Game Awards 2025 nominees have been announced; Expedition 33 candidates in 12 categories

A couple of years ago, we thought 2025 was going to be the year of GTA, but now we’re not even sure we’ll see the biggest and most anticipated entertainment product of all time next year. The 2025 Games were amazing in every way. From first-rate and big masterpiece experiences to independent and small games that put their feet even beyond those expensive productions. The Game Awards 2025 nominees have been announced, and among them, Expedition 33 has been the most honored game this year by winning 12 nominations.

We are not exaggerating if we call 2025 one of the best recent years for video games. There were so many crappy games released this year that if you just wanted to play the best of them, you’d be running out of time. From the beginning of the year, when “Monster Hunter Wilds” and “Split Fiction” started, until the middle of it, when it was remembered with “Expedition 33” and “Death Stranding 2”, and these last few months, when “Silk Song”, “Hades 2” and “Ghost of Utah” ruled.

The huge Game Awards jury has also made sure to praise all these games with nominations in various categories.

Expedition 33 got the most nominations, and out of 12 nominations, three of them are only for the actors of the game. After this number, there are two games “Ghost of Utah” and “Death Stranding 2”, each of which was able to receive awards in 8 categories. Further, “Hades 2” has been nominated in six categories, “Silk Song” has been nominated in five categories and finally “Split Fiction” has been nominated in four categories.

The complete list of Game Awards 2025 nominees is as follows:

The most influential game of the year

In praise of a thought-provoking game that tries to convey a social message or specific meanings.

• Consume Me
• Despelote
• Lost Records Bloom and Rage
• South of Midnight
• Wanderstop

The best game in progress

An award for a game that has done an amazing job of delivering fresh content and evolving the player experience over time.

• Final Fantasy XIV
• Fortnite
• Helldivers II
• Marvel Rivals
• No Man’s Sky

Best player community support of the year

In praise of the best behaviors in supporting the players’ community by the company that created the game, including being transparent in providing information and answers and the speed of providing them, taking into account the activities in social networks and the timely release of updates for the games.

• Baldur’s Gate III
• Final Fantasy XIV
• Fortnite
• Helldivers 2
• No Man’s Sky

Best indie game of the year

In praise of the achievements of a game from all creative and technical aspects that was made outside the traditional cycle of producers and with their financial support.

• Abosolum
• Hades II
• Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
• Hollow Knight: Silksong
• Ball x Pit
• Blue Prince

The best first game from an independent studio

In honor of the first game released by a newly established independent game studio.

• Blue Prince
• Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
• Despelote
• Dispatch
• Megabonk

The best mobile game of the year

In praise of the best gaming experience on the mobile platform.

• Destiny Rising
• Persona 5: The Phantom X
• Sonic Rumble
• Umamusume: Derby Party
• Wuthering Waves

The best virtual reality/augmented reality game of the year

In praise of the best delivered interactive experience in a virtual reality or augmented reality environment, regardless of platform.

• Alien: Rogue Incursion
• Arken Age
• Ghost Town
• Marvel’s Deadpool VR
• The Midnight Walk

The best multiplayer game of the year

In praise of the year’s best online and multiplayer in terms of design and gameplay, including competitive and non-competitive co-op multiplayer and massive online role-playing, regardless of platform or genre.

• Arc Raiders
• Battlefield 6
• Elden Ring Nightreign
• Peak
• Split Fiction

Best fighting game of the year

In praise of the best game designed around head-to-head combat.

• 2XKO
• Capcom Fighting Collection 2
• Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves
• Mortal Kombat: Legacy Collection
• Virtua Fighter 5 REVO World Stage

The best strategy or simulation game of the year

In honor of the best game that focuses on simulation or turn-based strategy, regardless of platform.

• Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles
• Jurassic World Evolution 3
• Sid Meier’s Civilization VII
• Tempest Rising
• The Alters
• Two Point Museum

The best sports or racing game of the year

An award in recognition of the best non-simulation simulation sports game as well as racing games.

• EA Sports FC 26
• F1 25
• Mario Kart World
• Rematch
• Sonic Racing Crossworlds

The best action game of the year

In praise of the best game of the year in the action genre, which is completely designed with a focus on combat.

• Battlefield 6
• Doom: The Dark Ages
• Hades II
• Ninja Gaiden 4
• Shinobi: The Art of Vengeance

The best RPG of the year

In praise of the best role-playing game of the year, built around deep customization capabilities and a variety of choices in how to progress, with a large online role-playing game in mind.

• Avowed
• Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
• Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
• Monster Hunter Wilds
• The Outer Worlds 2

The best action adventure game of the year

Acclaimed as the best action-adventure game of the year that combines combat, exploration, and puzzle solving.