After it was canceled last year due to the coronavirus pandemic,SXSWis coming back next month as an online event (simply namedSXSW Online). As such, the organizers have announced the eighth annual SXSW Gaming Awards and the nominees for the 12 categories.
This year,SXSWis partnering with IGN to produce the awards show, which is being presented by Discord and broadcast live on Saturday, March 20th at 7pm CT / 8pm ET / 5pm PT and March 21st at 1am GMT. People can watch the show via SXSW Online, IGN’s website, SXSW’s Twitch page, or IGN’s Twitch page.
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There are 43 nominees across the 12 categories and the public can already begin voting for them on SXSW’s website. Voting will close on Tuesday, February 23rd so people only have a week to make sure their choice gets a shot at winning, though winners will be determined by a weighted total between public voting and staff and advisory board input.
The biggest one is obviously the Game of the Year award, but there are technically four categories to cover this - Video Game of the Year, Indie Game of the Year, Tabletop Game of the Year, and VR Game of the Year. This way, less mainstream titles likeIkenfellandDeep Rock Galacticdon’t have to compete against the likes ofThe Last of Us 2.
Yes, unsurprisingly,The Last of Us 2is a nominee for Video Game of the Year, as well as Excellence in Narrative and the Matthew Crump Cultural Innovation Award, which is given to the game that best challenges the “norm” of everyday gaming and offers a culturally innovative view of a game world, character, or gameplay.The Last of Us 2utterly swept the Game Awards 2020 in December, taking home seven of them, including Game of the Year and Best Narrative.
While many would argue that it deserved each and every one of them, there were possibly just as many that strongly disagreed and evenaccused host Geoff Keighley of being biased. The game’s only up for three categories this time but, if it does manage to win all three, it wouldn’t be surprising if that led to another wave of backlash as well (something this game seems incapable of avoiding).
It does have some stiff competition, though, especially for the Video Game of the Year award. The other nominees areDoom Eternal,Ghost of Tsushima,Hades, andOri and the Will of the Wisps. All of these are arguably just as deserving of the award;Hadesin particular has dominated social media since its launch, so it’s possible that one of them will take home the gold.
Excellence in Audio Design
Excellence in Technical Achievement
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