The Game Awards 2021 Nominees Revealed; Elden Ring, Monster Hunter Rise, Cyberpunk 2077 and More

Geoff Keighley has announced the nominees for The Game Awards 2021 which include Elden Ring, Monster Hunter Rise, Cyberpunk 2077, Deathloop and more.

The Game Awards 2021 Nominees Revealed; Elden Ring, Monster Hunter Rise, Cyberpunk 2077 and More

The nominations for The Games Awards 2021 are now out, with Deathloop leading with nine nominations this year. The categories included for Deathloop are Best Game Direction, Best Narrative, Best Art Direction, Best Score/Music, Best Audio Design, Best Action Game, and Game of the Year. Deathloop also received two nominations in the Best Performance category, with voice actors Jason E. Kelley and Ozioama Akagha up for the running.

In the Best RPG category, there are nominees Cyberpunk 2077, Monster Hunter Rise, Scarlet Nexus, Shin Megami Tensei V and Tales of Arise. All strong contenders but with Cyberpunk 2077’s difficult launch and continued updates to fix the games bugs and performance issues, will it stand a chance against others in the category?

Shin Megami Tensei V just released this month and we have streamed some of it on Twitch this week, with some interesting new features, a ton of wacky demons to meet and recruit as well as some solid cut scenes.

Monster Hunter Rise brought the latest Monster Hunter exclusively to the Switch, but shortly after, announced it would be coming to PC next year, along with the first expansion Sunbreak in summer 2022. Plenty of fan favourite Monsters joining the game, loveable Palamute mount, plus a number of epic crossover events with titles including Mega Man and upcoming Sega collab with none other than Sonic the Hedgehog.

Scarlet Nexus is a brand new IP, a stylish “brain punk” action role-playing game with characters who possess psionic powers. While its combat was fun and refreshing, the balance between narrative and gameplay combat seemed to favour the story more.

Tales of Arise is another strong contender as it had fast-paced action combat, with powerful Mystic Artes and fun switching character mechanics. The paintbrush art style and solid story is going to give at least one or two nominees here a run for its money.

As for Game of the Year, this includes nominees Deathloop, It Takes Two, Metroid Dread, Psychonauts 2, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart as well as Resident Evil Village. Resident Evil Village had stellar puzzles, tall vampire lady, and a whole host of crazy enemies to face. But whether it takes this title of GOTY from Deathloop who seems to be racking up the award nominees this year it’s difficult to say.

Elden Ring also makes an appearance for The Game Awards this year in the Most Anticipated Game category…again, but is in the running with God of War: Ragnarok, Horizon Forbidden West, The Sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Starfield. All solid titles but this isn’t the first time Elden Ring has been nominated for this title, it won this category last year, but now we’ve actually SEEN Elden Ring, it may grease the wheels and take up the award for a second year running, oooohhh Elden Ring.

Which is your Game of the Year? Do you agree with the nominees? Check out the full list below and let us know in the comments below. Don’t forget to go cast your vote on The Game Awards official website if you want your favourite game to win.

Game of the Year

Recognizing a game that delivers the absolute best experience across all creative and technical fields.

• Deathloop
• It Takes Two
• Metroid Dread
• Psychonauts 2
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Resident Evil Village

Best Game Direction

Awarded for outstanding creative vision and innovation in game direction and design.

• Deathloop
• It Takes Two
• Returnal
• Psychonauts 2
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart

Best Narrative

For outstanding storytelling and narrative development in a game.

• Deathloop
• It Takes Two
• Life is Strange: True Colors
• Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
• Psychonauts 2

Best Art Direction

For outstanding creative and/or technical achievement in artistic design and animation.

• Deathloop
• Kena: Bridge of Spirits
• Psychonauts 2
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• The Artful Escape

Best Score/Music

For outstanding music, inclusive of score, original song and/or licensed soundtrack.

• Cyberpunk 2077
• Deathloop
• Nier Replicant ver.1.22474487139
• Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
• The Artful Escape

Best Audio Design

Recognizing the best in-game audio and sound design.

• Deathloop
• Forza Horizon 5
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Resident Evil Village
• Returnal

Best Performance

Awarded to an individual for voice-over acting, motion and/or performance capture.

• Erika Mori, Life is Strange
• Giancarlo Esposito, Far Cry 6
• Jason E. Kelley, Deathloop
• Maggie Robertson, Resident Evil Village
• Ozioama Akagha, Deathloop

Games for Impact

For a thought-provoking game with a pro-social meaning or message.

• Before Your Eyes
• Boyfriend Dungeon
• Chicory: A Colorful Tale
• Life is Strange: True Colors
• No Longer Home

Best Ongoing Game

Awarded to a game for outstanding development of ongoing content that evolves the player experience over time.

• Apex Legends
• Call of Duty: War Zone
• Final Fantasy XIV Online
• Fortnite
• Genshin Impact

Best Indie Game

For outstanding creative and technical achievement in a game made outside the traditional publisher system.

• 12 Minutes
• Death’s DoorKena: Bridge of Spirits
• Inscryption
• Loop Hero

Best Debut Indie Game

For the best debut game created by a new independent studio.

• Kena: Bridge of Spirits
• Sable
• The Artful Escape
• The Forgotten City
• Valheim

Best Mobile Game

For the best game playable on a mobile device.

• Fantasian
• Genshin Impact
• League of Legends
• MARVEL Future Revolution
• Pokemon Unite

Best Community Support

Recognizing a game for outstanding community support, transparency and responsiveness, inclusive of social media activity and game updates/patches.

• Apex Legends: Escape
• Destiny 2: Beyond Light
• Final Fantasy XIV Online
• Fortnite
• No Man’s Sky

Best VR/AR Game

For the best game experience playable in virtual or augmented reality, irrespective of platform.

• Hitman III
• I Expect You to Die 2
• Lone Echo II
• Resident Evil 4
• Sniper Elite VR

Innovation in Accessibility

Recognizing software and/or hardware that is pushing the medium forward by adding features, technology and content to help games be played and enjoyed by an even wider audience.

• Far Cry 6
• Forza Horizon 5
• Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• The Vale: Shadow of the Crown

Best Action Game

For the best game in the action genre focused primarily on combat.

• Back 4 Blood
• Chivalry II
• Deathloop
• Far Cry 6
• Returnal

Best Action/Adventure Game

For the best action/adventure game, combining combat with traversal and puzzle solving.

• Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
• Metroid Dread
• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
• Resident Evil Village
• Psychonauts 2

Best RPG

For the best game designed with rich player character customization and progression, including massively multiplayer experiences.

• Cyberpunk 2077
• Monster Hunter Rise
• Scarlet Nexus
• Shin Megami Tensei V
• Tales of Arise

Best Fighting Game

For the best game designed primarily around head-to-head combat.

• Demon Slayer -Kimetsu no Yaiba- The Hinokami Chronicles
• Guilty Gear -Strive-
• Melty Blood: Type Lumina
• Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl
• Virtua Fighter 5: Ultimate Showdown

Best Family Game

For the best game appropriate for family play, irrespective of genre or platform.

• It Takes Two
• Mario Party Superstars
• New Pokémon Snap
• Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury
• WarioWare: Get It Together!

Best Sports/Racing Game

For the best traditional and non-traditional sports and racing game.

• F1 2021
• Fifa 22
• Hot Wheels Unleashed
• Forza Horizon 5
• Riders Republic

Best SIM/Strategy Game

Best game focused on real time or turn-based simulation or strategy gameplay, irrespective of platform.

• Age of Empires IV
• Evil Genius 2: World Domination
• Humankind
• Inscryption
• Microsoft Flight Simulator

Best Multiplayer Game

For outstanding online multiplayer gameplay and design, including co-op and massively multiplayer experiences, irrespective of game genre or platform.

• Back 4 Blood
• It Takes Two
• Knockout City
• Monster Hunter Rise
• New World
• Valheim

Content Creator of the Year

For a streamer or content creator who has made an important and positive impact on the community in 2021.

• Dream
• Fuslie
• Gauls
• Ibai
• TheGrefg

Best Esports Athlete

The esports athlete judged to be the most outstanding for performance and conduct in 2021, irrespective of game.

• Chris “Simp” Lehr
• Pig “ShowMaker” Su
• Magomed “Collapse” Khalilov
• Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev
• Tyson “TenZ” Ngo

Best Sports Coach

The esports coach judged to be the most outstanding for performance and conduct in 2021.

• Airat “Silent” Gaziev
• Andrey “ENGH” Sholokhov
• Andrii “B1ad3” Horodenskyi
• James “Crowder” Crowder
• Kim “kkOma” Jeong-gyun

Best Sports Event

Recognizing an event (across single or multiple days) that delivered a best-of-class experience for participants and the broadcast audience.

• The International 2021
• 2021 League of Legends World Championship
• Valorant Champions Tour: Stage 2 Masters
• PGL Major Stockholm 2021
• PUBG Mobile Global Championship 2020

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.

• Call of Duty
• CS:GO
• DOTA2
• League of Legends
• Valuing

Best Esports Team

Recognizing a specific esports team (not the full organization) judged the most outstanding for performance and conduct in 2021.

• Atlanta FaZe, Call of Duty
• DWG KIA, League of Legends
• NAVI, CS:GO
• Team Spirit, DOTA2
• Sentinels, Valuing

Most Anticipated Game

Recognizing an announced game that has demonstrably illustrated potential to push the gaming medium forward.

• Elden Ring
• God of War: Ragnarok
• Horizon Forbidden West
• The Sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
• Starfield

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For more news find it here in Vaporum: Lockdown Coming To PS5, PS4 And Xbox One On December 10th and League Of Legends RPG Gets Surprise Sudden Release. Can’t wait until Elden Ring’s release? Check out our Top 10 Soulslikes To Play While You Wait For Elden Ring.