The Game Awards 2025 nominations are here, and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is dominating

2026 is almost here, but it won"t arrive before the Geoff Keighley-hosted The Game Awards presentation brings the biggest games of the year to the stage. Earlier today, the nominees for 29 categories of the showcase were announced, with each one touting a handful of titles from publishers and developers around the world.

Like in the years before, the categories range from Game of the Year all the way to Best Mobile Game, with Esports also gaining some slots. By the time the show goes live next month, the winners will already be decided by an international jury (90%) and fan voting (10%). The voting session has already begun, and fans can head here to start the process for all categories.

Meanwhile, a separate Player"s Voice category will use fan votes entirely to nominate and give the final award.

Going through the 2025 nominations, there are plenty of titles from well-known publishers like Sony PlayStation, Microsoft Xbox, EA, and Sega. However, one game has already broken records for being the most nominated game in The Game Awards history: the Kepler Interactive-published Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.

Here are all the categories and the nominees that were announced today:

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 Yotei
• Hades II
• Split Fiction

Best Narrative

• Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
• Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
• Ghost of Yotei
• Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
• Silent Hill f

Best Art Direction

• Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
• Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
• Ghost of Yotei
• 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 Yotei
• 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 Yotei
• Silent Hill f

Best Performance

• Ben Starr - Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
• Charlie Cox - Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
• Erika Ishii - Ghost of Yotei
• 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 Yotei
• 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
• Chovy - Jeong Ji-Hoon
• f0rsakeN - Jason Susanto
• Kakeru - Kakeru Watanabe
• MenaRD - Saul Leonardo
• Zyw0o - Mathieu Herbaut

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

The Game Awards 2025 will go live on Thursday, December 11, from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. The official stream will be available via YouTube, Twitch, X, Facebook Live, and other platforms. As always, the showcase will feature plenty of new game announcements, reveals, and surprises in between all the awards as well.