In what is surely to be the first of many accolades, Sony Santa Monica’s God of War won “Game of the Year” at the 2018 Game Awards. Kratos’s latest adventure also picked up statuettes for “Best Game Direction” and “Best Action/Adventure Game.”
But the biggest winner of the night was Rockstar’s Red Dead Redemption 2, which picked up four wins last night. The publisher’s “Cowboy Game” collected some shiny hardware for “Best Narrative,” “Best Score/Music,” “Best Audio Design,” and “Best Performance” (for Roger Clark’s work as Arthur Morgan).
The all-mighty Fortnite picked up two awards, “Best Ongoing Game” and “Best Multiplayer,” but the most surprising news of the night might be that Insomniac’s Spider-Man was completely shut out. Best of luck next time to the ol’ webhead.
More than a dozen different games went home as winners at the 2018 Game Awards, and you can find them all after the break.
Jury-Voted Categories
Game of the Year
Recognizing a game that delivers the absolute best experience across all creative and technical fields.
- WINNER: God of War
- Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey
- Celeste
- Monster Hunter: World
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Spider-Man
Best Game Direction
Awarded to a game studio for outstanding creative vision and innovation in game direction and design.
- WINNER: God of War
- A Way Out
- Detroit: Become Human
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Spider-Man
Best Narrative
For outstanding storytelling and narrative development in a game.
- WINNER: Red Dead Redemption 2
- Detroit: Become Human
- God of War
- Life Is Strange 2: Episode 1
- Spider-Man
Best Art Direction
For outstanding creative and/or technical achievement in artistic design and animation.
- WINNER: Return of the Obra Dinn
- Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey
- God of War
- Octopath Traveler
- Red Dead Redemption 2
Best Score/Music
For outstanding music, inclusive of score, original song and/or licensed soundtrack.
- WINNER: Red Dead Redemption 2
- Celeste
- God of War
- Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom
- Octopath Traveler
- Spider-Man
Best Audio Design
Recognizing the best in-game audio and sound design.
- WINNER: Red Dead Redemption 2
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 4
- Forza Horizon 4
- God of War
- Spider-Man
Best Performance
Awarded to an individual for voice-over acting, motion and/or performance capture.
- WINNER: Roger Clark (As Arthur Morgan) – Red Dead Redemption 2
- Bryan Dechart (As Connor) – Detroit: Become Human
- Christopher Judge (As Kratos) – God of War
- Melissanthi Mahut (As Kassandra) – Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey
- Yuri Lowenthal (As Peter Parker) – Spider-Man
Games For Impact
For a thought provoking game with a profound pro-social meaning or message.
- WINNER: Celeste
- 11-11 Memories Retold
- Florence
- Life Is Strange 2: Episode 1
- The Missing: JJ Macfield and the Island of Memories
Best Ongoing Game
Awarded to a game for outstanding development of ongoing content that evolves the player experience over time.
- WINNER: Fortnite
- Destiny 2
- No Man’s Sky
- Overwatch
- Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege
Best Mobile Game
For the best game playable on a dedicated mobile device.
- WINNER: Florence
- Donut County
- Fortnite
- PlayeUnknown’s Battlegrounds Mobile
- Reigns: Game of Thrones
Best VR/AR Game
For the best game experience playable in virtual or augmented reality, irrespective of platform.
- WINNER: Astro Bot: Rescue Mission
- Beat Saber
- Firewall Zero Hour
- Moss
- Tetris Effect
Best Action Game
For the best game in the action genre focused on combat.
- WINNER: Dead Cells
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 4
- Destiny 2: Forsaken
- Far Cry 5
- Mega Man 11
Best Action/Adventure Game
For the best action/adventure game, combining combat with traversal and puzzle solving.
- WINNER: God of War
- Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Shadow of the Tomb Raider
- Spider-Man
Best Role Playing Game
For the best game designed with rich player character customization and progression, including massively multiplayer experiences.
- WINNER: Monster Hunter: World
- Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age
- Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom
- Octopath Traveler
- Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire
Best Fighting Game
For the best game designed primarily around head-to-head combat.
- WINNER: Dragon Ball FighterZ
- BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle
- Soul Calibur VI
- Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition
Best Family Game
For the best game appropriate for family play, irrespective of genre or platform.
- WINNER: Overcooked 2
- Mario Tennis Aces
- Nintendo Labo
- Starlink: Battle For Atlas
- Super Mario Party
Best Strategy Game
Best game focused on real time or turn-based strategy gameplay, irrespective of platform.
- WINNER: Into the Breach
- The Banner Saga 3
- Battletech
- Frostpunk
- Valkyria Chronicles 4
Best Sports/Racing Game
For the best traditional and non-traditional sports and racing game.
- WINNER: Forza Horizon 4
- FIFA 19
- Mario Tennis Aces
- NBA 2K19
- Pro Evolution Soccer 2019
Best Multiplayer
For outstanding online multiplayer gameplay and design, including co-op and massively multiplayer experiences, irrespective of game genre.
- WINNER: Fortnite
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 4
- Destiny 2: Forsaken
- Monster Hunter: World
- Sea of Thieves
Best Independent Game
For outstanding creative and technical achievement in a game made outside the traditional publisher system.
- WINNER: Celeste
- Dead Cells
- Into the Breach
- The Messenger
- Return of the Obra Dinn
Best Student Game
Awarded the best student project created at the high school or college level.
- WINNER: Combat 2018
- Dash Quasar
- JERA
- LIFF
- RE: Charge
Best Esports Game
For the game that has delivered the best overall eSports experience to players (inclusive of tournaments, community support and content updates), irrespective of genre or platform.
- WINNER: Overwatch
- Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
- DOTA 2
- Fortnite
- League of Legends
Best Esports Player
The eSports player judged to be the most outstanding performer in 2018, irrespective of game.
- WINNER: Dominique “SonicFox” McLean
- Hajime “Tokido” Taniguchi
- Jian “Uzi” Zi-Hao
- Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev
- Sung-hyeon “JJoNak” Bang
Best Esports Team
The eSports team judged to be the most outstanding for performance in 2018, inclusive of multi-team organizations.
- WINNER: Cloud9 – League of Legends
- Astralis – Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
- Fnatic – League of Legends
- London Spitfire – Overwatch League
- OG – DOTA 2
Best Esports Coach
- WINNER: Bok “Reapered” Han-gyu
- Cristian “ppasarel” Bănăseanu
- Danny “zonic” Sørensen
- Dylan Falco
- Jakob “YamatoCannon” Mebdi
- Janko “YNk” Paunovic
Best Esports Event
- WINNER: League of Legends World Championship
- ELeague Major: Boston 2018
- EVO 2018
- Overwatch League Grand Finals
- The International 2018
Best Esports Host
- WINNER: Eefje “Sjokz” Depoortere
- Alex “Goldenboy” Mendez
- Alex “Machine” Richardson
- AndersBlume
- Paul “RedEye” Chaloner
Best Esports Moment
- WINNER: C9 Comeback Win In Triple OT vs FAZE (ELeague)
- KT vs IG Base Race (League of Legends Worlds)
- G2 Beating RNG (League of Legends Worlds)
- OG’s Massive Upset of LGD (DOTA 2 Finals)
- SonicFox Side Switch Against Go1 in DBZ (EVO)
Content Creator of the Year
- WINNER: Ninja
- Dr. Lupo
- Myth
- Pokimane
- Willyrex
Fan-Voted Categories
Best Debut Indie Game
Recognizing a new independent studio that released its first game in 2018.
- WINNER: The Messenger
- Donut County
- Florence
- Moss
- Yoku’s Island Express