The SXSW Gaming Awards honor excellence throughout the industry, celebrating the talents that influence and advance the medium and culture of gaming.

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Special Recognition Award — Game Industry Champion of Change

Winner: Steven Spohn

Special Recognition Award — Game Industry Journalist of the Year

Winner: Cecilia D’Anastasio

Video Game of the Year

Winner: Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice — FromSoftware/Activision

Nominees: Control — Remedy Entertainment / 505 Games; Devil May Cry 5 — Capcom; Disco Elysium — ZA/UM; Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order — Respawn Entertainment / Electronic Arts

Mobile Game of the Year

Winner: Sky: Children of the Light — thatgamecompany

Nominees: Call of Duty Mobile — TiMi Studios / Activision; Sayonara Wild Hearts — Simogo / Annapurna Interactive; Where Cards Fall — The Game Band / Snowman; Whispers of a Machine — Clifftop Games / Raw Fury

Tabletop Game of the Year

Winner: Paladins of the West Kingdom — Renegade Game Studios

Nominees: Parks — Keymaster Games; Pax Pamir — Wehrlegig Games; Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon — Awaken Realms; Taverns of Tiefenthal — North Star Games

XR Game of the Year

Winner: No Man’s Sky BEYOND VR — Hello Games

Nominees: Blood & Truth — Sony Interactive Entertainment; Pistol Whip — Cloudhead Games; The Under Presents — Tender Claws; tori — BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America, Inc.

Trending Game of the Year

Winner: Pokemon Sword and Shield — Game Freak / The Pokemon Company, Nintendo

Nominees: Apex Legends — Respawn Entertainment / Electronic Arts; Borderlands 3 — Gearbox Software / 2K Games; Death Stranding — Kojima Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment; Super Mario Maker 2 — Nintendo

Matthew Crump Cultural Innovation Award

Winner: Disco Elysium — ZA/UM

Nominees: Death Stranding — Kojima Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment; Knights and Bikes — Foam Sword / Double Fine Productions; Overland — Finji; Sea of Solitude — Jo-Mei Games / Electronic Arts

Most Promising New Intellectual Property

Winner: The Outer Worlds — Obsidian Entertainment / Private Division

Nominees: Astral Chain — PlatinumGames / Nintendo; Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night — ArtPlay / 505 Games; Control — Remedy Entertainment / 505 Games; Katana ZERO — Askiisoft / Devolver Digital

Excellence in Animation

Winner: KINGDOM HEARTS III — Square Enix

Nominees: Apex Legends — Respawn Entertainment / Electronic Arts; Death Stranding — Kojima Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment; Luigi’s Mansion 3 — Nintendo; Mortal Kombat 11 — NetherRealm Studios / Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment

Excellence in Art

Winner: The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening — Nintendo

Nominees: Control — Remedy Entertainment / 505 Games; Disco Elysium — ZA/UM; Luigi’s Mansion 3 — Nintendo; Sayonara Wild Hearts — Simogo / Annapurna Interactive

Excellence in Design

Winner: Control — Remedy Entertainment / 505 Games

Nominees:Astral Chain — PlatinumGames / Nintendo; Disco Elysium — ZA/UM; Luigi’s Mansion 3 — Nintendo; Outer Wilds — Mobius Digital / Annapurna Interactive

Excellence in Gameplay

Winner: Devil May Cry 5 — Capcom

Nominees: Astral Chain — PlatinumGames / Nintendo; Call of Duty: Modern Warfare — Infinity Ward / Activision; Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice — FromSoftware / Activision; Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order — Respawn Entertainment / Electronic Arts

Excellence in Multiplayer

Winner: FINAL FANTASY XIV: Shadowbringers — Square Enix

Nominees: Apex Legends — Respawn Entertainment / Electronic Arts; Call of Duty: Modern Warfare — Infinity Ward / Activision; Monster Hunter World: Iceborne — Capcom; Mortal Kombat 11 — NetherRealm Studios / Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment

Excellence in Musical Score

Winner: Death Stranding — Kojima Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment

Nominees: Devil May Cry 5 — Capcom; Disco Elysium — ZA/UM; Outer Wilds — Mobius Digital / Annapurna Interactive; Sayonara Wild Hearts — Simogo / Annapurna Interactive

Excellence in Narrative

Winner: Disco Elysium — ZA/UM

Nominees: Control — Remedy Entertainment / 505 Games; Death Stranding — Kojima Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment; Outer Wilds — Mobius Digital / Annapurna Interactive; A Plague Tale: Innocence — Asobo Studio / Focus Home Interactive

Excellence in SFX

Winner: Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order — Respawn Entertainment / Electronic Arts

Nominees: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare — Infinity Ward / Activision; Luigi’s Mansion 3 — Nintendo; Mortal Kombat 11 — NetherRealm Studios / Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment; Resident Evil 2 — Capcom

Excellence in Technical Achievement

Winner: Death Stranding — Kojima Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment

Nominees: Concrete Genie — Pixelopus / Sony Interactive Entertainment; Control — Remedy Entertainment / 505 Games; Devil May Cry 5 — Capcom; Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice — FromSoftware / Activision

Excellence in Visual Achievement

Winner: Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice — FromSoftware/Activision

Nominees: Control — Remedy Entertainment / 505 Games; Death Stranding — Kojima Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment; The Outer Worlds — Obsidian Entertainment / Private Division; Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order — Respawn Entertainment / Electronic Arts

The Gaming Awards are open for entry from October to December of each year. All entries must be completed titles released during that calendar year.

Once all entries are received, nominees in each category are chosen by SXSW staff and an advisory board. When the nominations are announced, we open voting to the public to help choose the winners, which are determined by a weighted vote between the public poll and the SXSW staff and advisory board. The winners are revealed and celebrated at the Gaming Awards Ceremony, held each year during SXSW.

Video Game of the Year – Awarded to the game that exemplifies overall excellence and creates a distinct gaming experience across all platforms and genres.

Mobile Game of the Year – Awarded to the game that exemplifies overall excellence and creates a unique gaming experience on any handheld device.

Tabletop Game of the Year – Awarded to the game that exemplifies overall excellence and ingenuity of any tabletop game in any genre.

XR Game of the Year – Awarded to the game that exemplifies overall excellence in gameplay and design across any XR platform.

Trending Game of the Year – Awarded to the game that consistently entertained and kept audiences watching on social platforms with its humor, stories, and more.

Matthew Crump Cultural Innovation Award – Awarded to the game that best challenges the “norm” of everyday gaming and offers a culturally innovative view of a game world, character, or gameplay.

Most Promising New Intellectual Property – Awarded to a new property that risked creating something fresh and that excelled within its genre or category for the year.

Excellence in Art – Awarded to the game with the most expressive and creative artistic style.

Excellence in Animation – Awarded to the game with the most outstanding animation effects and graphics.

Excellence in Design – Awarded to the game with the best overall design concept and best execution.

Excellence in Gameplay – Awarded to the game with the best gameplay mechanics.

Excellence in Musical Score – Awarded to the game that best exemplifies artistic excellence in musical score and how it progresses the narrative of the game.

Excellence in Multiplayer – Awarded to the game with the best player-to-player interaction experience.

Excellence in Narrative – Awarded to the game with the best storyline and dialogue.

Excellence in SFX – Awarded to the game with the most outstanding and impactful sound effects.

Excellence in Technical Achievement – Awarded to the game that pushed the capabilities of technology and programming furthest or most effectively.

Excellence in Visual Achievement – Awarded to the game with the most well-designed and stunning visuals.