from classic shows like 'Twin Peaks' to set it's mood. Those who loved the heavy aura of mystery and uncomfortable weird shades from a show like that will find much to love about Control. (As a fellow who never watched Twin Peaks and barely even remembers X-Files, it doesn't really do much for me.) At this point Remedy have turned the act of mimicking these shows into an identity and that seems to have worked out well for them looking at the review scores for this title alone.

At the VGA's in particular, The Control team teased their brand new DLC which seemed to lean away from the 'Metroid-Vania' gameplay of the main game and into a more 'episodic' approach. (I wonder what the inspiration was there?) The 'Expiditions' DLC seems to pit the player in a variety of challenge situations that, I'd imagine, would be largely puzzle solving/ monster fighting affairs; Remedy do seem rather allergic to wrapping up thier dangling plot threads, afterall. There would certainly be an audience for that kind of content but I can imagine the bulk of consumers finding themselves disappointed with it, afterall they praised Control for being 'different', recycling models and environments to make new challenges does strain that a little bit. But if Capcom could pull it off well with Resident Evil 3 back in 1999, who's to say that Remedy couldn't do the same to a satisfying degree?

The Games Awards Winners

Give him his crown.

Here we are a full day after the events of 'The Game Awards'. A show which, in the UK, streamed from 1:30 AM to 4:00. (So thanks for that Geoff.) Personally I have to admit that I really expected a more low-key show coming out this year than we actually got. Previous years were blessed with only a couple of brand new announcements and a plethora of DLC showcases, whilst this was still kind-of the case this year, the sheer volume of companies who wanted to co-opt the Game awards stage was incredible. (It's as though people started to realize that gaming makes more money than any other entertainment medium today.) Over the show we got to see brand new games, a grand reveal of two Next gen titles, a next gen console unveiling and a re-announcement that had me literally bouncing out of my seat.

Small disclaimer, there was a grand amount of noteworthy events that the team pulled off for the game Awards. So many that I cannot, feasibly, go through them all in this one blog if I expect to survive. (Yes, I know my prediction blog was 90 paragraphs long, but that almost ended me and I don't want to go through that hell again.) Luckily, this means that there will be a lot of content for me to explore in depth in the days to come, which is also fitting as that is likely when details will start to leak out about these titles, allowing for me to ensure that this blog remains as well-informed as I always aim it to be. So without further ado, let's get into the events of the day.

The show kicked off with another performance from the Game Awards Orchestra. Once again I felt that the showing wasn't as strong as the 2017 performance, which I think set the bench mark for eclectic video game medley performances, but I won't knock them for doing what they were told. (Which was sticking to music from titles that were directly related to this year's events.) After that, however, things started off very strong as we went directly into a brand new trailer for the 'Final Fantasy 7' Remake, which allowed us to get a good purview of some of new voice actors (who are really starting to grow on me) as well as the new remix of the classic FF7 Battle theme. (Which I instantly adore.) I'll get into specific details at a later date, but damn you Game awards more making me nostalgic/emotional from the first trailer!!

Things really kicked off in earnest here, as we got straight into announcing the very first award already, bear in mind that this was all still happening in the pre-show. Due to the influx of advertisers and game reveals that Keighley had managed to drum up, the team didn't even have the time to revel in the usual pageantry that the Awards show likes to. The Award for best Community Support, therefore, was relegated to a quick-fire award announcement. The kind that is obviously already rehearsed, given the fact that the award recipient is always just off the camera shot and ready to come on and give a small speech the second that their name is announced. For this award, the honor went to Destiny 2, which is exactly what I predicted by-the-by. Fans just love Bungie for the way that they made the choice to split from Activision, and it was no surprise that they all showed up in force to display support for Bungie in the voting polls.

The next couple of announcements were relatively small, but that actually made it all the more special that they managed to pick up as grand a stage at the game awards. I always respect the way that Keighley's show gives a voice to the unheard, and it is one of the things that really sets the Game Awards apart from E3. That trade show is more of an advertisement for the industry, and thus you are unlikely to see any smaller titles there outside of Devolver Digital's booth. (Which is typically situated outside due to the exorbitant fee associated with renting space in the hall itself.) Although one might not think of a title like Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 as small, the fact that all we saw out of it was a character DLC is the kind of small announcement that likely wouldn't see the light of day on the typical E3 stage.

What is much more commendable for the Game Awards, is the way that they go out of their way to connect viewers with small prospective developers from regions that one might never have expected them from. This is something that was quite dominant throughout the show, and yet there was only one part of these 'promos' that came attached with a actual announcement. That went to a prospective Facebook game called 'Salaam', which was envisioned by a refugee as a way of depicting the struggles of a refugee for gamers across the world. Although we personally saw little of the product, one interesting dynamic was the way in which the game's in-app purchases all went to charities that help real refugees. I.e. when you buy medicine in the game, you're also technically buying it for real folk who need it. Which is certainly a generous concept.

Next up came another big event that was relegated to a quick-fire round as the show would rather spend it's time speeding through announcements. This time the award in question was for the best score and music in gaming. An award which I predicted would go to 'Cadence of Hyrule' due to how that entire game shapes it's play around rhythmic action set to some of the most iconic music tunes of all time; The Legend of Zelda musical catalogue. Seems that I was alone in my thinking, however, as the award ended up going towards 'Death Stranding' Instead. To be fair, folk often say that the music of Death Stranding is the kind that can only really be appreciated once you play the game, so I guess I was unqualified to asses this award in the first place.

Here's a fun little side effect of being bombarded with so many announcements on the night; I can't remember what half of them actually were! Looking at my notes, I see that now was the 'World premiere' of a game called 'Maneater' and I'm racking my brain to remember what- ah. Right, so this was the title that looked like it belonged in a the bargain bucket in the best possible way. This was essentially a 'Jaws' simulator that decided to go the extra mile and allow players to turn their sharks into super powered death machines. This sort of 'silly fun' game actually looks a lot more fun than it sounds and I was pleasantly surprised with the energetic feel to the whole thing. Maybe not the kind of game for me, so to speak, but certainly a cool addition to someone's library out there.

You can tell that the team decided to relegate all the categories that they didn't care for (or couldn't feasibly get all the nominees for) into their Quick-fire segments. Point in case: the Esports categories which were all smooshed together into a whole list of 'who gives a crap'. Which isn't to say that I didn't bother to make my own predictions, I just put absolutely zero effort into picking them out. The best Esports Coach of the year went to 'Zonic', who's name alone justifies the award over my choice in hindsight. The Esports event of the year went to 'League of Legends', which is an absolutely travesty against taste. (How would they actually award the entire game show anyway?) Host of the year went to 'Sjokz', proving that I absolutely should not take up betting in the future, and Esports team of the year went to 'G2 Esports' because there is no justice in the world.

After that painful slog, the game awards decided to award those who stuck it out with a Game premiere for a title that no one was expecting; 'Humankind'. Just to be clear, this isn't 'Ancentors: The Humankind Odessey' and was apparently announced beforehand. (I feel like someone should sue.) The prevailing takeaway that everyone had for 'Humankind' was "This is the poor man's CIV", and honestly that was a hard feeling to shake. The entire trailer revolved around a tribe that evolved into a huge modern metropolis whilst being narrated in a decidedly more casual manner than one might expect from a Civilization title. The only noticeable difference that I managed to pick up is the way the civilizations are apparently not based on real-life societies but rather completely unique to the player. Meaning that people could design their own immortal leader for their civilization. Whether that would ultimately be enough to shake the 'Civilisation' association remains to be seen.

Our next reveal went for the good-old bait and switch, just like how last year Netherrealm cut through all the festivities to announce Mortal Kombat 11. This one was a little more sneaky however, with the team in question actually producing a whole deceptive trailer to throw people off the scent. We see a studio-Gibli style animation sequence with VHS stylings in order to imitate the whole '80's aethetic'. Storywise, we saw a small child and their alien pet part from each other as children before being reunited in the future wherein the alien is now buff and slightly foul-mouthed. He announces that he's a 'Goddamn hero' which is then accompanied with a title screen. Eagle eared viewers might have recognized that irreverent style, but suspicions would be confirmed once that title screen ripped away in order to reveal Travis Touchdown. That's right, this was 'No More Heroes 3' all along. (Nicely handled guys!)

The last of the pre-show awards to be handed was in in a category that I was very passionate about not very long ago; Best fighting game. This award boasted nominees from all over the shop due to the fact that there weren't enough fighting games to warrant a full list. This left us in the embarrassing scenario wherein we had to nominate 'Jump Force' in order to get the candidate number up to 4, which is so damn insulting to all the other games that were actually made with same quality assurance in mind. Be that as it may, at least the award itself went to the only title that could feasibly win it,  Super Smash Bros Ultimate. (Which was my prediction, once again.)

At this point the show kicked off in earnest as we got to see that Orchestral performance that I mentioned earlier. To be fair, I may not have enjoyed this performance as much as previous years, but that doesn't mean it wasn't any good at all. 'Chvrches' came up on stage to perform a heavily 'Death Stranding' themed show with one of the key songs from the game. (I'm told.) So I didn't like the song in question, having no context to tie it too, but I will admit that it was pretty cool from a practical level, particularly in the way that they simulated 'rain' on stage and the singer went the extra mile of decorating her eyes with the 'black substance' that we see on 'The Soldier' from 'Death Stranding'.

Finally the show reached the stage that they were allowed to devote the actual stage to announcing awards, and just in time for the 'Best Narrative of the year' award. This one was hosted by the first big guest of the night, famous screenwriter Johnathon Nolan, known for his work on movies like 'Momento' and 'The Dark Knight triology' and shows like 'Westworld'. He was surprisingly complimentary to the gaming medium, considering I don't believe he has ever worked on a game himself. (I can't be bothered to do a quick IMDB search, so I could be wrong.) He shared how he believes that the best narratives of the modern world often debut in the video gaming world, and even mentioned the way that gaming influenced 'Westworld' and name dropped one of my favourite game characters of all time, Elizabeth, in reference to their Westworld star: Dolores'. Oh, and the award went to 'Disco Elysium', meaning I was wrong and I definitely have to play this game. (Okay, I get it.)

The next event was a surprise unlike any other, as Geoff managed to snag one of the biggest reveals of the year. We saw a trailer that had absolutely everyone guessing with the way that it shifted from dreamlike visuals to recognizable characters like Master Chief. Only then did it all come together, this wasn't a 'game' at all, but the debut of 'Project Scarlett', the next-gen Xbox system that no one had seen yet. Not only did we get a look at the actual box, which looked like a desktop computer, but we got to see the name that would presumably accompany the console. The 'Xbox Series X'. (Personally, I feel that's a couple too many X's for me.) This surprise reveal was followed up by a beautiful look at a title being made specifically for 'Series X'; 'Hellblade 2: Senua's Saga'. It's fair to say, the fidelity was high enough that folk in chat honestly thought this was a live-action trailer for a good portion of it. (That's some darn high praise.)

After a bombshell like that, it makes sense for the show to wind down with a whole bunch of smaller announcements. One of which was Mortal Kombat 11's newest DLC, which bought back a fan favourite character into the mix, Joker from the DC universe. (Although the VO was certainly odd for this version of the Clown Prince of crime, and I can't quite put my finger on exactly 'why' just yet.) There was also a quick showcase of the 'Expedidtions' DLC for 'Control', which looked to add a whole bunch of challenge scenarios to the game. (Which is sure to annoy the crowd who remember the cliffhanger that the main story left on.) And the awards quickly ran through the E-sports player of the year; (as announced by everyone's favourite walking embarrassment, Ninja) Bugha. Yes, I guessed him too. Bow down before my predictive might.

The next premier was one that particularly tickled me for how comparatively low key it was when compared to it's competitor. 'Godfall' is a title that was remarkable in it's ability to leave very little in the way of an 'impression' upon the viewer upon first viewing. It was your typical showcase of a variety of hero-looking folk in excessively spiky and over-detailed armour wielding swords that just seem ungainly. The scene then moves onto a giant Hydra on top of a tower that they presumably are prepared to tackle, before fading to a title screen. So far so forgettable, right? Except right there, in the corner of the screen and easy to miss, was the logo for PS5. It was so low key, in fact, the Geoff had to point it out himself in order to keep people excited. (At least it's a more sensible title than 'Series X')

The next part of the ceremonies was dedicated to three award announcements that were all handled in the 'quick-fire' style that they love so much. Best Audio design was completely stolen from RE2 and handed to 'Call of Duty: Modern Warfare', an alright game but one that doesn't wield it's sound design like a weapon in the manner that Capcom did. Best Strategy Game went to my personal pick, 'Fire Emblem: Three Houses', a well deserved win. And content creator of the year went to 'Shroud, just like I predicted, because the Game Awards weren't woke enough to nominate the actual biggest gaming channel of the year, Pewdiepie. (He literally got the most views of any channel on Youtube, you can't just ignore that.)

Once more we were gifted a 'World Premier', this time by the same team behind a particular darling of the RPG world; Octopath Traveller. That was a title that was heavily commended for it's incredible visual flair, endearing characters and gripping narrative; so any new RPG title from them was sure to be well received. Initial reactions to this reveal were similarly positive as folk commended the graphical style and wondered if this was the long awaited sequel to the DS classic; Bravely Default. Which, funnily enough, it actually was. Bravely Default 2 (Which I guess is a sequel to the 2013 original and not the 2015 'Bravely Second') will be another Square Enix RPG and Nintendo Exclusive due for 2020.

A fan favourite company stole the show from here, as Warframe's community lead (Who is affectionately known as 'Spacemom' amidst the fandom) came to announce the release of the expansion that they had teased earlier that E3, 'Empyrean'. This is the expansion that would allow for real-time space ship navigation and combat through a manner that is honestly remarkable to behold for a free-to-play title. (If only I actually liked ninjas, then I might actually be into this title.) 'Spacemom' managed to steal the wind out of the Game Awards' sails by announcing that this expansion was out that very moment, at least on PC, which I'm sure cost the event a few thousand viewers in the excitement.

The next couple announcements were very niche titles that one would either become immediately enamoured by or find ultimately boring. There was the latest 'Magic: The gathering' CG trailer, which I welcome purely so that I can stop seeing that same melodramatic trailer from last year everytime there's an ad on YouTube. Only, this trailer is every bit as melodramatic in a way that it particularly eye-rolling when you have no idea who any of the characters are. The other title was a bit more vague, as we saw a fellow alone in the woods with, what sounds like, a camera. Most immediately sighed and said "Oh god, we're getting another 'Blair Witch' game already!?", However, this was actually an incredibly vague title called 'Prologue' which is touted as a game from 'Playerunkown', which is sure to have some people scratching their heads. I'm not sure what to expect from that team, but I'm intrigued enough to keep an open mind.

The next award up for grabs was Best art Direction of the year, which is a section that featured more than a few indie titles that revolved around their peculiar art styles. I remember noting, at the time, how I felt such an award was owed to 'Sayonara: Wild Hearts' before concluding that is should likely go towards the remake of 'Link's Awakening'. Seems I was wrong on both accounts as the award ended up going towards 'Control', which was a title that I had completely discounted. In hindsight, I can certainly see where the title gets some it's love in this department, due to the weird stylings and visual approach, although I still think that 'Wild Hearts' had 'Control' beat in the 'outlandish' category. Still unsure how I feel about this one.

Fortnite's Epic games took to the stage next to showcase their relationship with Disney once more, through their upcoming Star Wars event, in which a small scene from 'Rise of Skywalker' would be shown ingame at the movie theatre. (Seems like the perfect way to line up a bunch of people for a good old-fashioned rocket launcher strafe, but then that's just me.) Epic's representative also took time to express how they want to make Fortnite a nexus title for 'all IPs' to work alongside; basically admitting that they have a lot of money but want all the money. I give Fortnite a hard time, but I guess this event is kind of a cool way to drum up excitement. Also, it was cool to see J.J. Abrams come on screen to big up the whole affair, even if it all did stink of corporate. (Put me down as 'not coming' for this event.)

I was actually quite surprised with how this next Premiere went over so many people's heads. This was a sequel to a small Steam early access title that became quite popular over it's years in development; The Forest. The game basically revolved around attempting to survive in the wilds after a plane crash whilst being besieged by an island that proved to be ever more weird than you initially thought the further that you go in. This new title 'Sons of the Forest', seemed to improve upon the fidelity of that first title immensely, to the point where even I had trouble picking up that this title was even related to the first game. Of course, only time will tell if that trailer is even remotely indicative of the final game product.

From here came an announcement that had actually been rumored for a number of months leading up to this point. You see, League of legends has remained one of the biggest online games of all time with some of the most indepth and varied lore of any online game despite only having one actual game to it's name. This was a trend that was broken at the game Awards wherein Riot Game announced their very first extended universe League game, a single player title that goes by the name  'The Ruined king'. It's unclear, as of yet, what sort of game this will ultimately end up being, but seeing as how I never liked the whole 'MOBA' game type, I'm interested enough to devote some attention to this alternative foot into LOL lore.

After that the ugly commercial side of the Game Awards reared it's, sadly necessary, head with the debut of two unwelcome adverts. The first featured Margo Robbie in her ridiculously exaggerated Harley Quinn voice, performing a mildly unfunny skit before the reveal of a brand new teaser for 'Birds of Prey'. I have no idea what that movie has to do with the gaming space, and thus am mildly perturbed by the whole affair. Then came the first in a series of Adverts directly aimed at the 'Vaping' culture, with intent to kill. Personally, I realized that the concept of 'Vaping' had got a bad rap this year, but I had no idea that things had gotten to the point where advocacy groups were forming campaigns on the matter. I mean, I've heard of a few vaping relating deaths but I was under the impression that they were down to bad vape juice rather than the act itself. Whatever, I don't vape so none of this effects be anyway, move on.

Next up came a look-in from that one title that's on everyone's 'most anticipated game' list; Cyberpunk 2077. I knew that they wouldn't miss the chance to advertise on the last big gaming show before their release, and I was right, although we didn't actually get a gameplay trailer like I was expecting. Instead CDPR opted to put together a showcase video boasting about the plethora of talented artists who were willing to work on the game and bring their own flavour to this title. (For which the soundtrack is said to be entirely Original content, by-the-by.) This was followed by a cyber-punky performance by Grimes, who managed to drag her boyfriend Elon Musk to the show, so that's another famous face that Geoff Keighley can tick off on his 'collect 'em all' quest.

Next up, one of the nominees for best performance, Norman Reedus, took to the stage in order to host the award for Best Action Game of the year. This was a decision that I actually agonized over for a while as I switched between the brilliantly cinematic action of Devil May Cry 5 and the intense immersive environments of 'Metro Exodus'. In the end my own personal preferences leaned me towards the latter and that cost me the 'told you so' point here as DMC ended up winning. I'm not too peeved about this one, as I feel that both titles were worthy of the award for entirely separate merits. I only lament that the fantastic 'Metro' franchise couldn't get the recognition that it deserved.

Back to the premiers for the time being, as we got to take a look at the tonally confused trailer for 'Dungeons & Dragons: Dark Alliance'. A title that the developers described as being created to "Put the 'action' back into 'action adventure RPG'". If that means out-of-place rock music, ugly head-tracking camera shots and a reveal that viewers charitably described as 'crap Vermintide', then I suppose they're on the right track. We also got to see Respawn embarrass themselves and Roger Craig Smith with a cringe-worthy Christmas event announcement for Apex Legends and our bi-annual look at the still-stunning 'Ori and the Will of the Wisps'. Still looks great guys, now you're just got to bring it out!

Next came the announcement for 'Games with Impact' as announced by Beaker and Honeydew from The Muppets. (Still better than when 'Crash Bandicoot' turned up last year.) This was a title that I was a little bit dismissive off last blog, a fact that the Muppets made me feel particularly bad for this year as they announced that the award would be awarded for 'Progressive and inspirational' game making. (So I'll admit I was a little grumpy last time around and apologize.) This award did not end up going to 'Sea of Solitude' like I predicted, but to 'Gris'. A title which I guess is equally as deserving, even if I think 'Sea of Solitude' did it better.

The next award was one that I found particularly amusing given the fact that every title was published by Nintendo. Best Family game of the year boasted such contestants as 'Super Mario Maker 2' and 'Ring Fit adventure', proving that Nintendo is completely unmatched when it comes to supplying the family market. Even Geoff Keighley had a little laugh when it came to this award as he joked about how he "Liked Nintendo's chances for this one." Unfortunately, the title ended up going to 'Luigi's Mansion 3' despite how that game features a truly abominable co-op mode. (Something you'd think would be detrimental in a category built for 'family' games.)

After that there was the award that had to combine sports and racing games due to the lack of decent sports games this year. Anyone could tell that there was no way the sports titles would win as, despite Fifa's dominate numbers this year, none of the folk who settled with FIFA could muster the mental capacity it took to vote online. (Okay, I'm being mean now, I should move on.) This was really a race against the racing titles (see what I did there?) and I felt that it should go to anyone other than Crash Team Racing, due to their abominable polices when it comes to microtransactions. Of course, that means that Crash Team Racing was the only game that ever could win, and they did. (Once again, there is no justice in the world.)

Our next award was awarded in an equally as contentious category; Mobile gaming. For a very long while, mobile Gaming has earned a reputation for showcasing the worst of the worst when it comes to overbearing anti-consumer practises and their corrupt nature has started to leak into the AAA market in the worst possible ways. The Best Mobile game of the years award was supposed to showcase those mobile titles that buck the trend to deliver a worthwhile experience to the player without gouging them for everything they're worth first. And yet, 'Call of Duty mobile' ended up securing the award for it's trophy cabinet over actually innovative and intriguing titles like 'Sayonara: Wild Hearts'. Truly a shame to mobile gaming everywhere.

Working as something of a palette cleanser, the next premiere involved a whole bevy of key words that succeeded in piquing my interest. Devolver Digital, the publisher renowned for supporting creative and cool indie products, The co-creators of 'Prey' and 'Dishonored', two fantastic stealth games, and RPG, the best genre. Bring all those together and you get the top down adventure title 'Weird West', that looks to capitalize on mythology and camp side stories to depict a supernatural cowboy tale. Needless to say, this is definitely a title that I'll be keeping my eye on in the coming months.

Next up was a CG Premiere that did very little in explaining what the actual game was. Once again the folk behind 'Magic: The Gathering' proved their talent at constructing elaborate looking trailers with no substance behind them. Luckily, there was a press release around about the same time clearing things up so I could confirm that this title 'Magic Legends', is actually an upcoming MMO set in the 'Magic' universe. Because that's what we need, another MMO in a market full of MMO's and 'Live-service-MMO-wannabes'. I won't hold me breath for this title turning into anything particularly special.

Once more the age of adverts descended upon us and were greeted by the absolute worst things that humanity has to offer the world. Point in case; that absolutely abominable Google Stadia advert from a couple of weeks back made an appearance. Regardless of being an incredibly hard watch, which is something I very much expect from any gaming-related advert nowadays, the advert itself is woefully misinformed and straight up lies to people on some points. Namely, the fact that Google Stadia runs 4k 60fps, which is something that the actual service does not deliver for the majority of its newer titles. I could dedicate the rest of this blog to picking apart this advert, but I don't want to give it the time of day.

Back to announcements, we received an announcement about one title that is exclusive to the VR realm, and that would be; 'Path of the Warrior'. This trailer started off by mimicking the 'Streets of rage' pixellated style in a bar room brawl, before devolving into a much more unappealing cartoony visage as the perspective shifted form 2D beat 'em up to first-person action. Despite my hang-ups on visual design, I will admit that the title looked pretty fun, especially in the way that the environment played into the fighting, like how the player could pick up and chuck a board dart at his foes. Whether this is an actual full-blown game or just another VR 'proof in concept' remains to be seen once reviews start popping up. (Which should be soon as the game just launched.)

Back we go to the awards part of the event as we moved onwards to Best multiplayer game of the year. This was a selection that had a variety of high-profile titles, all of which were some form of a 'live service'. Once again, I allowed by distaste for developer antics cloud my judgment here, as I gave my prediction to Borderlands 3, figuring it was a title that did well enough with critics to earn a commendation. What I failed to account for was the fact that Apex Legends caused quite a storm when it launched and secured a decent fan base ever since then, regardless of their greedy machinations in the time in-between. Of course, 'Apex Legends' got the title.

I needn't remain upset, however, for the next reveal was of a title that has earned sufficient hubbub in the last year; Ghost of Tsushima. This was a title that boasted an enviable setting, feudal Japan, an exciting premise, grounded samurai combat, and a mouth watering visual appeal. The game practically oozed with it's classic Japanese film inspirations from the field of falling grass lilies from 'Hero' to the 'epic showdown' appeal of 'Enter the Dragon'. It doesn't just 'pay homage' to these titans either, nor does it decide to do some ropey send-up, rather it stands proud as it's own incredibly exciting looking product. One thing in particular I noticed was the way in which the model of the sword cut into people was actually outstandingly stable. (a credit that I don't often award for an impressive feat that I don't often see.) This game is certainly one to watch in the next year.

A couple more 'premiere's came up next, although one of these titles was most definitely announced all the way back in E3. 'Gears Tactics' is the title through which 'Gears of War' which to expand their series into the genre of tactical turn based combat, a genre that I whole heartedly support. It was a bit strange seeing that familiar Gears action taken at a much slower pace, but I know how much more it will lend to the intense reverberance of each decision and so I wasn't put off. We also got a quick glance at what appears to be a competitive action title called 'Raraka Bladepoint' which was created by a studio from China. (Yes, the chat immediately devolved into anti-China sentiments once this game came up.) This was a game that looked similar to 'Ghost of Tsushima' in concept, only in a more stylized and fantastical manner. Despite the country of it's origin, I found myself intrigued.

Back to the awards of the night and we found ourselves met with a decidedly divisive choice in best Ongoing game. Typically this award goes to the game which made the most sweeping change to it's overall structure in that year as it is a sign of the health of that game and those developer's willingness to take risks. (Providing that those updates don't break everything, Battlefield and Fallout 76.) With this in mind, I opted for Final Fantasy XIV knowing of their incredibly well-received shadow bringers update which reintroduced that most beloved of Final Fantasy Story points; a warrior of light. But this is a reward that could have just as easily have gone to Destiny 2, for their switch to free-to-play, or the game that it did ultimately go to; Fortnite, for their 'Chapter 2' update.

The next premier was 'affectionately' labelled 'Furry Fortnite' by fans at the time due to the way it showcased a army of obnoxious bunny rabbits waving guns at each other with blaring music over it all. Unfortunately, that incredibly arresting introduction was only the 'bait-and-switch' for a really dull looking military shooter called '9 to 5'. (The Dolly Parton video game is finally becoming a reality!) The Developer elaborated a little bit by explaining that this game would be a tactical online shooter (so 'Rainbow: Six Seige') built around the 'increadibly original' concept of a world that has become so entrenched in cooperate influence that warfighting has become an everyday job. (Hence the '9 to 5' title.) Let's just hope these developers never find out about 'Borderlands', 'The Outer Worlds', or 'Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots', or they'll be really put out.

The next three awards were quickly rushed through in another quick-fire segment. Which is not the kind of treatment that I was expecting for one category in particular. The Best Esports award ended up going to 'League of Legends' for any number of reasons that I don't understand, never played the game and never will. Best VR game of the year was one I was really interested in, wherever or not the award would end up going towards the title that was of higher quality or the one with more a cultural impact. Things seems to land in the latter camp (Which was where my prediction laid, incidentally) as 'Beat Saber' won the award. Much to my shock, however, the final quick-fire award was dedicated to 'Best Performance', which is an award that typically invoked much fanfare from the crowd. My working theory as to why it was demoted stems from the assumption that they perhaps couldn't lock in some of the actors that were nominated, such as he who won; Mads Milkeson. (My choice.)

Then came the award that had been constantly teased throughout the night and was the only award which I wasn't aware about before the show. I'm talking, of course, about the 'Player's choice' which I can only presume would be rewarded to the title that fans feel is the best the year has to offer. But then, isn't that what the entire voting process is for. Which also brings into question the job of all the reviewer outlets that sign up to the game awards. I don't quiet understand this award, nor it's implications, but I guess that fact that it ended up going to 'Fire Emblem: Three Houses' is commendable enough.

The final musical performance of the night (Excluding the annual 'game of the year medley') was one that Geoff Keighley clearly wanted to tick off of his personal bucket list. And so we all received a performance by Green Day as they shot through a couple of their songs and managed to get the crowd on their feet. (Quite the achievement, I must admit.) Green Day also managed to prove themselves rather unjustly foul-mouthed, which really highlighted the lack of f-bombs that I heard compared to previous years. I even remember hearing one Dev actively mention watching their language. Is Geoff attempting to clean up the awards to bring in more advertisers? Big if true. Oh, and Green Day were here because their newest album was releasing on Beat Saber via an impending song pack. So there's your gaming connection, folks.

Our next premiere was an intriguing title from Amazon Game Studios that seemed to deftly defy common classification. First we saw Romans rendered in such high quality that people immediately assumed it was Ryse 2, then we saw zombie Romans fighting 17th century soldiers in a manner that invoked For Honor 2, and then we saw typical English adventurer/colonizer garb that made us all think of Greedfall. This title was obviously none of them, but a brand new title called 'New World' that promises to be Amazon's first MMO. (Yikes, that's one heck of an undertaking there for your first big budget game. Good luck, guys.)

For the next slate of awards Reggie Fils-Aimé returned, fresh from retirement, to read out a slate of games related to the indie scene. Reggie expressed his personal love for the Indie scene, and expressed how they are the backbone of the industry, a sentiment with which I agree. The Fresh Indie Game award, which is an award delivered to a Studio rather than an game, went to 'ZA / UM' for Disco Elysium, whilst best independent game went to...Disco Elysium. (Goddamn, just what am I missing out on having not played this game?) That team received so many awards tonight that they reached the point where their acceptance speech became little more than 'Thank you'. What more is there to say, honestly.

Once more we brushed past another terrible Stadia advert, this one Christmas themed. Although it was interesting to note that they amended their language in this one by telling us that Stadia offers resolutions 'up to' 4k 60fps. (Way to cover your ass there, Google.) This was followed by two Premieres, one covering a second League of Legends game on it's way; 'Convergence', (Wow those guys are really working at pumping those out, huh.) and Surgeon Simulator 2. The long awaited (?) sequel to the YouTube darling game about having terrible control of your hands and attempting to perform surgery. Only this one is an Epic Exclusive. Yay, for needless exclusivity!

Finally we come to the stand out moment of the night. Oh sure, 'Xbox Series X' got it's unveiling here, two MMO's were announced and we found out that A$ap Rocky is making music for Cyberpunk 2077, but there was only one announcement that had me out of my seat in disbelief. Or should I say, as Geoff did, 're-annoucement'. For right there, as the night was coming to a close, the lights dimmed as we were reintroduced into a familiar faintly-neon penned world, with a familiar voice addressing a familiar detective. This was the night that THE WOLF AMONG US 2 was bought back from the dead! I'm still in shock and cannot express my adoration, but I'll likely need an entirely separate blog to properly process this amazing announcement.

The next category is one that I described as having been made with Death Stranding in mind, and that is an assertion that I very much stand behind. Best game direction was never an award that was going to go to any of the 'tradtional' games due to it's very nature. It has to go to a title that decides to buck the trend, and so the 'Death Stranding' win here was nothing short of inevitable. Of course, the real situation of note was Kojima's acceptance speech and the way in which his translator managed to keep up with one of the longest stream of consciousness that I have ever seen. (He probably made most of it up.)

As we were coming to a close it seems that the Game Awards suddenly realized that they still had a couple bits of fluff to fill in the gap, and so they finally revealed their selection for 'Tweet of the Year'. That ended up going to the "I regret nothing" tweet which accompanied a run through the notoriously difficult Mario Marker 2 map 'World 1-1 with a twist'. there was also a little cinematic for 'The Elder Scrolls Online' which was followed by a brief teaser of next year's expansion, which promises to delve back into Skyrim.

The last world premiere ended up going to honor the two final guest hosts of the show, Michelle Rodriguez and Vin Diesel. They popped up to briefly talk about their love for the gaming scene, which was nice, whilst Vin took the time to reveal that he had seen the trailer for the upcoming 'Fast and Furious 9' (Kind of a derail there Vin, but you bought us 'Assault on Dark Athena' so I'll let you off the hook.) Together they debuted 'Fast and Furious: Crossroads', which is a game that looks... rough. Not exactly the showstopper reveal that you want to go out on.

Finally came time for the big award of the night; Ultimate Game of the Year. (Which comes accompanied with Best Action Adventure game of the year as those awards often go hand in hand.) This was the one award for which I had no inclination where things should end up beyond that 'Death Stranding' shouldn't win it. (It shouldn't have been nominated, but here we are.) You may remember how I made my case for 'Resident Evil 2' to win the award, but lo-and-behold my baby was snubbed as the award ended up going to 'Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice'. No real losers here, as both were obviously deserving titles. Still though... should have gone to RE2.

And that, in a nutshell, was the entire Game Awards night summed and wrapped up nicely. Of course, this won't be the last time that I talk about them, all those premieres that I mentioned deserve their own look-over, but I'll give myself space for them as I feel like that's when I'm at my sharpest. As for the show itself, I was rather happy with how everything turned out. I already know that some folk considered it to be boring and to them I ask "What were you expecting?" This was an Awards show, it's a miracle that we get any announcements during it at all. Plus, I'm a lot more excited about seeing the 'Series X' than I would have done if I saw it at E3, and I'm not sure why. Probably because it didn't come attached with a full list of features and a price tag, allowing us all a full 6 months of speculation. I feel that Geoff did a good job this year, and hope he keeps it up for the future, I've come to enjoy this yearly tradition a whole lot more than Christmas.

The Game Awards: Predictions

Buckle up, this one's a doozy!

It's that time of year again. The days have grown longer, YouTube Rewind dropped today (It was boring, don't bother) and we are stepping ever closer to the final big gaming show of the year; Geoff Keighley's Game Awards. The hollow pageantry of Christmas pales in comparison to the actual excitement that gamers have other the prospect of seeing their favourite games get the recognition that they so deserve. Even those with no intention of voting and throwing in their two cents can enjoy the opportunity to see the spectacle of it all and spy some of the big 'surprise' announcements of the night. (Like the Resident Evil 3 Remake announcement that is definitely coming.)

I'm expressed it before but for me this is the second biggest event of the year, with the big spotlight clearly going to E3. This is the event for which we see industry veterans from all over the world gather in solidarity and love for their craft. (They are probably also paid to show up.) All this has the effect of seriously ramping up the adrenaline for little old me and getting me fully invested in the proceedings. Consequently I get into all the fantastic music, dazzling lights, guest celebrities and inane banter. (Okay, maybe I'm still not entirely sold on the mid-show banter.) But, most importantly, I care deeply about the games on display and want the right accolades to reach the right game, something that I always try top contribute towards by casting my vote. Therefore I thought that it might be fun, this year, to go over my personal assessment for what games should win their respective awards in order to compare them on the night. (A little self indulgence on my part.)

Of course, as eclectic as my tastes may be, I lack the actual funds and free time to have played every game on offer, so when I go through each game it will not always be with first hand knowledge. Also, that has the effect of potentially making my decision biased, but I am confident that there will be no games on this list that I am not, at the very least, familiar with. A huge part of my current knowledge sphere revolves around the big titles of the year so I should be able to take a somewhat measured look at the games on offer. (And if not I'll just retreat to Metacritic and see what they had to say on the games.)

Finally, the games that I picked will be based entirely on their merits as a game and not on their public reception. I realize that this may sound contradictory considering that I just implied I would resort to Metacritic, but let me set things straight that could care less what the general consensus on the quality of the product is. And, of course, my personal award-worthy picks are entirely subjective as they will be games that personally appeal to my tastes, so grain-of-salt and all that good stuff you know how it is. With all that established, let's take a look at each of the main categories one by one in no particular order and ending with 'Ultimate Game of the Year'.

VR/AR Game of the Year

To kick off lets look at- VR/AR game? Whew, there's something I have little personal experience with. As you may have seen me talk about before on this blog, the realm of VR software is one that is woefully short of the rest of the industry so far. Whilst everyone else is pushing the limits of what is capable with the hardware, VR is still stuck up on creating the ideal tools and marketing them at a reasonable price. In fact, at this point the only quality VR device is the Valve Index, which retails at quadruple digits, so that's not really feasible for the average consumer. This has really limited the potential audience of the VR market which, in turn, has made it increasingly less of an attractive proposition for developers to work on. Consequently the AR/VR category only has 5 games to choose from. (Which appears to be the absolute bear minimum that the awards show will allow.)

In the list of games we have 'Asgard's Wrath', a game which slipped in right before the close off date for the games awards and consequently I know little to nothing about it. All I know is that it is slated to be 'the most ambitious VR title to date'; (Which is such common praise amongst VR games it might as well be a mandatory critique.) 'Blood & Truth', which is a schlocky and fun British-action-movie style game with a terrible title; 'Beat Saber', which is essentially 'Dance Dance Revolution' for the VR age and boasting a lot more potential and variety; 'No Man's Sky', which is a retrofitting of a game well on it's way to finding a voice and 'Trover Saves the Universe', which is a humorously irreverent adventure title made and largely voiced by Justin Roiland.

This is a very difficult and peculiar category to pick through as each of the games on other are vastly different in tone and gameplay. 'Asgard's Wrath' and 'Blood & Truth' are both fairly serious narrative driven experiences whilst 'Trover Saves the Universe' and 'Beat Saber' are more geared to be fun adventures to undergo. 'No Man's Sky' is the real standout here, as the game itself has come leaps and bounds since it's rocky launch, and retrofitting VR into the experience feels like a match made in heaven. (Unfortunately the game does little to take advantage of the 'VR' perspective so I have trouble awarding it any credence in this category.)

Ultimately, from a popularist's perspective I would have to give this award to 'Beat Saber', as it the only game which can truly stands out as something more. 'Beat Saber' has been a undeniable craze ever since it's Beta back in May 2018, and I feel it is well on it's way to becoming a true cultural phenomenon in the same vein as Minecraft and Fortnite. (Although maybe not as big.) Additionally, 'Beat Saber' brings the rhythm dancing genre to it's absolute zenith in a manner that makes it fun to partake in, something which I personally never felt even in the height of the DDR craze. Most of the games in this category are noteworthy to some degree, I hear 'Asgard's Wrath' may even be a masterpiece, but only 'Beat Saber' as the potential to enter the annals of gaming history.

Strategy Game of the Year

Next comes the category of game which I have a closet love for, even if I'm terrible at all of them; 'Strategy Games'. This genre is one of those niches that I have always felt seemed isolated from the rest of the gaming world. Strategy developers seem to all hone in on their own special mechanic that they do well and work upon that, making the whole scene seem considerably less competitive than the rest of the gaming world. Additionally, this seems to make fans a lot less combative with each other as everyone seems to seek something different out of their strategy titles. It's all very wholesome to observe and I just wish I was better at the games so that I could be more involved...

For this lineup we have a full house of six including 'Age of Wonders: Planetfall', which is a turn-based 4X space experience with plenty of cool alien races and warring factions to pit against each other in a battle for planetary supremacy, 'Anno 1800', which is a civilization-esque experience wherein players work to build cities and communities and struggle with all the complexities that such a task demands; 'Fire Emblem: Three Houses', which brings the iconic drama and storytelling to the Switch for the first time ever, marrying squad tactic gameplay with tense Japanese storytelling and great characters; 'Total War: Three Kingdoms' (What is it with 'Three' with year?) a massive scale tactical war simulator which finally looks as good close up as it does from afar; 'Tropico 6' which takes the classic 'Dictator simulator' series to it's fullest potential in scope and graphical fidelity (kinda) and 'Wargroove', which is a fun take on the 'Fire emblem' formula from a more approachable angle but still just as fun.

Once again this is a difficult category to pick through, only this time it is because of the pure quality of all games on offer. 'Tropico 6' may not have much of a chance, the game is fun but it's competition are just on another level. 'Age of Wonders' and 'Anno' are two games which someone really needs to be inclined to like, and I'm just not the type of individual who has the patience to build a city or invest myself in another 'future/space/war' environment. 'Fire Emblem' and 'Wargroove' on the otherhand, are both terrific games that are are so similar in some assets whilst so different in others. And the 'Total War' games are always of a high quality, although I hear this latest one is exceptional even amongst it's peers.

This choice is one that comes down purely to preference, but I'd have to give it to 'Fire Emblem: Three Houses', although I could have just as easily chosen 'Wargroove'. Every single game on this list excels at their core gameplay, but 'Three Houses' is one of the only one's that brings a serious and well developed narrative to flesh it all out. Again, 'Wargroove' is no slouch in that particular approach either, but I'm a sucker for melodrama more than light-hearted situations, so I'd have to give my vote to the 'Fire Emblem' title. That being said, this choice was a tough one, and I hope the rest of them prove to be a little more 'open-and-shut' from now on.

Sports/Racing Game of the Year

'Ask and ye shall recieve', it would seem, as up next comes the genre widely known as the travesty of the industry 'Sports/Racing games'. Just to clarify, that insult is entirely directed towards the 'sports' part of this category, as I've always held a huge respect for the level of details and fidelity that racing Developers manage to pull out their games. Sports gaming, on the otherhand, have been in an embarrassingly dire place for years. It is incredibly telling for the quality of this genre that it had to be rolled into the same category as 'Racing' in order to make a full list. (I guess not even Keighley could stomach the though of nominating those two 2K trainwrecks this year 'NBA 2K20' and 'WWE 2K20')

This odd mismatching of genres has yielded a particularly peculiar set of games to pick through such as, 'Crash Team Racing: Nitro-fueled', a remake of the old Crash Bandicoot themed kart-racer which Activision decided to retroactively load with microtransactions in a misguided bid to establish relevance; (and profitability, of course.) 'DiRT Rally 2.0', a decently well received drag racing game with real emphasis on it's realistic driving physics; 'Efootball Pro Evolution Soccer 2020' which is a football game with a title so long that I feel morally obliged to say "Konami, stop it."; 'F1 2019' Which is a high-quality formula 1 racing game that follows the recent 'tacked on single player narrative' trend from recent sports games; (Maybe that's way these categories were merged!) and 'Fifa 20' which, despite a rough and buggy launch, (And that whole back-and-forth about them actively advertising their gamble-adjacent lootbox systems) has proven very successful amongst the 'don't know any better' crowd.

I wish this category was a bit more competitive to pick through, but that just isn't the case at all considering the material I have to work with. 'Fifa' is out, may that franchise and all those who touch it literally burn in the fiery pits of hell. (It's been a while since I've read Dante but I think there's a circle that would suit those corporate sell-outs.) 'Pro Evolution Soccer' may be a better alternative for the aspiring football fan, but it is still just a another sports game and I have little interest in that genre as it hasn't innovated for last decade. 'Crash Team Racing' is a high quality racer, which was apparently good enough to knock 'Sonic Team Racing' out of the nominees, but the poor way in which the microtransactions were implemented means that I have to kick it out the running. All and all that leaves two game with mostly equal merits; decision time.

'F1 2019' and 'DiRT Rally 2.0' are both in competition as highly realistic sports titles, but differ in their primary focus for that realism. Personally, I enjoy drag racing a lot more than the uber-strict rule set of your typical 'Formula 1' style game, but I can't deny how adorable their 'story mode' is. As I am forced to make a ruling, I'd have to edge towards 'F1 2019'  for going that extra mile with the accompanying narrative, but honestly I could never see any of the games on this list ever again and die happy. Slim pickings this year, slim indeed.

Best Score & Music of the Year

Now comes an incredibly subjective category which is sure to leave some folk feeling disgruntled once the winner is ultimately picked; 'Score & Music'. Games have given a lot of business to orchestras over the past couple of decades and that has resulted in some fantastic video game soundtracks peppered around our favourite series. Unfortunately, that has meant that soundtracks really need to stand out and do something different in order to be formally recognized in any manner, such as in an awards show. Such choices can be seen as devoid of objectivity, however, so we'll have to see how things pan out on the day.

Here we can choose from 'Cadence of Hyrule', which is a Zelda themed remodel of the rhythm-based action hybrid 2015 title: Crypt of the Necrodancer; 'Death Stranding' who's score consists of many strange indie bands from Kojima's personal playlist who specialize in abnormal sounds and rhythms; 'Devil May Cry 5', Which is full of all the high-octane heavy instrumentals that one would expect from that series; 'Kingdom Hearts 3' which boasts a whole suite worth of loving orchestral tunes although likely owes it's nomination more to the plethora of Disney song remixes in the game and 'Sayonara Wild Hearts' which is an intentionally hard to define music-based title that is ruled by it's peculiarly basic visual flair.

It is fun, this year, to see that a few prominent music-centric titles have managed to make it to the nominee shortlist. 'Candence of Hyrule' in particular uses a great mixture of tactical planning and rhythm based gameplay to really revolutionize it's genre, whilst 'Sayonara Wild Hearts' seems purpose built to claim a spot in 'the hall of surrealist infamy'. 'Death Stranding', 'Kingdom Hearts 3' and 'Devil May Cry 5' are more traditional choices, with soundtracks that provide nice flavour to the gameplay around it (or, in Death Stranding's case, makes the tedium less soul-crushing.) but I feel that this genre award should go to a title that does something different and remarkable with it's premise.

With that in mind, I would nominate 'Candance of Hyrule' to receive this award as I cannot deny that the idea behind it is ingenious and the execution was perfect. It's hard to convey through writing how well this title plays (without dedicating the next 10 paragraphs to it) but I would serious encourage you to look it up and see who clever an idea this title was. Plus, the visual aesthetic was beautifully pleasing in a manner I just didn't feel from 'Sayonara Wild Hearts'. This could have gone to 'Kingdom Hearts 3' were I judging this in a more traditional fashion, due to my general love for good classic Disney songs. (Although there series has been responsible for more than a few butcherings of said classics, so perhaps it's best they don't get the award. Don't want to give that team any ideas...)

Role Playing Game of the Year

This next category is a big one as it covers one of the biggest genres in modern gaming, we're look at 'Role-Playing Games'. You've likely picked up on it by now, but I am a lifelong fan of RPG games. (As evidenced by the fact that I am currently replaying 'Dragon Age: Origins' as I write this.) For me, nothing compares with embarking on a journey of personal growth and sacrifice, and this a genre that typical depicts both with style and gusto. Recent years has seen a definite lack in AAA examples, but by that same merit those that have materialized have been incredibly high-quality. That fact alone will make the following decision hard.

Here are choices are split between 5 absolute powerhouses. We have 'Disco Elysium' A dialogue-heavy cop game which, I am deeply ashamed to admit, I know very little about. It is doing absolute gang-busters in the review circles, however, so I'm really interested in checking it out;  'Final Fantasy XIV' which did not come out this year but the team did drop their, incredibly well-received, 'Shadowbringers' expansion in July; 'Kingdom Hearts 3' (again) Which was the long-awaited latest entry in the weirdest crossover franchise in history; (Final Fantasy meets Disney? Sure.) 'Monster Hunter World: Iceborne', again not a new release but the 'Iceborne' expansion is said to be substantial and full enough to be a successor; and 'The Outer Worlds' Obsidian's smash-hit retro-futuristic RPG about people vs their cooperate overlords. (Speaking off. That Epic exclusivity sure worked out, huh guys?)

There isn't a weak link on this list as every title has enjoyed well-earnt praise for their efforts. I'm still a tad saddened to see that 'Greedfall' didn't make it on this list (especially seeing as there were only 5 nominees) but I'll send that game my personal love instead. 'Shadowbringers' is allegedly one of the best storylines that 'Final Fantasy' has ever told, and 'Kingdom Hearts 3' seemed to impress everybody with it's ability to juggle old and new players equally despite boasting on of the most ass-backwards narratives in gaming history. 'The Outer Worlds' is steadily growing into a cult classic due to the impeccable timing of it's release and 'MHW' was already a brilliant game with 'Iceborne' said to be more of the same in the best possible way. Folk also commend 'Disco Elysium' for it's dialogue-based gameplay mechanics that are both intuitive and diverse enough to sustain a prolonged gameplay experience. (Plus the official description reads 'Become a hero or an absolute disaster of a human being', which is my favourite quote of the week.)

As gut-wrenching of a choice as this is, I have to land on 'The Outer Worlds' for my personal choice, although I can certainly understand any other option on this list getting the figurative gold. For the sake of my own sanity, I had to disqualify 'Final Fantasy' and 'MHW' for having existed and been active years beforehand and, obviously, I didn't known enough about 'Disco Elysium' to choose it. From there Obsidian's title just edged it out because of how it managed to achieve so much with a brand new story premise and universe whilst 'Kingdom Hearts' had several games to launch itself off of. Again. a difficult choice, but one I feel I made it logically. (Oh, and while we're at it we might as well give 2020's 'RPG of the year' award to Cyberpunk 2077, save us all some time.)

Performance of the Year

Now comes a particularly nuanced topic as we reach the nominees for 'Performace' of the year. Voice acting is one of the most underlooked aspects of video gaming, partially because it reached a point of such universal quality that it is no longer worth pointing out. Be that as it may, there are those few performances that stick out throughout the years for being exceptional in quality. Handsome Jack from 'Borderlands 2' for example, or the Bloody Baron from 'The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt'. Mostly, however, the performance is rounded up into a general assessment of the narrative and scripting, which is fitting seeing as how a great story is achieved from a marriage of all three. But it can still be interesting to pick that one performance which stood out as noteworthy amidst everything else.

This is a list that is full to the brim of the usual suspects, alongside a little platform cross-pollination curtsy of Kojima. We have 'Ashly Burch' for her portrayal of Pavati Holcomb in 'The Outer Worlds', a character who is easily one of the most endearing companion's in the game due to her adorable innocence; 'Courtney Hope' for her turn as Jesse Faden in Remedy's supernatural adventure title 'Control', a performance notable for the intentionally weird scripting that specifically hearkens back to the uncomfortable surreal attitude of 'Twin Peaks'; 'Laura Bailey' for her performance as Kait Diaz in Gears of War 5, a character who was at the centre of a incredibly depicted breakdown masterfully bought to life by one of the queens of the craft; 'Mads Mikkelsen' as Cliff from 'Death Standing', a performance with unbelievable nuance from what I've seen, bought to life thanks to Kojima Production's capable motion capture technology; 'Mathew Porretta' for his role as 'Dr. Casper Darling' in 'Control', which is another weird role from the unsettling game; and, of course, 'Norman Reedus' as Sam Porter Bridges in 'Death Stranding', which is just as physical a performance as Mads'.

I'm no adept actor myself, so when it comes to the skillfulness of certain performances, I'm afraid that I am quite under-informed. I just know what I like and appreciate the sorts of performances that make me stop and want to know more, regardless of who the character themselves are. Therefore I would have to immediately rule out the two characters from 'Control' as, despite being high-quality performances, I was never left wanting more out of either of them. Laura Bailey's Kait was similarly great, but I just don't care enough about the Gears games anymore to have even finished 5, so I can't assess how good the whole performance was. (But it clearly wasn't enough to keep me around.) Burch's Pavati, on the other hand, was one of my favourite characters in The Outer Worlds and I would consider it a personal affront if she doesn't make a reappearance in the game's DLC or sequels. The performance absolutely sells that well written character. Which leaves me with the two weird performances in 'Death Stranding' which, although they seem impenetrable, grabbed me wholly from the moment I first saw them.

I guess it's no surprise, then, that I would personally choose 'Mads Mikkelsen' for this award given everything that his character, most commonly known as 'The Soldier', portrayed. Both Mads and Norman's performances transcended what the script had to offer and spoke to the audience on a visual level, something that I've always found deeply ideal for arresting performances. Mads wins it out for being just that little bit more intriguing, as he always seems to be in every role that actor has ever done. That being said, I will admit that this category is a tad unfair, given that none of the other roles had the benefit of high-quality motion capture software to bring their performances to life. Although, I feel even if they had been, Death Stranding would still stand head and shoulders above the rest.

Ongoing game of the Year

I find this following category to be a tad contentious, personally, as it addresses the best 'Ongoing game'. (Which is the polite way of saying 'Games-as-a-service. And MMO's I guess.) I could talk anyone into a coma about how much I hate game-as-a-service as a model, and how it has tainted almost every game and sullied a good portion of the industry. However, there are still some examples of this genre that aren't total trash, so I guess that if an award has to go out, I might as well attempt to be objective in my judging. (At least to a feasible point, I am only human afterall.)

Despite the absolute deluge of possible candidates for this section, the show only managed to pick out 5. (betraying the low quality-barrier for this type of game.) We have 'Apex Legends', a Battle Royale from Respawn that struggled for relevancy in the early months of this years but seems to have established a footing recently; 'Destiny 2', which has just come out of the otherside of it's transition from a co-owned property to it's own independent beast, with a shiny new 'Free-to-play' badge; 'Final Fantasy XIV', which, as I've said previously, recently dished out it's 'Shadowbringers' expansion; 'Fortnite', a game that needs no introduction and recently revamped a great many systems with it's 'Chapter 2' update; and 'Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Seige', a mainstay of this category with an iron grip hold other the tactical FPS E-sports scene.

Out of these games I have trouble picking out a standout as most all of them has committed to a big change too recently for to assess their ramifications. 'Apex legends'  and 'Seige' are both titles that have undergone significant issues lately and have handled them in less-than-graceful manners. 'Apex' tried to pull off a terrible pricing structure and the team threw a tantrum when they were called up on it and 'Seige' has been besieged (I award myself Inspiration) by overbearing cheating issues of late, which the team merely ignored in favour of getting the next big update out. Destiny 2 has just started the road into 'free-to-play' so I can't say how successful it has been, but 'Fortnite' has at least unveiled that it is willing and able to make sweeping changes to it's gameplay through 'Chapter 2'.

There is one standout from this list and that is one which just about wins out over all the other choices on this list. 'Final Fantasy XIV' and it's expansion 'Shadowbringers' is a huge gold standard across the industry for how to execute an expansion in a MMO environment. (Which is essentially the world/formula that these games-as-a-service seek to usurp.) Every other game on this list has a huge 'but' attached to the game, except for 'FF XIV', which makes this choice incredibly easy to make. (Except, I guess, for Fortnite, but they already won last year's award in this category, I don't want no repeats.)

Best Narrative of the Year

Onward as always, and we shall find ourself before the category preserved for those long-suffering fellows in the writing room: Narrative. I've found that in the recent years, as gameplay has ceased being so much of a guessing-game and has instead been whittled down into a fine art,  Narrative has begun to take front stage as one of the most important factors of any game to take into account. What the story entails and how it will play out is the glue that keeps a great deal of the experience together, afterall, and storytelling is an art worth praising in whatever medium we find it. (Also, given my hobbies, this particular award is very near and dear to my heart.)

Our choices here are actually full of titles we have already mentioned and one new entry. We have 'A Plague Tale: Innocence', a medieval fictionalization of the ravishings of the french rat plague; 'Control', a SCP-esque tale about a organization that specializes in identifying and containing supernatural phenomenon; 'Death Stranding', a visceral sci-fi tale about...  just so much; 'Disco Elysium' a RPG police investigation tale that I still don't know too much about; and 'The Outer Worlds', a satiristic tale about a space system locked in a cooperate hellscape.

There isn't a single notable 'dud' in this whole list, which has made it a little intimidating to shift through, truth be told. 'Death Stranding' for example, is a hard game to come to terms with even with the episodic structure breaking up exposition dumps for the player. 'Control' is very surreal in that patented 'Remedy' fashion and 'Plague Tale' tells a lot it's story in the second half through visual cues and gameplay sections. (And, again, I still haven't experienced 'Disco Elysium.) I will say that, whilst I did enjoy 'The Outer Worlds', I was personally a little disappointed with how neatly the narrative wrapped up, but that's more of a discussion for a dedicated blog at this point.

I really did struggle with this deliberation but ultimately I landed with the under-appreciated 'Control', through process of elimination. 'The Outer Worlds' didn't quite do it for me with it's ending and 'Plague Tale' was atmospheric but the narrative didn't invest me as much as the setting and gameplay did.  'Death Stranding' is the only real competition in this department, but I had to deduct points in the way that the narrative seems hindered and broken up by bouts of dull gameplay. Bouts that were, ultimately, just long enough to take you out of the experience. Although I'm still infinitely fascinated with the story, I just felt that 'Control' executed it's story with more finesse and grace.

Multiplayer Game of the Year

These categories might start hitting you with a sense of Deja Vu as we move into the next area of consideration: Multiplayer game of the Year. This is a category that is feasibly vast enough to cover anything as from a co-op experience to a full blown Multiplayer blow out, the only distinction between this game and 'Ongoing game of the year' is the length to which support is established. (Although considering the one common game that both this lists have, I suppose that distinction also takes 'IOU's into account.) Personally, I think this is the type of category that needs rolling into 'ongoing games' for no other reason then that every Multiplayer game dreams of being a 'game-as-a-serivce' nowadays, making one of these categories functionally redundant.

Once more, we only have 5 choices to choose from, despite the endless supply of potential nominees that could have been picked. Firstly there is 'Apex Legends', here once again to take a swing at the prized positions; 'Borderlands 3', a game which is being groomed to take after it's long-supported predecessor in terms of post-launch content; (I believe their first DLC has just launched, or is about to.) 'Call of Duty: Modern Warfare', the title that practically has a reservation for this particular section of The Games Awards; 'Tetris 99', Nintendo's honest-to-goodness attempt to publish a Tetris-based Battle Royale game; (You can't make this stuff up) and 'Tom Clancy's The Division 2', which I'm just realizing wasn't nominated for 'Ongoing game' and am now genuinely confused.

With the exception of maybe 'Tetris 99', all of these titles have made grand promises of their desire to be long lasting games that stand the test of time. (Even though in 'Call of Duty's case we know that they consider 12 months to be testing enough.) 'Borderlands 3' met with considerable praise for it's Online play, although balancing between some classes is known to be an issue. (Not sure if that's implicitly a 'Multiplayer' concern) and 'Apex Legends' certainly received a lot of positive support before they flushed it down the drain with their greedy business practises. 'The Division 2' is the game that has me most puzzled, however, as it has failed to strike the same player numbers despite a plethora of good reviews and people swearing that the game is better than the first. (seems that game really needs a win.)

It'll have to look elsewhere, however, as my award for 'Best Multiplayer game' goes to 'Borderlands 3' who takes the top spot with little competition. 'Apex Legends' is still in the dog house for me, and will likely stay there for a while, whilst 'Call of Duty' just failed to wow audiences in one of the key areas of development; maps. Tetris 99 feels more like a gimmick than a game, who's existence I literally forgot about until seeing it on this list and The Divison 2 just plain isn't my sort of game. (Not one for the whole 'semi-realistic military looter-shooter' genre.) 'Borderlands 3', on the otherhand, was just an incredibly solid game which improved all that it needed too and bought customization where it wasn't necessary. Out of all the games on this list, that is the only one I would encourage others to pick up.

Mobile Game of the Year

This next section is one that, try as I might, I cannot bring myself to truly care about: and that of course is 'Mobile games'. Historically, these are the titles that are most likely to be soulless cash grabs built with the sole intention of demoralizing the player to the point where they will wordlessly surrender their cash in a bid to make the pain stop. Of course, the games that made it to the 'nomination' section for The Game Awards are of the minority of games that really are imaginative and worth your time, but mere association sucks out any potential passion and means that I am unfamiliar with every title in this section.

In this section we have 'Call of Duty: Mobile', a surprisingly faithful recreation of Call of Duty, albeit with much worse monetisation; 'Grindstone', a colourful looking game which, try as I might, I have been unable to understand. It's a puzzle game I guess. 'Sayonara Wild Hearts', which is a weird pseudo-rhythm game that apparently starts with a voice over read by Queen Latifa; (Okay) 'Sky: Children of Light', which is a 'social-game' that seems to have stolen it's aesthetic from 'Journey'; and 'What the Golf?', Which is a physics based golf game. No need for any real deliberation here, as I don't care for most of these games: I pick 'Sayonara Wild Hearts' because it seems cool. Not my kind of music but, hey.

Indie Game of the Year

From there we get a more interesting collection of games to pick through in the 'Independant' section, wherein we get to thumb through the indie games of the year. This is a section that is typically home to some of the most imaginative titles of the year due to the fact that the developers are encouraged to nurture their creativity in order to stand out from the crowd. (Plus there are no producers attempting to shape the final product into something more 'commercially viable'.) Indie games are the life blood of the industry and I'm always happy to see more of them get represented on the big gaming stage.(Good on you, Geoff.) Now if only these games could get a bigger stage at E3, then we would be getting somewhere as an industry.

Out of the vast array of Indie games that have released thus far this year, we have nominations for 'Baba is you', a delightful puzzle game based around the specifics of programming syntax; 'Disco Elysium'. Okay I'll play it, Game Awards, get off my damn back! 'Katana Zero', an beautiful neo-noir hyper-violent platformer; 'Outer Wilds', an ostensibly mellow space exploration game with a prominent time-loop twist to the whole affair; and 'Untitled Goose game', a YouTube-darling game that capitalizes off the same silly fun as 'Goat Simulator'. (Just with much better controls.)

These are some truly varied titles on offer in this list, as it generally tends to be with the indie selection; but even the more traditional titles, like 'Katana Zero' and 'Outer Wilds', have unique presentations and quirks that make them stand out over something that you might find through the typical channels. 'Baba is you' has to be one of the most intuitive puzzlers ever, due to the way that is bases it's premise purely on logic based equations and 'Untitled Goose game' is fun enough to grab your attention for an hour or two I guess. (Maybe it makes me the literal embodiment of Ebeneezer Scrooge to admit, but I never saw the appeal of games like that.)

Given the very different array of potential choices for this section it was a struggle to pick a winner. Although I know that the game I like most from this list is 'Katana Zero' (It taps into that same sort of anarchic desire that 'Ruiner' does.) I'd have to ultimately choose 'Outer Wilds'. It managed to take a very cliche concept, being stuck in a hour long time loop, and stretch it out into a full game's worth of exploration that somehow didn't grow incredibly stale by the end. Even as you get closer to slowly understanding the mysteries of the universe, you're drawn in to explore further by a fun looping mechanic that makes trail and error fun. (At least that's my choice until I get around to playing 'Disco Elysium.' Then, who knows?)

Games for Impact

This next section of games is one that I historically have a distaste for; 'Game for Impact'. It is meant to denote games that are fueled by emotion consequence and are designed for the soul purpose of hitting you square in the feels. Unfortunately, I am an emotionless, unempathetic, shrew of a human being and so such games have little to no effect on me. Consequently, I just get a little grumpy when this section comes up and I'm besieged by games that folk keep saying are the most emotional experiences that they've been through. "Oh really? Wish I knew what that felt like." (Maybe I just haven't played the right game yet, I dunno.)

Here we have a selection of fun titles including 'Concrete Genie', a VR game about spray tagging images that then come to life in a manner that invokes the spirit of 'Little Big Planet' for me; 'Gris', an abstract, yet beautiful, platformer that centers itself around the concept of 'voice'; 'Kind Words', a game about writing nice letters to real people whilst listening to lo-fi music. A task that I seem viscerally unsuitable for; 'Life is Strange 2', A story about two brothers on the road with supernatural powers thrown in; (I hope this one actually has a conclusion) and 'Sea of solitude' an adventure game based around the theme of loneliness and how it turns people into monsters, literally. (Kinda feeling personally attacked here, not gonna lie.)

I find it hard to judge these games based on raw emotional impact (for the reasons that I just explained) so I'm have to approach them with a look at intent. (Which will also be difficult given that I've literally played none of these games, they're just not my bag.) With that in mind, Concrete Genie seems more like a cool concept than it does an impactful experience, and 'Gris' seems a little too abstract to hit an emotional home run. 'Kind Words' seems conceptually asinine but I can see a certain type of person getting a kick out of it, and 'Sea of Solitude' seems hyper focused enough on its concept to deliver a concise message in a stylistically cool way. 'Life is Strange 2' is the only one that I would have to actually experience in order to decide, as I've seen 'Don't Nod' pull off effective emotional moments and hollow ones. I did play the prequel for 'Life is Strange 2', 'Captain Cosmos', and saw that they focused more on harsh realities to reach the player than abstract imagery, providing they kept that up I could see the main game proving impactful.

However, I would still end up picking 'Sea of Solitude', purely because I believe that the concept lasts beyond it message and translates into a powerful gameplay experience. One could say the same about 'Kind Words' but I'm too hate-filled to share that particular view. Plus I feel that the visual flair of 'Sea of Solitude' is haunting and effective enough to really hammer home the themes. Some might argue that they hit the nail too hard on the head, in fact, but I always prefer a message established over one lazily dropped a few moments before the credits. (not pointing any fingers, 'Don't Nod'.)

Best Game Direction of the Year

Hence forth we move onto one of my favourite categories 'Game Direction'. Defined as those that are recognized for their 'outstanding vision and innovation in game direction and design'. Honestly, I feel as those this is a section that fills up with more flavour each and every year as gaming becomes more evocative and interesting. Hardware is steadily approaching the point where the barrier between imagination and what can be made is steadily shrinking, and with the ever expanding roster of game players, its becoming commercial viable to be innovative and unique. In fact, this year things have even gotten to the point where I genuinely wonder for next year's selection. (Can they top the sorts of powerhouses that we are seeing here today? I'm not so sure.)

This year the list of candidate read 'Control', a game that makes use of a robust physics engine in order to flesh out it's combat, navigation and puzzle solving; 'Death Stranding', a game which challenges what can be considered gameplay by making players transport cargo for 40 hours; 'Resident Evil 2', the remake which resurrected one of the greatest horror games in history in manner that was incredible and unique; 'Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice', a souls game which completely shifted the balance of combat for the 'series' from patience to unrelenting speed and 'Outer Wilds', which boasted a time bending exploration premise that I've already described once. (Oh god, the time loop is happening!)

I've focused on the mechanical side of this category, picking out those fundamental mechanics that really stand out about each game. That means looking at the way that 'Control' allows the player to manipulate physics as they grow stronger (almost feeling like a direct evolution upon 'Half-Life 2') or how 'Outer Wilds' time mechanics make repetition into an actual game mechanic. 'Sekiro' boasts more mobility and speed then any other Souls games, whilst still retaining the unforgettable style whilst 'Death Stranding' finds a way to turn fetch-quests into a driving force for a story, turning the old adage 'it's about the journey not the destination' into a design philosophy. Out of this selection, only 'Resident Evil 2' doesn't innovate in a note worthy way. What that game does do it school anyone who thinks they can do a remake by achieving it's task in a way that doesn't ape the original but surpasses it.

At the end of the day, however, this section is made for those games bold enough to take a risk and execute it fearlessly. Therefore there is no candidate more suited for this award than 'Death Stranding'. Despite feeling so similar to games that we've seen before (especially Kojima's own 'Metal Gear Solid: The Phantom Pain') 'Death Stranding' spirals out dramatically into new and unexpected territory. We're talking about a game direction so bold that most folk still aren't sure if they like this game, but isn't that what this section is all about? I say it is, so 'Death Stranding' gets the award.

Fresh Indie Game (of the Year?)

This next section is a little bit misleading. We have 'Fresh Indie game' (Sponsored by Subway) and it's actually not about specific games. The official site claims that this award is actually 'recognizing a new independent studio that released its first game in 2019' but I have reason to believe there's actually more to it than that. Whatever the case, this is another way in which Geoff wants to recognize the talents of those brave enough to go Indie and I can respect this category for that fact alone. (Even if I'm mildly doubtful of the description.)

Perhaps you'll see what I mean as I go through the candidates themselves. We have 'ZA / UM' makers of 'Disco Elysium', I get the message guys, the game is great; 'Nomada Studio', the folk behind 'Gris', the pretty platformer from earlier; 'Deadtoast Entertainment' for their weird body-physic shooter 'My friend Pedro'; 'Outer Wilds' developer 'Mobius Digital'; 'Mega Crit' for 'Slay the Spire', a card based rogue-like with a sketchy aesthetic and 'House House', the team behind 'Untitled goose game'. (Glad that one got another mention.)

This section first began confusing me when I saw 'Mega Crit', seeing as how 'Slay the Spire' was released back in 2017. (Perhaps this the year was release 1.0, I dunno.) Then there was 'House House' who made 'Push me Pull you' back in 2016. (Maybe they only officially filed as a company after that game?) Whatever the case I have no idea what the criteria is for these category, or what the company itself has to do in order to achieve distinctions in their department. I assume it's based on the quality of the game, but I genuinely have no clue.

With all that confusion, I suppose I'll just pick 'Mega Crit' because I absolutely love 'Slay the Spire' and feel that more people should know about it and play it. It feels like I judging them by the wrong criteria, but I haven't followed the development of these games closely enough to identify which company seems the most productive, so I'll just have to sight read this category. (Quick note to The Awards guys,  the next time you let Subway sponsor one of your sections at least ensure everything is communicated appropriately.)

Fighting Game of the Year

Onwards we move to a category that I've already bought up once before, in my last blog on the Game Awards, 'Fighting Games'. These are the types of games that pride themselves on their mastery of everything basic in terms of control fidelity, as that is the most important aspect of any fighter. I know that feels like an odd aspect of fighting games to hone in on, but it the aspect that I respect the most. With all the attention that is typically paid to big spectacle and set-pieces, other genres often forget about the basics like tight controls. "'Modern Warfare's TTK is a little too long? They'll fix it next game." But fighting games have never had that luxury, due to their deeply competitive nature, leading to a more assured atmosphere of quality in that genre.

That does also mean that we don't see as many fighting games these days as we did back when we had no standards. Point in case, there are only 5 games on the slate this year. We have 'Dead or Alive 6', the Ninja and Kunoichi packed fighter with a frightening obsession with cosmetic DLC; 'Jump Force', an attempt to crossover various Anime characters who have featured in Shueisha's 'Weekly Shōnen Jump' anthology in celebration of the manga's 50th anniversary; (Emphasis on 'attempt) 'Mortal Kombat 11', A grand point in the Mortal Kombat series wherein Nether Realm married the best elements of their other fighting franchise 'Injustice' with the ultra-violence of MK; 'Samurai Shodown', a revival of long dormant fighting franchise that features an unhealthy number of dai-katanas; and 'Super Smash Bros. Ultimate', Nintendo's premiere fighting game that boasts the largest crossover roster in the franchise's history.

At least four of these games are decent enough with 'Jump Force' being a total abhorrent mess that doesn't deserve to share the stage with other games. 'Dead or Alive 6' is a bit greedy with it's monetisation, but the core gameplay is apparently just as tight as ever, which is a compliment many award to 'Mortal Kombat 11' as well. (With many adding that the new 'specials' mechanics changes the dynamic in a positive way.) Samurai Shodown got some positive looks for a revival too, but nothing really compares to the reception enjoyed by 'Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.'

If I didn't make it obvious last blog, there is no way that 'Smash Bros.' doesn't win this award for value for money if nothing else. Those other fighters may all have pro and cons of their own, (I happen to think that MK11 is good enough to pose a good second in this category) but 'Smash Bros. Ultimate' pushes all of the nitpicking aside. This is game that has more variety in fighter play styles, content in maps, progression in spirits, and scope to improve with an ever expanding roster that has no end in sight. The only way it concedes is in Storyline, but no one plays fighting games for the story anyway. Let's be frank.

Family Game of the Year

Now we have the Nintendo category- I mean 'family game of the year.' Although it might as well be directed at Nintendo as every title present has been published under their banner. I suppose it speaks to the shifting priorities of gamers that companies feel less need to market to the family demographic in general and more to niche demographics. (Or as 'niche' as games like 'Call of Duty' actually are.) So perhaps this leaves 'Nintendo' as the only remaining dedicated family developer, but I don't mind that outcome too much as they were the only company put out good family games anyway.

The section is entirely dominated by the big-N with titles like 'Luigi's Mansion 3', which is a bit of a misnomer given the fact that this entry actually takes place inside of a haunted hotel; 'Ring Fit Adventure' which seems to be more of an exercise game, but lets not split hairs just yet; 'Super Mario Maker 2' which pretty much invalidates the need for Nintendo to make another main-line Mario game for as long as they exist; 'Super Smash Bros. Ultimate', again the year's best fighter gets a look in from the awards; and 'Yoshi's Crafted World', which I'm told features absolutely excellent multi player.

I think the key for a good 'family' title is one that can be shared amongst folk who aren't dedicated gamers, which calls for the game in question to be intuitive and not too difficult. Unfortunately, that would disqualify 'Super Smash Bros.' as that is a skill based affair that gets so competitive that familial relations are sure to be ruined and Luigi's Mansions 3, for the plain fact that it's co-op absolutely sucks. Ring Fit Adventure doesn't seem like a recreational game leaving only the Yoshi game and Super Mario Maker to duke it out for the top spot.

Of those two, I feel that 'Super Mario Maker 2' has more legs amidst the family due to the potential for endless content as well as the support from Nintendo. (The game got a huge content update just yesterday.) It's a title that can be picked up by just about anyone and enjoyed by a large variety of demographics due to the universal appeal of Mario. Truly, Nintendo put themselves out of business with Mario Maker.

Esports stuff

The next few sections are all dedicated to that most dull of gaming topics, Esports, and so it's safe to say that I don't care enough to look up any of the candidates on show. Esports is an important part of gaming culture, I won't deny that, but just like football culture, I just couldn't care less for it. If you look at the sort of pretentious arrogance it draws out of people, (Looking at that tweet from Ninja in particular) you might conclude, as I have, that's its just a part of the gaming discussion that I just don't want any part in. Therefore, allow me to commence my quick-fire round.

For Esports teams I pick the Overwatch League guys, San Fransciso Shock, because that's a game I understand. For Esports player I pick Fortnite's Kyle "Bugha" Giersdorf, because he's the only one with a face I don't want to punch. For Esports host I choose Paul "Redeye" Chaloner, because he looks like sad and I want to cheer him up. For Esports game I choose Fortnite, because I think I heard about some kid winning $500,000 on it and that seems note worthy. For Esports Event I pick Overwatch League Grand Finals because, judging from the pictures, it's the only event that didn't rely on 'blue' as their primary ambient colour. (Seriously, what's up with that?) For Esports coach I pick Kim 'KKoma' Jeong-gyun, because he has the kind of face that I would listen to if it told me to do something. And for Content Creator of the year I choose Shroud because Pewdiepie isn't there. (Pewdiepie helped usher in the second coming of Minecraft, how is that not a positive impact?)

Best Community Support of the Year

Back to the actual sections that matter, we have 'community support' which is a topic that I'll happily call: potentially contentious. The site defines this as a game that offers "outstanding community support, transparency and responsiveness" , Which I'm fairly sure counts out 90% of active games and gaming companies today. (I wonder how Bethesda never made it on these lists...) Evidence in this regard can be purely anecdotal, so I prefer to take a wider look at the entire vibe surrounding a game to get a clearer idea of the sort of community 'responsivess' and whatnot.

For this particular selection of games, we actually have the usual suspects to shift through. I'm talking 'Apex Legends', A title infamous for trying to overcharge their customers twice and getting caught out both times; (and the aforementioned temper tantrum) 'Destiny 2', for which Bungie have actually worked overtime in order to rebuild their tattered reputation; 'Final Fantasy XIV' for which I've heard nothing in the way of customer support; (Which I guess is good. No complaints right?) 'Fortnite', which the Epic team tends to keep on top of, seeing as how that game is their big money maker; and 'Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Seige', which is the game that let it's competitive scene devole into a cheating mess while they worked on their next big content drop.

Obviously I have a few biases in this regard, but seeing as how I am a consumer I feel that my residual impressions on my treatment is actually fairly relevant to the topic at hand. Afterall, the insulting way in which Respawn treated it's fans drove me away from 'Apex Legends' for good. (I was just getting the hang of it too.) And 'Seige's cheating pandemic drove a lot of hardcore players away from stories that I've heard. Of course, any large scale video game is bound to have some 'customer support' horror stories, but it's the large scale faux pas that I think are really worth paying attention too. (Honestly, I have no idea why 'Apex Legends' was even nominated.)

I think that I'll award this own to Bungie's 'Destiny 2', just because I've seen the great effort that they've put into fostering their community back up and that's something I feel should be an example to more studios. Fortnite is so big that 'customer support' feels like they're working purely to shut you up and, again, I've heard significantly little regarding FF14's policies so I'm unclear as to why they were ever nominated. This entire category feels like an afterthought.

Best Audio Design of the Year

Next we have those games that are being recognized for their audio design of all things. This is for those games that excel in all those loud effects and noises that make up the vast majority of your download space everytime you buy a new game. I suppose the criteria for proving oneself in this genre stems from the quality of the sound as well as the appropriate implementation, basic stuff from a design standpoint but infinitely effective when performed correctly. These are the kinds of details that often go largely unnoticed the grand scheme of things, but work in the background to make up the full breadth of video game atmosphere.

Once again we have a varied list of games starting with 'Call of Duty: Modern Warfare', a title which popularized uncompressing sound files to improve clarity and balloon download sizes; 'Control', which utilized a large variety of cool sound warping techniques in some the more unique situations; 'Death Stranding', which had some equally weird and wonderful sounds at times; 'Gears of War 5', a game that seems ready to challenge COD for the loud gun-sounds monopoly; 'Resident Evil 2', which is a master class on horror game sound design and 'Sekiro: Shadows die Twice', which is actually closer in it's approach to sound to Resident Evil than it is to it's action-game peers.

This is a category for which I wanted to ignore the aspects of 'quality' sound design, as they are all quality and I don't feel that qualifier is sufficient, and head towards creative sound design. That would immediately knock off 'CoD' and 'Gears 5' as both those games are rather conventional with their sounds and prop up titles like 'Control' that get weird with their sounds. 'Sekiro' and 'Resident Evil 2' know the importance of silence, however, and that does have the knock on effect of amplifying all your subtle sound effects and cues. 'Death Stranding', on the other hand, doesn't weaponise it's sound design quite as well, so I'll discount that too.

Ultimately, I'm left with awarding this choice to 'Resident Evil 2', as I would have to, given that the game bases half of it's tension around what you can hear. (Due to how quiet some the locations can get.) 'Sekiro' lacks the sharp bite (no pun intended) of a fully fledged horror experience, and honestly I'm not sure how any non-horror came can excel in this field. Leave it to the professions in this regard, they know just how to scare your socks off with the sound of a breaking window or the steady rhythmic thud of heavy approaching boots.

Best Art Direction of the Year

Finally we come to 'Art Direction' (as sponsored by Samsung QLED) and find that many of the candidates are titles that we've already seen. It seems that one cannot nail a praise worthy art design without simultaneously excelling in other areas, or at least that's what the Game Awards are telling me. Oddly, this section doesn't seem dominated by beautifully evocative games, but rather spread between conventional art direction and more abstract interpretations. (Geoff probably wanted to give the triple AAA's a fighting chance.)

Titles in this category are very different from one another, starting with 'Control', which has some truly stunning visuals as you reach the later and more surreal stages in the game; 'Death Stranding', which has so many weird visuals that folk still don't know what to be most creeped out by; 'Gris' which I previously criticized for it's weak message but have consistently praised for it's soft art style; 'Sayonara Wild Hearts' which seems purpose built to dazzle art students; 'Sekiro: Shadows die Twice', which mixes conventional fidelity with creative imagination in the trademark 'From Software' way; and the gorgeous 'The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening' remake, which gave everything this adorable child-like plastic varnish.

Once again, objectivity goes out of the window for this category as it ultimately all comes down to taste. (What art style do you like most.) Perhaps you're more in the wheelhouse of those who like fundamentally artsy looking projects, like 'Gris', or maybe you want something that ostensibly appears normal and recognizable but has the potential to become surreal and strange, like 'Control'. Then there are those that merely boast an appealing visual design that never gets tiring to look at, like 'Link's Awakening'. It all comes down to taste.

Which is why, ultimately, I award this accolade to 'The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening'. Even back in it's gameboy glory this was a sweet game to look at with it's top-down 2D sprite characters, but this 2.5D makeover was just too much for my little heart to handle. I suppose my adoration comes from the way that the game updates itself so considerably whilst retaining the simple charm of the original. It's like Nintendo intentional sought to make the game look as gorgeous as the original does in your memory. And if so: mission accomplished.

Action/Adventure Game of the Year

All that is left now are the three biggest awards with the most competitive candidates, starting with 'action/adventure game of the year'. This is the award that goes to those action games that combine combat, traversal and puzzle solving in order create a full product. In other words, this is the category that 'Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order' would have been in if it had made it shelves before that cut off date. Here we can see that the, ever popular, action adventure genre is not only alive and kicking, but thriving with a selection of high quality titles.

This is sure to prove a tough decision for anyone to pick through with games like 'Borderlands 3', the return of the 'looter-shooter' that puts all the modern day pretenders to shame; 'Control', which evolves 'Remedy's Alan Wake formula into a Metroidvania-style adventure game; 'Death Stranding'; wherein traversal is actually one of the key hazards for the player to overcome; 'Resident Evil 2', a game series which practically birthed the puzzle solving survival horror genre; (blah blah, Alone in the Dark, yeah I know.) 'The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening', an action adventure series that went back to it's routes in the most updated fashion possible; and 'Sekiro: Shadow's Die Twice', another spectacular Souls game exploring a beautiful pseudo-Bushido world.

Action adventure games are all about the balance between all the key factors that make the genre work, and all of these games achieve that in spades. 'Sekiro' and 'Control' nail the puzzle solving and traversal elements with consideration whilst 'Resident Evil' and 'Link's Awakening' are all over the combat with puzzles approach. 'Borderlands 3' might focus the majority of it's innovations on it's combat mechanics, but it still a quality game that puts up a strong fight in this line-up. What I'm trying to say is, this is another really difficult decision to make.

However I think this title should end up with 'Sekiro: Shadow's Die Twice' for the way that it embodies all the key elements of the Action adventure genre with a precision and balance. The Combat, traversal and puzzles are not just incidental elements of what makes up 'Seikro' but key aspects of the gameplay experience that are treated with appropriate respect by 'From Software'. Perhaps this type of game would not have been the ideal face of 'action adventure' 20 years ago due to it's punishing difficulty, but today it shines brightly as a modern example of an adventure title realized fully.

Action Game of the Year

So that just leaves us with the completely separate and distinct category of 'Action games'. Hey wait... The Game awards defines this genre as games that excel and are primarily focused on combat, so forgetting about all of that filler in between. This is for all those games that distill the gameplay experience down to the most adrenaline pumping and then smooth the gameplay so that they player is never drawn out of the moment. This is the genre that is the hope of hack-n-slash Devs like Platinum games, as well as pure shooter FPS'.

Therefore it shouldn't surprise anyone that we're looking at a line up which includes 'Apex Legends', the little Battle Royale that refuses to give up; 'Astral Chain', Platinum games' Switch exclusive sci-fi Anime policing simulator, which is just as bonkers as all those descriptors would imply; 'Call of Duty: Modern Warfare'; which impressed most with it's return to 'boots on the ground' combat, even if some of the particulars don't shine as well as they once did; 'Devil May Cry 5', in which Dante the demon hunter returns to a truly cinematic and set-piece ridden remix of the traditional DMC formula; 'Gears of War 5', which prolongs this franchise that honestly ended after the third game; and 'Metro: Exodus', which successfully transported the incredibly tense and stressful Metro experience into an actual open world setting. (But with no puzzle solving so it's still just action.)

With these games it is a lot easier to pick out the best-of-the-best as it comes down to something as simple as how good the combat feels and how close that feeling is to perfection. The only wrinkle now comes from comparing a game with melee combat to one with ballistic combat. 'Call of Duty' managed to get their TTK wrong and had a weaker map rotation than previous titles, knocking it out of the race, and 'Gears of War 5' may be tight from a control stand point, but the series has always lacked the variety to be competitive in a environment like this. 'DMC 5' is an absolute triumph of it's formula, however, as is 'Metro Exodus' and, I'm told, 'Astral Chain'.

My decision for best Action game ultimately goes to 'Metro: Exodus', however, for it's ability to marry that great combat with a great narrative and solid open world gameplay. That's the sort of the game that ended up going above and beyond and thus excelled above it's peers. That being said, those that prefer a hack-n-slash game could certainly be forgiven for choosing DMC, given that the combat it exhibits is some of the best in the franchise. But, once again, this is my list so i play by my rules; 'Metro' takes the prize.

Ultimate Game of the Year

At long last we have reached the grand finale, the one award that trumps all others and is the signature event of the Games Awards. We have reached 'Ultimate game of the year'. This is the award that goes to the game which excels in every single department possible to achieve the best overall experience. That means, even though it may not be the best example of it's specific genre, it is the best example of what a game is and can be. These are the kinds of games that one will inevitably compare future releases to down the road, as it stands as a shining example of quality for all to aspire to. It is a mere honour to be nominated for such a reward, but to win it is to be told your game is an example to the art form.

Here the games in the list are well known, but for prosperity's sake I shall announce them anyway. We have Remedy's 'Control', a supernatural thriller about a young woman delving into a secret government facility in search of her brother; Kojima Production's 'Death Stranding', an implacable sci-fi tale about a man traversing and reconnecting over a post-apocalyptic America; Capcom's 'Resident Evil 2' a horror remake following rookie cop Leon and college student Claire as they struggle to survive a city wide zombie outbreak; 'Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice', a somber tale about a rugged Shinobi on a quest to rescue his kidnapped lord and avenge his stolen arm; 'Super Smash Bros. Ultimate', which is a fighting game cross-over event with the largest official roster in fighting game history; And 'The Outer Worlds', a deeply satirical tale about the Halycon Colony trying to survive the rule of the Halycon Holdings Board.

Each one of these nominees is a masterpiece in it's own right, boasting particular facets and systems that it does better than the others. 'Sekiro' and 'Super Smash Bros.' both have fantastic combat, but in a completely different fashion to one another. 'The Outer Worlds' and 'Control' both have great senses of humor, but they express it in different methods. And 'Resident Evil 2' and 'Death Stranding' both have a masterful comprehension of atmosphere, even if they manipulate it to different ends. All of these similarities wrought with differences makes it nigh-on impossible to whittle down a winner through means of elimination, so it would have to come down to the game which excels in the most categories.

Ultimately I went with the one game that proved capable of transcending it's primary genre to satisfy desires typically satiated by other types of games. The nominee that consistently impressed with it's fidelity, control, atmosphere, gameplay, narrative and tone. The candidate proved fun enough to have audiences come back for repeat playthroughs, something that is rare in this 'instant gratification' world wherein we are usually discard the things we're done with. I picked 'Resdient Evil 2' as my choice for Ultimate game of the Year, and don't think that any other game is truly worthy of that title, given everything I've gone over.

So there it is, in exhaustive detail, my list of predictions for who I believe should win each and every award in the upcoming Game Awards show. It should be fun to go other the picks that I got right and the one which the show got wrong. (I'll be paying extra special attention to the Esports sections, I put real effort into them.) Although at the end of the day the awards themselves are irrelevant and this whole event is really about celebrating the art of video games on the world stage. Does that make my embarrassingly long blog post about award predictions moot? I don't think so. Guess it depends on how you look at it.