Fuck that person. You’re not bothering anyone.

Yeah, Split Fiction was probably my number 7.

It’s weird because I feel like it came and went pretty quickly. But it’s the type of game that everyone loves if they play it + It Takes Two won.

KCD2 is hard because it’s more hardcore & I’m unsure if its core audience is represented in the voters.

I feel pretty confident about the first four. The last two is where it gets shaky.

Others in contention were Ghost of Yotei, Split Fiction, and Death Stranding 2. Maybe Blue Prince could squeeze in there, but I feel like its audience was too small & niche for the *big* award.

Yeah, I assume it’s to make the price competitive with the other consoles. But it’s interesting since that will, presumably, make it unable to play upcoming AAA games as well.

I welcome it, personally. I mostly want one just to play all the indie games that don’t come to console + emulation.

I liked Rebirth a lot more than Remake, personally. Although, I don’t have the context of original FFVII since I’ve not played it.

I do prefer them to go back to a more linear structure, like Remake, for the next game, tho. The open world Ubisoft-style checklist was the worst part of Rebirth, imo.

The Japanese yen is very weak right now. This is a consumer-friendly move for Japan because it’s hard for a lot of consumers there to afford expensive consoles at their usual price.

Nintendo did the same thing with the Switch 2 in Japan.

I’m unsure of its chances as Helldivers II was a similar game in terms of hitting the zeitgeist last year and it didn’t even get *nominated*.

Though, Arc Raiders will have recency bias on its side, in comparison, since Helldivers II launched early in 2024. But we’ll see!

Arc Raiders is breaking a similar mold for its’ sub-genre that Overwatch did. But it’s releasing in a much stronger year of game releases.

It’s possible it wins, tho! I definitely don’t want to say it’s impossible. But the type of game it is just isn’t typically what TGA values for its’ GOTY award.

Yes!

It was mentioned in another reply, but Overwatch broke the mold for its sub-genre to become mainstream + released in a perceived weaker year of releases.

The criteria isn’t *as* rigid for TGA as it seems to be for the Oscars. But it’s still relatively rigid.

Yup! Which is why I think Arc Raiders actually does *have a shot*.

It’s in a similar position as Overwatch was where it’s making an already existing, but niche, sub-genre into a mainstream hit.

But Overwatch benefited from a perceived weaker year of games in 2016 compared to this year’s lineup.

Maybe! I think that could be a fair conversation to have.

It’s not really us voting, tho. The audience makes up 10% of the vote at TGA. The rest of the 90% is decided by games media. It’s why I think someone like Shroud just shouldn’t care about it. But idk if he knows that’s how the vote works.

And that’s where my Marvel movies comparison comes from.

Blockbuster action-comedy movies don’t really fit the bill for the Oscars’ “Best Picture” category. Similar to how live-service multiplayer games don’t typically fit the bill for TGA’s GOTY award.

And I’m not saying a live-service multiplayer game shouldn’t *ever* be in consideration for GOTY.

They just have to *do* something that’s more than just a satisfying gameplay loop or whatever. It’s why Helldivers II didn’t get nominated last year either.

I’m talking exclusively about how they’re viewed in terms of TGA’s GOTY.

Marvel movies are comparable to Assassin’s Creed in other ways, but Assassin’s Creed - as a video game product - fits the bill for GOTY criteria better than the vast majority of live-service multiplayer games.

And, to be clear, I’m talking about Geoff Keighley’s Game Awards in terms of criteria and whatnot. Other awards shows (and anyone’s personal preferences) can - and do - have different criteria for how they typically pick GOTY.

Multiplayer games *can* win and should if they fit the criteria typically associated with GOTY. That’s why It Takes Two won.

But Arc Raiders *is* fitting the Marvel movie type of Blockbuster scene, imo. Not that it’s bad, I think it looks very good. Just as I think most Marvel movies look good too.

The games can be very good and fun, but at the end of the day, they are created as formulaic blockbusters.

The Game Awards is trying to award innovation, creativity, and art, *along with* great gameplay & mechanics.