You thought game awards season was over with? No, it's still going strong well into the new year. One of the first big awards taking place within the world of interactive entertainment is the Game Developers Choice Awards. The 2019 nominees have been made public.
Over on the GDC website, there's a full list of the nominees in each category for this year's GDC awards. To absolutely no one's surprise, Rockstar Games' Red Dead Redemption 2 leads in nominations.
There are 11 different categories this year, and the nominees breakdown via the following list:
BEST AUDIO
- Celeste
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- God of War
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- Tetris Effect
BEST DEBUT
- Polyarc - Moss
- Mountains - Florence
- Nomada Studio - Gris
- Villa Gorilla - Yoku's Island Express
- Sabotage - The Messenger
BEST DESIGN
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- Celeste
- Into the Breach
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- God of War
BEST MOBILE GAME
- Alto's Odyssey
- Florence
- Reigns: Game of Thrones
- Holedown
- Donut County
INNOVATION AWARD
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Florence
- Nintendo Labo
- Tetris Effect
- Return of the Obra Dinn
BEST NARRATIVE
- Florence
- God of War
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- Return of the Obra Dinn
- Red Dead Redemption 2
BEST TECHNOLOGY
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- Assassin's Creed Odyssey
- Forza Horizon 4
- God of War
- Red Dead Redemption 2
BEST VISUAL ART
- Gris
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- God of War
- Return of the Obra Dinn
- Red Dead Redemption 2
BEST VR/AR GAME
- Budget Cuts
- Beat Saber
- Tetris Effect
- Moss
- Astro Bot Rescue Mission
GAME OF THE YEAR
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Return of the Obra Dinn
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- Celeste
- God of War
Each of the categories seem to contain widely popular and well recognized games for their achievements within the development sphere throughout the past year, specifically in 2018. I do wonder if the developer choices for GOTY will vary from what industry professionals selected for the 2018 Game Awards? Will Red Dead Redemption 2 be able to finally overcome God of War and take home the win? Or will God of War retain?
Last year, the one game gamers and developers alike couldn't stop talking about was The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild when it came time for handing out awards, and it obviously managed to pick up some awards for its design and approach to gameplay and exploration.
This year had a few more games that obviously pushed the boundaries, especially with Marvel's Spider-Man really stepping it up not only in the gameplay department but also with the graphics and the story. Some of those categories are tough to call, but I'm pretty sure Gris is taking home the award for best visual art. Nomada Studio knocked it out of the park with that game's art-style and animations.
I'm also interested in which game will go home with the innovation award? I didn't really think Red Dead Redemption 2 was all that innovative, especially when you compare it to Nintendo's cardboard construction kit in the form of Nintendo Labo. It's also interesting that Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Forza Horizon 4 made the cut for best technology.
We'll find out which games go home with what awards on Wednesday, March 20, 2019, during the Game Developers Conference. That conference kicks off on March 18th and runs through March 22nd in San Francisco, California.
