Game Awards 2022: The Game Awards open with ‘Hades 2,’ Hozier performance of ‘God of War Ragnarok’ song, Kevin Conroy tribute
Kevin Conroy #KevinConroy
The Washington Post 4 hrs ago Mikhail Klimentov, Riley MacLeod, Shannon Liao, Alyse Stanley, Jonathan Lee
The 2022 Game Awards are live. The ceremony, an hours-long celebration of video games and their surrounding communities, also serves as a promotional vehicle for upcoming games: Much of the event’s runtime is devoted to trailer reveals and game announcements. Video game industry figures including developers, esports athletes, actors, executives and streamers attend the event as guests, presenters and nominees. In the past few years, celebrities have joined the proceedings as well. Daniel Craig, the actor, Hozier, the musician, and Animal, the muppet, are all expected to appear in this year’s show, which will be held Dec. 8 at 7:30 p.m. Eastern time at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles.
The Game Awards will be available to watch on all major social media platforms, including YouTube, Twitch, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The show will also be streamed in a public Game Awards Discord server.
Geoff Keighley, the former journalist who created and produces the Game Awards, will once again host the event; content producer Sydnee Goodman will host the pre-show ceremony.
Before the awards ceremony, the Game Awards announced its third list of Future Class members. Future Class comprises 50 individuals from across the games industry — including developers, influencers and accessibility consultants, among others — who represent the industry at its most thoughtful and inclusive. The full list of members can be found here.
Follow Washington Post Gaming on YouTube for live streams, gaming news and analysis
Our writers and editors are watching the live broadcast remotely, highlighting the biggest news from the show below. Shannon Liao is reporting from the event’s venue in Los Angeles.
9:50 PM: ‘Diablo IV’ gets new trailer
Activision Blizzard shared a new trailer for its upcoming “Diablo IV,” showing off the game’s dark vibes and a release date of June 6, 2023. It was introduced by a moody musical performance.
“Diablo IV” will be the latest entry in the popular, long-running series, and one fans have eagerly awaited. The game’s development has been rocky, with some employees saying they’ve worked long hours while enduring scattered leadership and many changes to the game and its script. Developers say they’ve been offered stock incentives and DoorDash credits in exchange for crunching, but the team still faces attrition as it works to finish the game.
Activision Blizzard has brought on games industry veterans and an additional studio to help finish the game, but, as one employee told The Washington Post, “At a certain point, throwing bodies at the problem does not solve the problem.”
Read the full story.
By: Riley MacLeod
9:48 PM: ‘Fire Emblem Engage’ expansion pass adds ‘Three Houses’ protagonists
“Fire Emblem Engage” will launch with paid DLC in the form of an expansion pass that adds new in-game accessories, maps and characters from other Fire Emblem games. Extra content will be released to pass holders across four waves throughout 2023, according to a trailer at Thursday’s Game Awards.
The first wave will bring Edelgard, Dimitri and Claude from “Fire Emblem: Three Houses” to the game, as well as the dragon princess Tiki, a reoccurring character in the series. The price of the pass was not included in the reveal. “Fire Emblem Engage” releases on Nintendo Switch on Jan. 20.
By: Alyse Stanley
9:46 PM: Halsey performs as part of ‘Diablo IV’ presentation
The musician Halsey took the stage to sing one of her songs, titled “Lilith,” while Lilith, ‘Diablo IV’s’ main antagonist, simmered in the background. Halsey is dressed demonically, on theme with the Diablo announcement we’re just about to get.
Everyone pulled out their phones to record her performance — an honor they did not show Hozier earlier.
By: Shannon Liao
9:39 PM: Analysis from Shannon Liao, Video games reporter focused on investigative features
The last presentation and some others before it highlight the casualness of the game industry’s version of The Oscars. People swear and improvise onstage a lot.
The musician Aurora Aksnes just apologized while presenting: “Sorry my voice is [messed] up, I was singing karaoke last night,” using a more profane word than “messed.” People in the crowd laughed.
9:35 PM: ‘Baldur’s Gate 3’ finally has a release date: August 2023
“Baldur’s Gate 3” will come out August 2023, according to a new high-fantasy trailer for the highly-anticipated title.
By: Riley MacLeod
9:35 PM: ‘God of War Ragnarok,’ with 10 nominations, is a must-play game
At tonight’s awards, “God of War Ragnarok” leads with 10 nominations in nine categories (the game’s two protagonists, Atreus, played by Sunny Suljic, and Kratos, played by Christopher Judge, were both up for the best performance award, which Judge took home). In his November review, writer Gene Park said “Ragnarok,” the sequel to 2018′s “God of War,” “improves on its predecessor in every way.”
The game just won the best narrative award.
“When it comes to gameplay, [‘Ragnarok’] is an iterative sequel to the 2018 PlayStation 4 smash hit, but that doesn’t tell the whole story,” Park wrote. “ ‘Ragnarok’ by Santa Monica Studio is the best told story in a video game in 2022.”
Read the full review below.
Read the full story.
By: Mikhail Klimentov
9:33 PM: Narrative game ‘As Dusk Falls’ wins games for impact award
Narrative adventure title “As Dusk Falls” from developer Interior Night took home the games for impact award. “As Dusk Falls” features a story about two Arizona families in the 1990s, featuring normal people who go through intense situations. CEO and director Caroline Marchal spoke about the importance of making the game inclusive and approachable to foster empathy among players.
“Super thrilled to be here tonight,” said Marchal. “It means that the game resonated with some of you, very happy, so thankful.”
Adventure game trailblazers Ken and Roberta Williams presented the award.
By: Jonathan Lee
9:28 PM: Here are all of tonight’s Game Awards winners so far
The Game Awards has 31 categories, from best narrative to best esports team. While all eyes may be on the highly anticipated game of the year award, contests for best game direction, indie, score and performance are sure to generate plenty of buzz. New to the lineup this year is the best adaptation award for video game-inspired shows and movies. Here’s who won Thursday night so far:
Best mobile game: Marvel Snap (Second Dinner Studios/Nuverse)
Best fighting game: Multiversus (Player First Games/WB Games)
Best esports game: Valorant (Riot Games)
Best esports athlete: Jacob “Yay” Whiteaker (Cloud9, Valorant)
Best esports team: Loud, Valorant
Best esports coach: Matheus “bzkA” Tarasconi (Loud, Valorant)
Best esports event: 2022 League of Legends World Championship
Best family game: Kirby and the Forgotten Land (HAL Laboratory/Nintendo)
Best performance: Christopher Judge, God of War Ragnarok
Best debut indie: Stray (BlueTwelve Studio/Annapurna)
Best adaptation: Arcane: League of Legends
Best narrative: God of War Ragnarok (Sony Santa Monica/SIE)
Best art direction: Elden Ring (FromSoftware/Bandai Namco)
Best VR/AR: Moss: Book II (Polyarc)
Best sim/strategy: Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope (Ubisoft Milan/Paris/Ubisoft)
Best community support: Final Fantasy XIV (Square Enix)
Games for impact: As Dusk Falls (Interior Night/Xbox Game Studio)
By: Alyse Stanley
9:27 PM: Analysis from Riley MacLeod, Assignment Editor, Launcher
We just got another look at “Nightingale,” a survival/crafting/Victorian/sci-fi game. I recently remembered this game when I saw it in my Twitter feed and forgot I followed it, then got excited about it again. I am now excited again, again.
9:26 PM: Kojima re-wrote “Death Stranding 2” out of fear of predicting even more
As soon as the crowd saw the names of Sony and legendary gamemaker Hideo Kojima on-screen, they start freaking out. Compared to every other name that had been announced so far (including actor Al Pacino) at the Game Awards, the crowd has a real reverence for Kojima’s name; even industry luminaries like Nintendo of America President Doug Bowser looked surprised. After a trailer for “Death Stranding 2” was revealed, Kojima said he had already begun writing the script for the highly anticipated sequel when the covid-19 pandemic hit. He said that draft was scrapped because “I didn’t want to predict anymore future, so I re-wrote it.”
It wouldn’t be the first time the auteur’s work turned into a trippy cautionary tale about our own reality. Speaking to The Washington Post, Kojima spoke about how his dystopian future has become our current reality.
Read the full story.
By: Shannon Liao
9:25 PM: Analysis from Shannon Liao, Video games reporter focused on investigative features
Matt Sophos, a game designer at Sony Santa Monica, credited quality assurance testers and even information technology support workers and facilities staff for the help in winning best narrative for “God of War Ragnarok” — a rarity in the industry.
9:17 PM: ‘Death Stranding 2’ announced by Kojima Productions
Kojima Productions revealed a trailer for “Death Stranding 2,” the hotly anticipated sequel to 2019′s “Death Stranding.”
The trailer depicts Fragile (played by Léa Seydoux) running with a child in tow, presumably the baby BB-28 from the first game. Norman Reedus reprises his role as Sam Bridges, the protagonist of “Death Stranding.” A massive towing mech (this is the best way to describe it) built by an organization named Drawbridge appears out of the muck, followed by a mysterious new character in a red mask and suit.
Kojima came on stage and encouraged everyone to pick apart all the hints about the upcoming game inside the trailer. Kojima, whose games have been impressively prescient with future events, joked that he rewrote “Death Stranding 2′s” story to prevent another global disaster.
By: Jonathan Lee
9:12 PM: Hideo Kojima, famous game developer, makes appearance onstage
At this year’s Game Awards, Hideo Kojima makes an in person appearance.
Kojima says he can’t really talk about details of his upcoming game, “Death Stranding 2,” but he invites people to figure it out based on clues from the trailer. His comment is met with immediate laughter. In fact, every line he delivers is met with laughter.
Kojima also confirmed he is working on another unannounced game besides “Death Stranding 2.”
By: Shannon Liao
9:06 PM: Analysis from Shannon Liao, Video games reporter focused on investigative features
People are really dressed to the nines at this year’s Game Awards, compared to last year’s typical T-shirt and jeans with a suit garb. (Kotaku’s fashion shaming worked!)
9:02 PM: Analysis from Jonathan Lee
Trailer for the upcoming Dune survival MMO title dropped and I can’t wait to manage exciting mechanics like making sure I’m drinking all my sweat recycled through my stillsuit. Hydrating — the Fremen way!
9:01 PM: Analysis from Shannon Liao, Video games reporter focused on investigative features
Actor Cameron Monaghan, who plays Cal Kestis in the upcoming “Star Wars Jedi: Survivor” was met with whoops when he brandished a lightsaber and kissed it. When he said the new, highly anticipated sequel to “Jedi: Fallen Order” will be the best, one person in the crowd shouted, “Yessir!”
9:01 PM: ‘Celeste’ studio shows new game
“Earthblade” will be the next game from Extremely OK Games, the studio behind “Celeste.” It looks like a platformer, and there’s jumping — all the good stuff you’ve come to know and love. It’s coming in 2024.
By: Riley MacLeod
8:59 PM: ‘Star Wars Jedi: Survivor’ debuts gameplay and next villain
Respawn Entertainment shared new gameplay from “Star Wars: Jedi Survivor,” the highly anticipated sequel to 2019′s “Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order.” “Jedi Survivor” is set five years after “Fallen Order” and continues the story of Cal Kestis, a Jedi fugitive portrayed by actor Cameron Monaghan who is waging a personal war against the Galactic Empire.
It looks like Cal’s been through a lot in the interim; he now sports a light beard and several battle scars, seemingly having parted ways with his mentor, Cere Junda. An even darker tone than the previous game, Cal is dodging bounty hunters and Imperial troops as he faces down the mysterious new villain we saw in the original teaser. Monaghan stepped out onto the stage, kissing a lightsaber.
“We’ll see you all when the game releases in March 17 2023 and until then,” Monaghan said. “May the Force be with you.”
By: Jonathan Lee
8:53 PM: Analysis from Jonathan Lee
Now that “The Last of Us” has an official PC release date of March 3, 2023, I, and the three other people on this planet who haven’t played it yet, can finally see what all the fuss has been about.
8:50 PM: Analysis from Shannon Liao, Video games reporter focused on investigative features
This year’s Game Awards audience is a lot more easygoing and entertained than last year’s audience. Perhaps it’s because the Game Awards sold tickets on StubHub and AXS, and fans have filled the back rows. Jokes made in trailers and ads seem to land, unlike last year. Last year, folks sat stone-faced at times or glanced at their phones.
8:50 PM: Kevin Conroy will be Batman in ‘Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League’
Rocksteady Studios, the creators of the critically acclaimed Batman: Arkham series, revealed a new trailer featuring the Suicide Squad facing off against Batman.
The late Kevin Conroy, who played the caped crusader in “Batman: The Animated Series,” lent his voice one last time for the upcoming Rocksteady title. Geoff Keighley and Rocksteady both offered heartfelt tributes to Conroy, who defined the role of Batman to an entire generation of fans.
By: Jonathan Lee
8:43 PM: ‘Stray’ wins best debut indie game of the year
The indie hit “Stray” from French studio BlueTwelve just won best debut indie game of the year.
“I want to thank everyone involved in making this game,” said Producer Swann Martin-Raget. “It was really a work of love and passion.”
Martin-Raget went on to specifically thank “Stray’s” publisher Annapurna Interactive and the team’s partners, families, dogs and, of course, their cats.
Read the full story.
By: Jonathan Lee
8:43 PM: Chris Judge’s heartfelt acceptance speech highlights the early moments
Chris Judge, who took home the first major award for his performance as Kratos in “God of War: Ragnarok,” threw a wonderful, heartfelt change-up into the early quick pace of this year’s Game Awards.
After winning, Judge took the stage, tracked down Al Pacino to hug him, swore into the microphone and then proceeded to issue a stream of thank yous that started with his mother and brother and then rolled on … and on … and on. In full, from the time Judge took the stage, the acceptance speech ran nearly nine minutes — a veritable eternity in Game Awards time. And Al Pacino was waiting on the stage in the background all the while.
It was sweet, it was warm, it was wholesome and it never ever ever ever ever would have happened at the Oscars. Eventually, around the 8:30 mark of the speech, music slowly started to play him off the stage. In all, he thanked his mother, brother, his children, Santa Monica Studios (the maker of the game), studio head Yumi Yang, God of War lead Cory Barlog, “Matt, Rich, Dorrie, Bruno, Erica, Bea, everyone who made that volume so special and so sacred, everyone at every level,” “Ragnarok” director Eric Williams … and there were still four more minutes to the speech.
Host Geoff Keighley has already caught on to the appeal, referencing it with a pair of one-liners after it concluded (including that Judge was trying to give away some free Steam Decks, which Valve is randomly giving away every minute during the live airing to viewers watching on Steam). Safe to say, it’ll be among the top moments of the night when all is said and done.
By: Mike Hume
8:40 PM: Analysis from Jonathan Lee
Bear McCreary is killing it on the hurdy gurdy during this live performance of “Blood Upon The Snow” from “God of War” with Hozier. Fun fact, McCreary used this same instrument for the killer intro song of the pirate show “Black Sails!”
8:30 PM: The next Bayonetta game is a prequel, ‘Bayonetta Origins’
Platinum Games announced “Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon,” which depicts the eponymous hero as a child on a quest to save her mother. Before she was the witch known as Bayonetta, she was named Cereza. The upcoming prequel is a top-down action adventure game, unlike the mainline games which are in third-person.
The game is set to release March 17, 2023 on the Nintendo Switch.
By: Jonathan Lee
8:28 PM: Kratos means a lot to fans, no more so than actor Christopher Judge
The actor behind Kratos, Christopher Judge, got emotional during his acceptance speech for best performance at this year’s Game Awards, talking about the work that went into “God of War: Ragnarok,” particularly its themes of fatherhood.
Judge, a father himself, played the demigod in “Ragnarok” and the 2018 series reboot. During his speech, he thanked Cory Barlog and Eric Williams, two of the leads behind God of War from day one, who spoke with The Washington Post last month about the trajectory of Kratos’s character development over the course of the decades-long series.
Read the full story here.
By: Alyse Stanley
8:27 PM: ‘Judas,’ from Bioshock creator Ken Levine, teased
Keighley just teased “Judas,” a new game from Ghost Story, a studio founded by Ken Levine, the creator of the BioShock franchise.
No additional information around platforms or release date were shared.
By: Shannon Liao
8:24 PM: Supergiant Games announces ‘Hades II’
Indie developer Supergiant Games announced “Hades II.” The reveal trailer depicted a woman with a wreath crown fighting against a shadowy opponent in witch’s robes. The protagonist is on a quest to kill Kronos, the primordial Greek god of time, and to save her unnamed father.
As with the first game, “Hades II” will be developed in early access.
Review: ‘Hades’ is a storytelling masterclass with ample lessons for other games
By: Jonathan Lee
8:20 PM: Christopher Judge takes home best performance of the year
Christopher Judge won best performance of the year for his role as the vengeful demigod Kratos in “God of War: Ragnarok,” receiving his trophy from none other than Al Pacino. Pacino arrived as a surprised guest and presenter for the category.
“S—,” said Judge, in shock. “Now I see why I couldn’t get more than a plus one.”
Judge, who came dripped out in a gold blazer and bleached blonde locks, profusely thanked his mother and his children. He also thanked the team at Santa Monica Studio, specifically shouting out directors Cory Balrog and Eric Williams. He quipped that his opportunity to play Kratos was the first time that trickle-down economics worked and told co-star Sunny Suljic (who played Kratos’ son, Atreus) that he had voted for him to win.
Review: ‘God of War Ragnarok’ improves on its predecessor in every way
By: Jonathan Lee
8:15 PM: Al Pacino presents award for best performance
As actor Al Pacino gets onstage, the crowd cheers and even game developers are drawn into the spectacle. They guffaw at his jokes.
“In truth, I don’t play a whole lot of video games,” Pacino said, while adding that his children play and he’s impressed.
Pacino added that he’s entertained by the unique and immersive way that video games tell their stories. Pacino said that as an actor, he’s learned that fundamentally, regardless of the platform an actor uses, it’s about storytelling. He said he was here to celebrate actors in video games.
By: Shannon Liao
8:13 PM: Phil Spencer, head of Xbox, is here, after a day of bad news for Microsoft
Phil Spencer is in the audience of The Game Awards. It’s not that surprising — you might’ve heard that it’s video games’ biggest night — but it’s probably a rough day for the head of Xbox. Earlier, the Federal Trade Commission sued to block Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. If you’ve got questions about what that all means, we’ve got answers at the link below.
Read the full story.
By: Riley MacLeod
8:08 PM: ‘Among Us’ reveals gameplay of upcoming Hide ’n Seek mode
“Among Us” studio Innersloth announced in June 2021 that it is working on an official implementation of a hide-and-seek mode, a popular unofficial game mode created by players, and revealed gameplay for the first time today.
Hide-and-seek mode inverts the typical formula of the multiplayer social deduction game by having impostors announce their identity, giving the rest of the players a head start to first hide and then hunt them down before the crew members can finish their tasks. An official release date was not announced.
By: Jonathan Lee and Jonathan Lee
8:05 PM: Kirby just won an award. Learn about the character’s real-life inspiration
Did you know about Kirby’s real-life inspiration?
“John Joseph Kirby, a Washington, D.C., native, was an attorney who helped lay the foundation of equitable voting rights policies in the United States and who worked toward law enforcement accountability during social unrest,” wrote Gene Park in 2019. “Kirby … also spent time as a civil servant and activist who bore witness to modern democracy’s greatest and ongoing challenges.”
Read the full story.
By: Mikhail Klimentov
8:00 PM: ‘Horizon: Call of the Mountain’ gets new gameplay trailer
Guerrilla Games’ VR foray for its award-winning dystopian Horizon series, “Horizon: Call of the Mountain,” showed off some of the terrifying robo-critters the game’s protagonist will face in a new gameplay trailer.
Thunderjaws and Bellowbacks have always been huge critters to tackle with a bow and arrow, but they manage to look even more formidable from a first-person view. The game releases on PlayStation VR on Feb. 22, 2023.
Perspective: VR is funny. Why isn’t it pitched that way?
7:59 PM: Analysis from Mikhail Klimentov, Assignment editor for Launcher, focusing on video games, esports and the Internet
The pre-show has shown an admirably diverse set of games so far, but there is one commonality: There are a lot of trailers with dogs in them. Some are even pettable. I’m not complaining.
7:50 PM: Jacob ‘Yay’ Whiteaker just won best esports athlete. This one’s a no-brainer.
Jacob ‘Yay’ Whiteaker, a “Valorant” player on Cloud9, just won the best esports athlete award. We just about called this one in an interview in September, when we asked him what it was like being the best player at the game’s world championship.
“From a statistical standpoint, I’m definitely the best player,” Whiteaker said. “But in terms of how I feel about that, I don’t know. I don’t know if I feel a lot. … While I’m the best player in ‘Valorant’ … it’s just ‘Valorant.’ It’s a video game.”
Read the full story.
By: Mikhail Klimentov
7:45 PM: ‘MultiVersus’ wins Best Fighting Game
DC Comics’ competitor to the Smash Brothers franchise, “MultiVersus,” has won Best Fighting Game at Thursday’s Game Awards. It’s the first title from Player First Games.
In a heartfelt speech, director Tony Huynh thanked fans and publisher Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment for taking a chance on his fledgling studio.
Read the full story here.
By: Jonathan Lee
7:43 PM: Dead Cells x Castlevania is coming
Dead Cells and Castlevania are teaming up. The Beheaded from “Dead Cells” is teaming up with Alucard and Simon Belmont of “Castlevania.” Seeing as how “Dead Cells” was heavily inspired by the Castlevania series, this is a fitting DLC for studio Motion Twin’s signature game.
“Return to Castlevania” is slated to release in early 2023.
By: Jonathan Lee
7:41 PM: ‘Marvel Snap,’ which won best mobile game, is great to play on the toilet
Card game “Marvel Snap” took the trophy for Best Mobile Game. “Marvel Snap” is the brainchild of Ben Brode, former game director of Blizzard Entertainment’s “Hearthstone.”
“We came up with the idea for ‘Marvel Snap’ pretty quickly,” Brode told The Washington Post. “In fact, it was so fun so fast, we actually put it on pause and said, ‘Look, we’ve got to explore some other stuff. We can’t have this good of an idea this quickly.’ ”
It’s also a great game to play on the toilet!
Read the full story.
By: Jonathan Lee
7:39 PM: People are bringing their best fashion to The Game Awards
The Game Awards this year look well dressed compared to previous years, after attendees noted a Kotaku article that called out game developers for their various states of dress.
One attendee, Dayna Eileen, executive editor for CG Magazine, told The Washington Post, “That article came out and everybody started panicking. And literally I was at the mall, we need to buy everything new.”
Eileen reconsidered her entire outfit after seeing the article and decided on a pair of fashionable tights paired with a black dress. Other stylish attendees told The Post that they had indeed seen the story and took it into consideration when dressing up.
By: Shannon Liao
7:20 PM: Analysis from Jonathan Lee
The preshow hasn’t started yet, but I’ve seen an unending wave of people using their Prime subs on the Game Awards Twitch channel. Is there an entire population of Twitch viewers who reserve their Primes every year just to spend it on the Game Awards?
7:15 PM: ‘Stray,’ a game with a meow button, has 6 nominations
“Stray,” BlueTwelve Studio’s charming game where you play a cat exploring a dystopian city full of robots, is up for six awards at the Game Awards tonight, including game of the year. Its other categories include best action/adventure, best indie and best debut indie. TL;DR: The cat game is good.
Playing video games with an animal star can be a stressful experience, but luckily “Stray’s” cat protagonist can’t get seriously hurt. You climb to places you shouldn’t, solve some light puzzles, sit in robots’ laps — and there’s even a button that lets you meow. Our reviewer, Alyse Stanley, wrote of the game: “It’s adorable. It’s devastating. It unspools a haunting thread about humanity but also encourages you to lose a lot of time just running around doing silly cat things … That juxtaposition had me invested in the game from start to finish, and its poignant themes haven’t left my mind in the days since.”
Read our full review below.
Read the full story.
By: Riley MacLeod
7:12 PM: Analysis from Riley MacLeod, Assignment Editor, Launcher
Whatever wins game of the year tonight, I’d like to be on the record as against considering a year’s worth of games and deciding one of them is “the best.” There is no Ultimate Best Game, As Bound By Time. Free your minds, people.
7:09 PM: ‘Vampire Survivors’ gets surprise mobile release
Eagle-eyed fans of bullet hell “Vampire Survivors” spotted the game’s arrival on iOS and Android ahead of the Game Awards Thursday. The game, previously only on PC, pits players against an ever-growing horde of monsters and tasks them with surviving a 30-minute round.
I recently picked the game up on PC, and while I haven’t played a ton of it, I already get why so many people can’t stop raving about it. For starters, there aren’t actually any buttons to press — you select from a cast of playable characters, each with their own power boosts and starting weapon, and then you just walk around the enemies while your character fires on their own. As you level up, you can add new weapons and abilities, as well as improve the ones you have. There’s a wealth of strategy (or so the YouTubers who are way better at the game than me tell me), but the core gameplay is so simple and yet so captivating that I played late into the night as soon as I launched it, even if I’ve barely survived longer than 10 minutes so far. It’s definitely worth checking out if you haven’t yet.
By: Riley MacLeod
6:55 PM: ‘Elden Ring’ is a must-play game you might be too intimidated to try
Let’s get this out of the way: “Elden Ring” is hard. It’s also confusing. It’s also great. The prize-awarding hive mind behind the Game Awards seem to think so too, giving From Software’s latest Souls-like seven nominations, including game of the year.
You might not be a fan of the Souls-like genre — hard-as-nails combat games that feature twisty, atmospheric levels, giant bosses and tons of lore. Our reviewer, Gene Park, called “Elden Ring” possibly “the easiest entry point for beginners looking to try a Souls game,” but these games still require patience, attention and perseverance. If you’re a fan of Souls games, or finally ready to become one, you’ll find, as Gene did, “a game about discovering and pushing the limits of possibility. It dares you, over and over, to keep pushing, making this unlike any other adventure I’ve experienced.”
Read our full review here.
By: Riley MacLeod
6:45 PM: What is GOTY nominee ‘A Plague Tale: Requiem’?
“A Plague Tale: Requiem” is up for five awards at the Game Awards, including best narrative and game of the year. If you missed the game’s October release or aren’t familiar with it, we’ve got you covered.
“Requiem” is a sequel to 2019’s “A Plague Tale: Innocence,” which captured gamers’ attention with its 2017 E3 trailer featuring horrifying swarms of rats. “Innocence” told the story of Amicia and her little brother Hugo navigating a plague-ridden, 14th-century France.
“Requiem’s” plot follows immediately from that first game, leaning more into its supernatural elements and offering players more gameplay approaches and spaces to explore. Our reviewer, Reid McCarter, wrote that “Requiem” could feel a little too real so long into our modern-day pandemic, but that the game “reminds us that others, today and in the past, feel or have felt our same confusion, fear and grief. In this, it makes an argument not for hiding the toll of so much pain away in the shadows but of bringing everything out into the light of day so we can try to hear what notes of hope sing through the darkness.”
Read our full review below.
Read the full story.
By: Riley MacLeod
6:20 PM: Game Awards demo fest adds adorable indie offerings to Steam
In partnership with Thursday’s Game Awards, the online games storefront Steam has rolled out free demos of upcoming indie games for a limited time — and many of them look downright cozy.
Slap on a mushroom cap in “Mail Time” for a pint-size, cottagecore adventure through the woods, or groove out with “Bits and Bops,” an adorable tribute to the Rhythm Heaven series on the Nintendo DS. Also available is “Mineko’s Night Market,” a highly anticipated adventure game/social simulator themed around cats and Japanese culture. There are eight demos in total — check them out here.
How long these demos will be available remains unclear. Previous demo offerings have stayed up about two weeks before being removed from Steam’s storefront.
By: Alyse Stanley
6:05 PM: Most of The Post’s games team thinks ‘Elden Ring’ will win GOTY
An informal poll of staff working this live blog revealed that almost everyone thinks “Elden Ring” will win game of the year tonight. No shade to the five other great nominees: “A Plague Tale: Requiem,” “God of War Ragnarok,” “Horizon Forbidden West,” “Stray” and “Xenoblade Chronicles 3.” FromSoftware’s “Elden Ring” just feels like the behemoth of the group.
There was one dissenter: Alyse Stanley, an editor on our team.
“I don’t think ‘Stray’ will win, but man am I routing for that game,” Stanley said. “My guess is between ‘God of War Ragnarok’ and ‘Elden Ring,’ but I’m leaning a bit more toward ‘God of War Ragnarok.’ It has a broader audience appeal given FromSoftware’s reputation for brutally challenging gameplay, and that’s often been a deciding factor when equally universally acclaimed games face off toe to toe.”
By: Mikhail Klimentov
5:50 PM: What to expect at the 2022 Game Awards
Since its debut in 2014, The Game Awards has been described as “The Oscars for gaming,” and a popular venue for video game developers to reveal and promote upcoming projects.
Last year’s event included appearances from movie stars Simu Liu and Keanu Reeves, and this year promises to be even more star-studded with presenters from Hollywood and the gaming industry. “Glass Onion” actors Daniel Craig and Jessica Henwick as well as director Rian Johnson will be there. Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey of HBO’s “The Last of Us,” the upcoming television adaptation of the critically acclaimed Last of Us series, are also making an appearance. Industry veterans Reggie Fils-Aimé (the source of the “my body is ready” meme), Ken and Roberta Williams (the husband-and-wife duo who blazed a trail for the adventure game genre) and Josef Fares (the video game developer who memorably declared “F— The Oscars” during the 2017 Game Awards) are all returning. Musical artists Hozier and Bear McCreary will perform “Blood Upon the Snow” from “God of War: Ragnarok” at the show.
During a Twitter Space chat on Dec. 3, Keighley said this year’s award show will be “significantly shorter than in past years.” Keighley told VentureBeat that the main show will be around 2.5 hours. In comparison, the 2021 Game Awards main show ran a little over 3 hours.
By: Jonathan Lee
5:35 PM: Here are The Post’s picks for the best video games of 2022
We haven’t published our official game of the year list (more on that next week!) But throughout the year, we kept a running list of the best games of 2022 as we were playing and reviewing them. Not every great game is on there; we never got a chance to play “Tunic” or “Citizen Sleeper,” for example. Still, the list captures 17 great games, across PC, consoles and even phones, that are worth your time if you care about playing great video games.
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By: Mikhail Klimentov