As the year comes to a close, it’s time to get ready for the video game equivalent of The Oscars. The Game Awards 2019 is happening next month, and the full list of nominees has just been revealed. There are more than 20 categories and 107 different games represented, but there’s a strong showing by Japanese developers this year.
Leading the pack of Game Awards 2019 nominations by a significant stride is Death Stranding, the highly anticipated Hideo Kojima game that just came out a few weeks ago. It has gotten nominations in a variety of categories, including Game of the Year. It’s joined in that category by three other prolific Japanese releases, though: Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Resident Evil 2, and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice are all nominated for Game of the Year as well. Capcom has done well in nominations for The Game Awards 2019 this year, with their releases Devil May Cry V and Monster Hunter World: Iceborne also picking up nominations. Square Enix has some representation thanks to a number of nominations for Kingdom Hearts III and Final Fantasy XIV.
The full list of nominations can be found below.
Game of the Year
- “Control” (Remedy/505 Games)
- “Death Stranding” (Kojima Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- “Super Smash Bros. Ultimate” (Bandai-Namco/Sora/Nintendo)
- “Resident Evil 2” (Capcom/Capcom)
- “Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice” (From Software/Activision)
- “The Outer Worlds” (Obsidian/Private Division)
Best Game Direction
- “Control” (Remedy/505 Games)
- “Death Stranding” (Kojima Productions/SIE)
- “Resident Evil 2” (Capcom/Capcom)
- “Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice” (From Software/Activision)
- “Outer Wilds” (Mobius Digital/Annapurna)
Best Narrative
- “A Plague Tale: Innocence” (Asobo/Focus Home)
- “Control” (Remedy/505)
- “Death Stranding “(Kojima Productions/SIE)
- “Disco Elysium” (ZA/UM)
- “The Outer Worlds” (Obsidian/Private Division)
Best Score/Music
- “Cadence of Hyrule” (Brace Yourself Games/Nintendo)
- “Death Stranding” (Kojima Productions/SIE)
- “Devil May Cry 5” (Capcom)
- “Kingdom Hearts III” (Square Enix)
- “Sayonara Wild Hearts” (Simogo/Annapurna)
Best Audio Design
- “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare” (Infinity Ward/Activision)
- “Control” (Remedy/505)
- “Death Stranding” (Kojima Productions/SIE)
- “Gears 5” (The Coalition/Xbox Game Studios)
- “Resident Evil 2” (Capcom)
- “Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice” (From Software/Activision)
Games for Impact
- “Concrete Genie” (Pixelopus/SIE)
- “Gris” (Nomada Studio/Devolver)
- “Kind Words” (Popcannibal)
- “Life is Strange 2” (Dontnod/Square Enix)
- “Sea of Solitude” (Jo-Mei Games/EA)
Best Ongoing Game
- “Apex Legends” (Respawn)
- “Destiny 2” (Bungie)
- “Final Fantasy XIV” (Square Enix)
- “Fortnite” (Epic Games)
- “Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege” (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft)
Best Independent Game
- “Baba Is You” (Hempuli)
- “Disco Elysium” (ZA/UM)
- “Katana ZERO” (Askiisoft/Devoler)
- “Outer Wilds” (Mobius Digital/Annapurna)
- “Untitled Goose Game” (House House/Panic)
Best Mobile Game
- “Call of Duty: Mobile” (TiMi Studios/Activision)
- “GRINDSTONE” (Capybara Games)
- “Sayonara Wild Hearts” (Simogo/Annapurna)
- “Sky: Children of Light” (Thatgamecompany)
- “What the Golf?” (Tribland)
Best VR/AR Game
- “Asgard’s Wrath” (Sanzaru Games/Oculus Studios)
- “Blood & Truth” (SIE London Studio/SIE)
- “Beat Saber” (Beat Games)
- “No Man’s Sky” (Hello Games)
- “Trover Saves the Universe” (Squanch Games)
Best Action Game
- “Apex Legends” (Respawn/EA)
- “Astral Chain” (Platinum Games/Nintendo)
- “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare” (Infinity Ward/Activision)
- “Devil May Cry 5” (Capcom/Capcom)
- “Gears 5” (The Coalition/Xbox Game Studios)
- “Metro Exodus” (4A Games/Deep Silver)
Best Action/Adventure Game
- “Borderlands 3” (Gearbox/2K)
- “Control” (Remedy/505 Games)
- “Death Stranding” (Kojima Productions/SIE)
- “Resident Evil 2” (Capcom)
- “The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening” (Grezzo/Nintendo)
- “Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice” (From Software/Activision)
Best Roleplaying Game
- “Disco Elysium” (ZA/UM)
- “Final Fantasy XIV” (Square Enix)
- “Kingdom Hearts III” (Square Enix)
- “Monster Hunter World: Iceborne” (Capcom)
- “The Outer Worlds” (Obsidian/Private Division)
Best Fighting Game
- “Dead or Alive 6” (Team Ninja/Koei Tecmo)
- “Jump Force” (Spike Chunsoft/Bandai Namco)
- “Mortal Kombat 11” (NetherRealm/WBIE)
- “Samurai Showdown” (SNK/Athlon)
- “Super Smash Bros. Ultimate” (Bandai Namco/Sora/Nintendo)
Best Family Game
- “Luigi’s Mansion 3” (Next Level Games/Nintendo)
- “Ring Fit Adventure” (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)
- “Super Mario Maker 2” (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)
- “Super Smash Bros. Ultimate” (Bandai Namco/Sora/Nintendo)
- “Yoshi’s Crafted World” (Good-Feel/Nintendo)
Best Strategy Game
- “Age of Wonders: Planetfall” (Triumph Studios/Paradox)
- “Anno 1800” (Blue Byte/Ubisoft)
- “Fire Emblem: Three Houses” (Intelligent Systems/Koei Tecmo/Nintendo)
- “Total War: Three Kingdoms” (Creative Assembly/Sega)
- “Tropico 6” (Limbic Entertainment/Kalypso Media)
- “Wargroove” (Chucklefish)
Best Sports/Racing Game
- “Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled” (Beenox/Activision)
- “DiRT Rally 2.0” (Codemasters)
- “eFootball Pro Evolution Soccer 2020” (PES Productions/Konami)
- “F1 2019” (Codemasters)
- “FIFA 20” (EA Sports)
Best Multiplayer Game
- “Apex Legends” (Respawn/EA)
- “Borderlands 3” (Gearbox/2K)
- “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare” (Infinity Ward/Activision)
- “Tetris 99” (Arika/Nintendo)
- “Tom Clancy’s The Division 2” (Massive Entertainment/Ubisoft)
Best Esports Game
- “Counter-Strike: Global Offensive” (Valve)
- “DOTA2” (Valve)
- “Fortnite” (Epic Games)
- “League of Legends” (Riot Games)
- “Overwatch” (Blizzard)
Best Esports Player
- Kyle “Bugha” Giersdorf (Immortals, Fortnite)
- Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok (SK Telecom, League of Legends)
- Luka “Perkz” Perkovic
Content Creator of the Year
- Courage — Jack Dunlop
- Dr. Lupo — Benjamin Lupo
- Ewok — Soleil Wheeler
- Grefg — David Martínez
- Shroud — Michael Grzesiek
Which games do you want to win this year at The Game Awards 2019?