In the blink of an eye, the year is nearly coming to an end, and that means it’s time for another round of celebrations of this year’s gaming achievements at the annual The Game Awards (TGA 2025). Ahead of the awards show on 11 December 2025, the list of game nominations has been announced, and it’s a big win for smaller developers, with Sandfall Interactive’s RPG Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 leading the charge and making TGA history with a record-breaking 12 nominations.
In addition to being nominated for Game of the Year, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 also clinched nominations for Best Game Direction, Best Narrative, Best Art Direction, Best Score and Music, Best Audio Design, Best Independent Game, Best Debut Indie Game, Best RPG, alongside three of the game’s cast nominated for Best Performance.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 isn’t the only title from a smaller developer gaining recognition at this year’s awards, as Supergiant Games’ Hades II and Team Cherry’s Hollow Knight: Silksong both made their mark this year, with six and five nominations, respectively. Determined not to be beaten by indie games, two major triple-A releases also received major recognition, with Kojima Productions’ Death Stranding 2: On the Beach and Sucker Punch Productions’ Ghost of Yōtei both garnering seven nominations each.
TGA 2025 will be broadcast digitally on 11 December 2025 via Twitch and YouTube, and for the first time, on Amazon Prime Video, so viewers can expect the usual barrage of game trailers and musical performances alongside the awards ceremony.
And like in previous years, Geek Culture will be part of this milestone event for the video game industry and we are proud to be a part of the jury and championing the gaming choices for Southeast Asia.
Here is the full list of this year’s nominations:
Game of the Year
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
- Donkey Kong Bananza
- Hades II
- Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
Best Game Direction
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
- Ghost of Yōtei
- Hades II
- Split Fiction
Best Narrative
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
- Ghost of Yōtei
- Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
- Silent Hill f
Best Art Direction
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
- Ghost of Yōtei
- Hades II
- Hollow Knight: Silksong
Best Score and Music
- Christopher Larkin (Hollow Knight: Silksong)
- Darren Korb (Hades II)
- Lorien Testard (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33)
- Toma Otowa (Ghost of Yōtei)
- Woodkid and Ludvig Forssell (Death Stranding 2: On the Beach)
Best Audio Design
- Battlefield 6
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
- Ghost of Yōtei
- Silent Hill f
Best Performance
- Ben Starr (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33)
- Charlie Cox (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33)
- Erika Ishii (Ghost of Yōtei)
- Jennifer English (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33)
- Konatsu Kato (Silent Hill f)
- Troy Baker (Indiana Jones and the Great Circle)
Innovation in Accessibility
- Assassin’s Creed: Shadows
- Atomfall
- Doom: The Dark Ages
- EA Sports FC 26
- South of Midnight
Games for Impact
- Consume Me
- Despelote
- Lost Records: Bloom & Rage
- South of Midnight
- Wanderstop
Best Ongoing
- Final Fantasy XIV
- Fortnite
- Helldivers 2
- Marvel Rivals
- No Man’s Sky
Best Community Support
- Baldur’s Gate 3
- Final Fantasy XIV
- Fortnite
- Helldivers 2
- No Man’s Sky
Best Independent Game
- Absolum
- Ball x Pit
- Blue Prince
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Hades II
- Hollow Knight: Silksong
Best Debut Indie Game
- Blue Prince
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Despelote
- Dispatch
- Megabonk
Best Mobile Game
- Destiny: Rising
- Persona 5: The Phantom X
- Sonic Rumble
- Umamusume: Pretty Derby
- Wuthering Waves
Best VR/AR
- Alien: Rogue Incursion
- Arken Age
- Ghost Town
- Marvel’s Deadpool VR
- The Midnight Walk
Best Action Game
- Battlefield 6
- Doom: The Dark Ages
- Hades II
- Ninja Gaiden 4
- Shinobi: Art of Vengeance
Best Action/Adventure
- Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
- Ghost of Yōtei
- Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
- Split Fiction
Best RPG
- Avowed
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
- Monster Hunter Wilds
- The Outer Worlds 2
Best Fighting
- 2XKO
- Capcom Fighting Collection 2
- Fatal Fury: City of Wolves
- Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection
- Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O World Stage
Best Family
- Donkey Kong Bananza
- Lego Party!
- Lego Voyagers
- Mario Kart World
- Sonic Racing: Crossworlds
- Split Fiction
Best Sim/Strategy
- Final Fantasy Tactics – The Ivalice Chronicles
- Jurassic World Evolution 3
- Sid Meier’s Civilization VII
- Tempest Rising
- The Alters
- Two Point Museum
Best Sports/Racing
- EA Sports FC 26
- F1 25
- Mario Kart World
- Rematch
- Sonic Racing: Crossworlds
Best Multiplayer
- Arc Raiders
- Battlefield 6
- Elden Ring Nightreign
- Peak
- Split Fiction
Best Adaptation
- A Minecraft Movie
- Devil May Cry
- Splinter Cell: Deathwatch
- The Last of Us: Season 2
- Until Dawn
Most Anticipated Game
- 007 First Light
- Grand Theft Auto VI
- Marvel’s Wolverine
- Resident Evil Requiem
- The Witcher IV
Content Creator of the Year
- Caedrel
- Kai Cenat
- MoistCr1TiKaL
- Sakura Miko
- The Burnt Peanut
Best Esports Game
- Counter-Strike 2
- Dota 2
- League of Legends
- Mobile Legends: Bang Bang
- Valorant
Best Esports Athlete
- brawk – Brock Somerhalder (Valorant)
- Chovy – Jeong Ji-Hoon (League of Legends)
- f0rsakeN – Jason Susanto (Valorant)
- Kakeru – Kakeru Watanabe (Street Fighter)
- MenaRD – Saul Leonardo (Street Fighter)
- Zyw0o – Mathieu Herbaut (Counter-Strike 2)
Best Esports Team
- Gen.G (League of Legends)
- NRG (Valorant)
- Team Falcons (Dota 2)
- Team Liquid PH (Mobile Legends: Bang Bang)
- Team Vitality (Counter-Strike 2)
Kevin is a reformed PC Master Race gamer with a penchant for franchise “duds” like Darksiders III and Dead Space 3. He has made it his life-long mission to play every single major game release – lest his wallet dies trying.
Si Jia
