Indie Games Shine at Golden Joystick Awards 2024

The Golden Joystick Awards 2024 have revealed an exciting lineup of nominees across more than ten categories, showcasing the best in gaming from November 11, 2023, to October 4, 2024. This year marks the 42nd edition of the awards, set to take place on November 21, 2024, and it's particularly noteworthy for its spotlight on indie games. The introduction of a new category for self-developed, self-published indie games underscores the evolving landscape of the gaming industry, celebrating titles created by smaller teams without the backing of major publishers.

Golden Joystick Awards 2024 Nominees

The awards cover a total of 19 categories, ranging from Best Soundtrack to Best Gaming Hardware, and feature a diverse selection of games. Standouts like Balatro and Lorelei and the Laser Eyes have earned nominations in multiple categories, reflecting the strong performance of indie titles this year.

Here's a closer look at the categories and nominees:

Best Soundtrack

• A Highland Song
• Astro Bot
• Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
• Hauntii
• Silent Hill 2
• Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance

Best Audio Design

• Astro Bot
• Balatro
• Robobeat
• Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
• Star Wars Outlaws
• Still Wakes the Deep

Best Game Trailer

• Caravan Sandwitch - Launch Trailer
• Death Stranding 2: On The Beach - State of Play Announce Trailer
• Helldivers 2 - “The Fight for Freedom Begins” Launch Trailer
• Kingmakers - Official Announcement Trailer
• Sid Meier’s Civilization VII - Narrator Reveal Trailer
• The Plucky Squire - Launch Trailer

Best Game Expansion

• Alan Wake 2 Expansion Pass
• Destiny 2: The Final Shape
• Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred
• Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree
• God of War Ragnarok: Valhalla
• World of Warcraft: The War Within

Best Early Access Game

• Enshrouded
• Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor
• Hades II
• Manor Lords
• Lethal Company
• Palworld

Still Playing Award - Mobile

• Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile
• Free Fire
• Honkai: Star Rail
• Roblox
• Marvel Snap
• Monopoly Go!
• Mini Motorways
• PUBG: Battlegrounds
• Squad Busters
• Star Wars: Hunters
• Subway Surfers
• The Sims Mobile

Still Playing Award - Console & PC

• Apex Legends
• Counter-Strike 2
• EA Sports FC
• Dota 2
• Fortnite
• GTA Online
• Minecraft
• Naraka: Bladepoint
• Roblox
• Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege
• Valorant
• Warframe

Best Indie Game

• Animal Well
• Arco
• Balatro
• Beyond Galaxyland
• Conscript
• Indika
• Lorelei and the Laser Eyes
• Thank Goodness You’re Here!
• The Plucky Squire
• Ultros

Best Indie Game - Self Published

• Arctic Eggs
• Another Crab’s Treasure
• Crow Country
• Duck Detective: The Secret Salami
• I Am Your Beast
• Little Kitty, Big City
• Riven
• Tactical Breach Wizards
• Tiny Glade
• UFO 50

Console Game of the Year

• Astro Bot
• Dragon’s Dogma 2
• Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
• Helldivers 2
• Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
• The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom

Best Multiplayer Game

• Abiotic Factor
• EA Sports College Football 25
• Helldivers 2
• Sons of the Forest
• Tekken 8
• The Finals

Best Lead Performer

• Cody Christian (Cloud Strife in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth)
• Kaiji Tang (Ichiban Kasuga in Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth)
• Humberly Gonzalez (Kay Vess in Star Wars Outlaws)
• Luke Roberts (James Sunderland in Silent Hill 2)
• Melina Juergens (Senua in Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II)
• Sonequa Martin-Green (Alvilda in Asgard’s Wrath 2)

Best Supporting Performer

• Abbi Greenland and Helen Goalen (The Furies in Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II)
• Briana White (Aerith Gainsborough in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth)
• Dawn M. Bennett (Aigis in Persona 3 Reload)
• Debra Wilson (Amanda Waller in Suicide Squad)
• Matt Berry (Herbert in Thank Goodness You’re Here!)
• Neve McIntosh (Suze in Still Wakes the Deep)

Best Storytelling

• 1000xResist
• Emio - The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club
• Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
• Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
• Lorelei and the Laser Eyes
• Tactical Breach Wizards

Best Visual Design

• Astro Bot
• Black Myth: Wukong
• Harold Halibut
• Metaphor: ReFantazio
• Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
• Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2

Most Wanted Game

• Atomfall
• Assassin’s Creed Shadows
• Sid Meier’s Civilization VII
• Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
• Deadlock
• Death Stranding 2: On The Beach
• Doom: The Dark Ages
• Exodus
• Fable
• Ghost of Yotei
• Grand Theft Auto VI
• Hollow Knight: Silksong
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
• Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
• Light No Fire
• Mafia: The Old Country
• Monster Hunter Wilds
• Skate.
• Slay the Spire 2
• South of Midnight

Best Gaming Hardware

• Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024)
• Backbone One (2nd Gen)
• LG UltraGear 32GS95UE
• Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Super
• Turtle Beach Stealth Ultra
• Steam Deck OLED

Studio of the Year

• 11 Bit Studios
• Arrowhead Game Studios
• Capcom
• Digital Eclipse
• Team ASOBI
• Visual Concepts

PC Game of the Year

• Animal Well
• Balatro
• Frostpunk 2
• Satisfactory
• Tactical Breach Wizards
• UFO 50

Voting Period

Voting for the Golden Joystick Awards 2024 is now open, with the nominees chosen by a jury including PC Gamer, GamesRadar, the Future Games Show, Edge magazine, and Retro Gamer. Fans can vote on the official website. The Ultimate Game of the Year category's voting period will commence later, with the shortlist unveiled on November 4 and voting running from November 4 to 8, 2024. Games released between October 4, 2024, and November 21, 2024, remain eligible for the Best Performance and Ultimate Game of the Year categories.

As an incentive for voting, participants can claim a free ebook valued at up to $19 from a curated selection, including:

• 100 Retro Games to Play Before You Die
• 100 PlayStation Games To Play Before You Die
• The History of Videogames
• Ultimate Fan's Guide to Pokémon
• Ultimate Guide to Roblox

Fans React to GOTY Nominees 2024

The Golden Joystick Awards have yet to announce the full lineup for the Ultimate Game of the Year category, but the omission of fan-favorite titles like Metaphor: ReFantazio, Space Marine 2, and Black Myth Wukong from the PC and Console Game of the Year nominees has sparked significant backlash among fans. Particularly vocal are supporters of Black Myth Wukong, who have expressed frustration and accused the awards of bias.

In response to the criticism, the organizers tweeted: "Thanks to everyone who has been in touch to ask why Game X or Game Y was not included in our GOTY list. One reason is that we have not launched our GOTY shortlist, which opens on Nov 4." This statement aims to reassure fans that more nominees will be considered in the upcoming voting period.