Im banking hard on E33 to win this tbh.

Silksong, DKB and Hades 2 are somewhat safe bets to be in the category.

Id say MH Wilds and GofYotei fill the slots.

Claire Obscur: Expedition 33

E33 should win.

DS2 will steal a nomination from many better games simply because Geoff is always imagining Kojima laying naked on a couch.

Well… it seems there might be a wild card. Sitting at a 94OC, ARC Raiders is receiving overwhelming acclaim.

This must be one of the most stacked years in gaming, probably the most stacked this generation

It appears that the count for “Winningest Game of the Year” has begun.To nobody’s surprise, Expedition 33 off to a red hot start.

As for the overall tally, my prediction is TBD. I think Expedition 33 wins by a solid margin, but where all the other games land will need some thought. Silksong, Bananza, and (to a lesser extent) Hades II will definitely fill the top positions. Ghost of Yotēi, DS2, and ARC Raiders will also sit very high on this list.

Nominees to be announced Monday. Here’s what I’m thinking:
- Claire Obscur: Expedition 33
- Donkey Kong Bananza
- Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Hades II
- Death Stranding 2: On The Beach
- Ghost of Yotēi (if not, then Split Fiction)

Very competitive year. What would’ve been the GotY winner in 2021 may not even make the cut for nominees. That’s crazy!

2 Days for the reveal. From the most wanted games to appear as the overall GOTY I'm only missing Hades II (Not interested at all), Donkey Kong Bananza and Death Stranding 2 (No PC Version, plus no interest in Bananza).

But honestly, I think no game this year came close to impact me as Expedition 33. The more I listen to the music, the more I watch the plot, the more I play it... It's just stunning. Something that's quite rare to appear at the gaming industry at this time. In a world where we have games with no soul at all, this game just needs one hour to make you excited, sad, confuse...

Silent Hill f was a pleasant surprise, and I would make it the second option for GOTY due to reviving one of my favorite franchises and with quite a strong entry. But I doubt it will even get nominated.

Honestly it disgusts me to even think of Arc Raiders getting a nomination on any category, let alone Game of the Year (though I don't think the latter will happen). That game is pushing hard against the rights of voice actors by replacing them with AI, and no one seems to bat an eye. Gen AI is fucking trash, it depresses me that people happily consume that slop.

Anyway.

Think it's clear the nominees will be Expedition 33, Death Stranding 2, DK Bananza, Silksong, Hades 2, and one of either Split Fiction or Ghost of Yotei (no idea which between these last two). The winner will be Expedition 33 obviously.

Edit: and yeah I'm aware Expedition 33 used gen AI too, because of that one placeholder asset that made its way into the initial release. To what extent they used it we don't know, but hey, at least they cared to pay actual artists to make the final version of everything.

The voices were given to them by actors who agreed to it being reproduced though. All parties involved agreed so it's a case where the usage of it is completely fine I'd say.