The Golden Joystick Awards 2024 have spotlighted a remarkable year for indie games, celebrating their achievements across multiple categories. Held annually since 1983, this year's ceremony is set for November 21, 2024, and will honor games released between November 11, 2023, and October 4, 2024. A standout feature of this year's awards is the introduction of a new category dedicated to self-published indie games, acknowledging the unique contributions of smaller teams without the backing of larger publishers.
Golden Joystick Awards 2024 Nominees
This year's awards encompass 19 categories, showcasing a diverse range of gaming excellence. Indie titles such as Balatro and Lorelei and the Laser Eyes have made significant impacts, securing nominations in multiple categories. The new category for self-published indie games highlights the evolving landscape of indie development, focusing on teams that independently manage both development and publishing.
Below are the categories and nominees for the Golden Joystick Awards 2024:
Best Soundtrack
- A Highland Song
- Astro Bot
- Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
- Hauntii
- Silent Hill 2
- Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance
Best Audio Design
- Astro Bot
- Balatro
- Robobeat
- Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
- Star Wars Outlaws
- Still Wakes the Deep
Best Game Trailer
- Caravan Sandwitch - Launch Trailer
- Death Stranding 2: On The Beach - State of Play Announce Trailer
- Helldivers 2 - “The Fight for Freedom Begins” Launch Trailer
- Kingmakers - Official Announcement Trailer
- Sid Meier’s Civilization VII - Narrator Reveal Trailer
- The Plucky Squire - Launch Trailer
Best Game Expansion
- Alan Wake 2 Expansion Pass
- Destiny 2: The Final Shape
- Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred
- Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree
- God of War Ragnarok: Valhalla
- World of Warcraft: The War Within
Best Early Access Game
- Enshrouded
- Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor
- Hades II
- Manor Lords
- Lethal Company
- Palworld
Still Playing Award - Mobile
- Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile
- Free Fire
- Honkai: Star Rail
- Roblox
- Marvel Snap
- Monopoly Go!
- Mini Motorways
- PUBG: Battlegrounds
- Squad Busters
- Star Wars: Hunters
- Subway Surfers
- The Sims Mobile
Still Playing Award - Console & PC
- Apex Legends
- Counter-Strike 2
- EA Sports FC
- Dota 2
- Fortnite
- GTA Online
- Minecraft
- Naraka: Bladepoint
- Roblox
- Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege
- Valorant
- Warframe
Best Indie Game
- Animal Well
- Arco
- Balatro
- Beyond Galaxyland
- Conscript
- Indika
- Lorelei and the Laser Eyes
- Thank Goodness You’re Here!
- The Plucky Squire
- Ultros
Best Indie Game - Self Published
- Arctic Eggs
- Another Crab’s Treasure
- Crow Country
- Duck Detective: The Secret Salami
- I Am Your Beast
- Little Kitty, Big City
- Riven
- Tactical Breach Wizards
- Tiny Glade
- UFO 50
Console Game of the Year
- Astro Bot
- Dragon’s Dogma 2
- Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
- Helldivers 2
- Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
- The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
Best Multiplayer Game
- Abiotic Factor
- EA Sports College Football 25
- Helldivers 2
- Sons of the Forest
- Tekken 8
- The Finals
Best Lead Performer
- Cody Christian (Cloud Strife in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth)
- Kaiji Tang (Ichiban Kasuga in Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth)
- Humberly Gonzalez (Kay Vess in Star Wars Outlaws)
- Luke Roberts (James Sunderland in Silent Hill 2)
- Melina Juergens (Senua in Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II)
- Sonequa Martin-Green (Alvilda in Asgard’s Wrath 2)
Best Supporting Performer
- Abbi Greenland and Helen Goalen (The Furies in Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II)
- Briana White (Aerith Gainsborough in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth)
- Dawn M. Bennett (Aigis in Persona 3 Reload)
- Debra Wilson (Amanda Waller in Suicide Squad)
- Matt Berry (Herbert in Thank Goodness You’re Here!)
- Neve McIntosh (Suze in Still Wakes the Deep)
Best Storytelling
- 1000xResist
- Emio - The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club
- Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
- Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
- Lorelei and the Laser Eyes
- Tactical Breach Wizards
Best Visual Design
- Astro Bot
- Black Myth: Wukong
- Harold Halibut
- Metaphor: ReFantazio
- Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
- Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2
Most Wanted Game
- Atomfall
- Assassin’s Creed Shadows
- Sid Meier’s Civilization VII
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Deadlock
- Death Stranding 2: On The Beach
- Doom: The Dark Ages
- Exodus
- Fable
- Ghost of Yotei
- Grand Theft Auto VI
- Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
- Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
- Light No Fire
- Mafia: The Old Country
- Monster Hunter Wilds
- Skate.
- Slay the Spire 2
- South of Midnight
Best Gaming Hardware
- Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024)
- Backbone One (2nd Gen)
- LG UltraGear 32GS95UE
- Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Super
- Turtle Beach Stealth Ultra
- Steam Deck OLED
Studio of the Year
- 11 Bit Studios
- Arrowhead Game Studios
- Capcom
- Digital Eclipse
- Team ASOBI
- Visual Concepts
PC Game of the Year
- Animal Well
- Balatro
- Frostpunk 2
- Satisfactory
- Tactical Breach Wizards
- UFO 50
Voting Period
Fan voting for the Golden Joystick Awards 2024 is now open, with nominees chosen by a jury including PC Gamer, GamesRadar, the Future Games Show, Edge magazine, and Retro Gamer. Voting is accessible via the official website. The Ultimate Game of the Year category's voting period will commence later, with the shortlist announced on November 4, and voting running from November 4 to 8, 2024. Games released between October 4, 2024, and November 21, 2024, remain eligible for the Best Performance and Ultimate Game of the Year categories.
Voters are eligible to receive a free ebook, valued up to $19, from a selection that includes:
- 100 Retro Games to Play Before You Die
- 100 PlayStation Games To Play Before You Die
- The History of Videogames
- Ultimate Fan's Guide to Pokémon
- Ultimate Guide to Roblox
Fans Angry GOTY Nominees 2024 Seemingly Snubs Black Myth Wukong
A separate category for the Ultimate Game of the Year nominees has yet to be finalized, keeping the competition wide open. However, the gaming community has expressed frustration over the absence of fan-favorites like Metaphor: ReFantazio, Space Marine 2, and notably, Black Myth Wukong, from the Game of the Year lists for PC and Console.
Particularly vocal have been fans of Black Myth Wukong, who have criticized the awards for overlooking their beloved game. Some have accused the organizers of using the yet-to-be-announced Ultimate Game of the Year category to deflect criticism, with one fan stating on social media, "When you are accused, you use the 'UGOTY' award as a shield... But it can only prove the differences between media and the players."
In response, the Golden Joystick Awards organization addressed the concerns via a tweet, clarifying that the full list of Ultimate Game of the Year nominees has not yet been released: "Thanks to everyone who has been in touch to ask why Game X or Game Y was not included in our GOTY list. One reason is that we have not launched our GOTY shortlist, which opens on Nov 4."
