The Game Awards2020 finally reveals its winner for Game of the Year, andThe Last of Us 2takes the winning spot. There were many other worthy contenders, andGhost of Tsushimaeven managed to win the Player’s Voice Game of the Year. With this contest out of the way, it’s a good time to look back at the history of The Game Awards, examining each winner of the previous years and seeing how well they stack up against this year’s victor and some of the other nominees that had a shot at Game of the Year in 2020.
Though it may seem likeThe Game Awardshave been around forever, it was in fact established as recently as 2014. With that in mind, there have now been a grand total of seven games awarded Game of the Year by The Game Awards, and they are each from a wide variety of genres and studios. WithThe Last of Us 2joining the ranks of this growing hall of fame, it’s important to recognize all those games that came before it as well. Here is every Game of the Year winner from The Game Awards between 2014 and 2020.
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Game of the Year 2014 - Dragon Age: Inquisition
The very first ever The Game Awards show took place in Las Vegas at The AXIS and saw 1.9 million viewers witnessDragon Age: Inquisitionas the first Game of the Year. Though this may seem like a large event, it pales in comparison to last year’s event, which garnered 45.2 million viewers worldwide.Dragon Age: Inquisitionis frequently heralded as one of the bestin the entire franchise, with some fans struggling to decide whether it’s better thanDragon Age: Origins. The game received consistently high reviews, with most rating it at 8/10 or better, and even managed to get a few perfect scores from notable reviewers.
Game of the Year 2015 - The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
In 2015, The Game Awards continued to grow, and this time 2.3 million viewers sawThe Witcher 3: Wild Huntcrowned as Game of the Year. It’s hard to argue with this decision, asCD Projekt Red’s epic RPG is still influential to this day, serving as a benchmark to which other RPGs are compared to. With several perfect review scores and even more placing the game at 9/10, it was difficult to find a reviewer that thought ofThe Witcher 3as a mediocre title. Some would even argue that features from this game have carried over into others in the genre as well.
Game of the Year 2016 - Overwatch
In 2016, The Game Awards honoredOverwatchwith its most prestigious award, beating out the likes ofUncharted 4,Doom, andTitanfall 2. WhileOverwatchcertainly didn’t start the Hero Shooter genre of video games, it did a lot to popularize it. Since then, countless games have taken the same idea and expanded on it, butOverwatchremains an important part of gaming today. It’s impact can be felt far and wide, and few would argue that it wasn’t deserving of Game of the Year in 2016.
Game of the Year 2017 - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Yet another genre defining game,The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild,won Game of the Year in 2017 as The Game Awards continued to pick up steam. By this point, the show garnered and impressive 11.5 million views, more than three times what it got in the last year.Breath of the Wildis still an incredibly popular game, and has gone on toinspire other influential titles like this year’sGenshin Impact. What’s more, the upcoming sequel,The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2, was easily one of the most highly anticipated announcements of the year.
Game of the Year 2018 - God of War
2018’s The Game Awards show saw another significant spike in viewership, with 26.2 million people tuning in to seeGod of Warwin the Game of the Year award. Already an influential franchise, this continuation of the series was hailed by critics and fans alike as the ultimateGod of Wargame. Fans were able to explore a new mythology altogether while seeing the return of Kratos, one of gaming’s most recognizable faces. Just likeBreath of the Wildbefore it, theannouncement of theGod of Warsequelsent fans into an excited frenzy.
Game of the Year 2019 - Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
Though best known for thegenre-definingDark Soulsseries, FromSoftware took home the prize for Game of the Year in 2019 with itsSekiro: Shadows Die Twice. A departure from its typical formula, this game still featured the brutal difficulty that the developer is known for. Competing against it were major titles includingSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate,Outer Worlds, andResident Evil 2, making this win even more impressive. This show once again saw a staggering increase in viewership, with nearly 20 million more people tuning in for a total of 45.2 million.
Game of the Year 2020 - The Last of Us 2
It should come as no surprise to anyone thatThe Last of Us 2was crowned Game of the Year at the 2020 Game Awards, as Naughty Dog managed to create a technical and visual masterpiece unmatched in these fields. This isn’t the only Game of the Year awardThe Last of Us 2has won, as it was also awarded the impressive title at the Golden Joystick Awards.
That wraps up seven extremely successful years of The Game Awards, a show which will likely only continue to grow. AlongsidecrowningThe Last of Us 2as Game of the Year, there were also several exciting announcements made at the show. More likely than not, new information will be revealed about these titles in the coming months, so interested players should be sure to keep one ear to the ground.
The Game AwardscrownsThe Last of Us 2Game of the Year in 2020.
