{"id":16661,"date":"2025-12-02T18:01:58","date_gmt":"2025-12-02T16:01:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tuni.fi\/playlab\/?p=16661"},"modified":"2025-12-02T18:07:27","modified_gmt":"2025-12-02T16:07:27","slug":"who-will-win-the-curious-case-of-tga-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tuni.fi\/playlab\/who-will-win-the-curious-case-of-tga-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Who will win? The curious case of TGA 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"

It is\u00a0December\u00a0which means we are\u00a0close\u00a0to \u201cOscars of Video Games\u201d or in other words, The Game Awards.\u00a0The nominees were\u00a0just\u00a0announced and\u00a0let\u2019s\u00a0just say, there\u00a0weren\u2019t\u00a0many surprises.\u00a0So,\u00a0let\u2019s\u00a0talk a bit about them\u00a0and\u00a0speculate\u00a0on\u00a0who\u00a0has\u00a0a good chance of winning.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

At the start of\u00a02025, everybody was looking forward to\u00a0<\/span>GTA VI,<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0if\u00a0it\u00a0<\/span>had\u00a0<\/span>be<\/span>en<\/span> released this year there would be no need for this article. But as the delay of the game confirmed (<\/span>a<\/span>nd\u00a0to no one\u2019s surprise, we just heard the news about a second\u00a0Rockstar-style<\/span>\u00a0delay<\/span>), this year\u2019s best video game\u00a0race is wide open.<\/span><\/p>\n

2025 was an interesting year for video games. A lot of new games came out of nowhere\u00a0to grasp\u00a0the attention of the community. A\u00a0good chunk of these\u00a0titles\u00a0were indies. I\u00a0know\u00a0this trend has been growing\u00a0in\u00a0the video\u00a0game industry in the past\u00a0decade,\u00a0but\u00a0this year\u00a0was remarkable.\u00a0With the release of the likes of\u00a0<\/span>Clair\u00a0Obscur: Expedition 33<\/span><\/i><\/b>,\u00a0<\/span>Silksong<\/span><\/i><\/b>,\u00a0<\/span>Blue Prince<\/span><\/i><\/b>, and\u00a0<\/span>Hades II<\/span><\/i><\/b>,\u00a0smaller studios showed they are going toe\u00a0to\u00a0toe\u00a0with\u00a0\u2018triple\u00a0A\u2019s.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If I\u00a0had\u00a0to pick\u00a0a winner for both Game of the Year and Best Direction, it would\u00a0without doubt\u00a0<\/span>Clair\u00a0Obscur: Expedition 33<\/em><\/strong>; a\u00a0<\/span><\/i>game from a small studio in France\u00a0founded by\u00a0ex-<\/span>Ubisoft<\/span><\/i><\/b> veterans. To be honest, I went into the game without any expectations, but I instantly fell in love. Gameplay, art style, story, and music. Everything in this game felt fresh. In a world of sequels and remakes, it is really interesting to see an original game that does a lot of things right. The game is not perfect; it has some balancing issues and other small stuff<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0but\u00a0just seeing some developers doing something\u00a0against the\u00a0tide\u00a0is\u00a0really cool.\u00a0Therefore,\u00a0I think\u00a0<\/span>CO:E33<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0has\u00a0a very good\u00a0chance of winning\u00a0in\u00a0at\u00a0least\u00a0one of the two main categories. Which for an indie game would be\u00a0a huge success. But there are at least two more games that I\u00a0think\u00a0<\/span>would also<\/span>\u00a0be\u00a0<\/span>worthy\u00a0of being\u00a0considered in winning Game of the Year;\u00a0<\/span>Hades II<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>Silksong<\/span><\/i><\/b>.\u00a0But enough of indies,\u00a0let\u2019s\u00a0see what AAA games have a chance this year.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Melino\u00eb<\/a>
Source: Hades II Official Press Kit<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The\u00a0Game Awards\u00a0<\/span>are\u00a0<\/span>not\u00a0<\/span>the<\/span>\u00a0Game Awards without two things;\u00a0<\/span>Nintendo<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>Hideo Kojima<\/span><\/i><\/b>!\u00a0Both of these\u00a0two had\u00a0a very good\u00a0year.\u00a0<\/span>Nintendo<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0with the release of<\/span>\u00a0the<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Nintendo Switch 2<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0and two\u00a0<\/span>e<\/span>xcellent titles<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Mario Kart World<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>Donkey Kong Bonanza<\/span><\/i><\/b>. Both of these games are fantastic, and as we could easily predict, <\/span>Donkey Kong Bonanza<\/i><\/strong>\u00a0was nominated.\u00a0\u00a0But I\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0think\u00a0<\/span>it has the innovations needed for a game of the year award.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

On the<\/span>ir part<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>Kojima Productions<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0released<\/span> Death Stranding 2<\/span><\/i><\/b>; t<\/span>he sequel to one of the most polarizing games of the past\u00a0<\/span>five<\/span>\u00a0years.\u00a0But I\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0think\u00a0<\/span>Kojima<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/span>ha<\/span>s achieved\u00a0enough in this game to be the winner. But again, I am not a good person to judge because I really\u00a0couldn\u2019t\u00a0understand\u00a0the appeal of the first one.\u00a0Although I am not\u00a0alone in\u00a0thinking this way as some websites and journalists<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>agree.\u00a0For example,\u00a0<\/span>Gamespot in their review of Death Stranding 2<\/span><\/a>\u00a0stated\u00a0\u201cDeath Stranding 2 is less precise and clear about what it wants to say\u201d and Edge<\/strong><\/em> magazine in their\u00a0review of the game which was published in their issue 413th, wrote: \u201cThis is a grand, unwieldy behemoth of a sequel, buckling under the weight of its features and bombast. In lacking a sense of direction, though, it sometimes delivers in unexpected ways.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Another game that suffers from not-done-too-much-to-be-considered is\u00a0<\/span>Ghost of\u00a0Yotei<\/span><\/i><\/b>. Yes, it is a beautiful\u00a0game,\u00a0but I feel like it was created mostly because of the success of the\u00a0<\/span>Ghost of Tsushima<\/span><\/i><\/b>,<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0and it is\u00a0basically the\u00a0same.\u00a0Also, I am going to\u00a0pass on\u00a0<\/span>Doom: The Dark Ages<\/span><\/i><\/b>, at least in the game of the year category. It may have some chance in other categories, but the game is not even near to having the impact of its predecessor, which was\u00a0<\/span>Doom: Eternal<\/span><\/i><\/b>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The only traditional\u00a0<\/span>t<\/span>riple<\/span>–<\/span>A video game that I think has a good chance of winning is\u00a0<\/span>Kingdom Comes: Deliverance II<\/span><\/i><\/b>. The game was released at the start of the\u00a0year,\u00a0and it is\u00a0a very strong\u00a0contender.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Before I sign off, I want to also\u00a0take a look\u00a0at\u00a0the indie\u00a0category\u00a0<\/span>which<\/span>\u00a0this year is\u00a0<\/span>not entirely <\/span>distinguishable\u00a0<\/span>from\u00a0<\/span>Game\u00a0of the Year.\u00a0It seems like each year the number of indie games that can also compete in Game of the Year category\u00a0increases.\u00a0Besides\u00a0<\/span>Clair\u00a0Obscur<\/span><\/i><\/b>, only this year\u00a0did we have\u00a0<\/span>Silksong<\/span><\/i><\/b>,\u00a0<\/span>Hades II<\/span><\/i><\/b>, and\u00a0<\/span>Blue\u00a0Prince,<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0which\u00a0in my opinion all\u00a0of them have a good chance of being nominated in the main category.\u00a0As\u00a0a person who\u00a0strongly believe<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>indie\u00a0gams\u00a0<\/span>are the main creative source for the industry<\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>loves<\/span>\u00a0to see them thrive<\/span>, I love to see this\u00a0<\/span>development.\u00a0<\/span>B<\/span>ut it may be unfair to some smaller indie games<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0because\u00a0I think there\u00a0are lots of good and even great\u00a0<\/span>ones that\u00a0<\/span>risk being<\/span>\u00a0overshadowed by these exceptional ones.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For example, if\u00a0<\/span>Clair\u00a0Obs<\/span><\/i><\/b>c<\/span><\/i><\/b>ur\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/b>wins Game of the Year,\u00a0should<\/span>n\u2019t it<\/span>\u00a0automatically win\u00a0the Indie\u00a0Game of the Year as well<\/span>?<\/span>\u00a0Or<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>shouldn\u2019t<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>it\u00a0<\/span>even get<\/span>\u00a0nominated in the Game of the Year category<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>mean that\u00a0<\/span>it should win the indie game category<\/span>?<\/span>\u00a0I can think of two\u00a0possible\u00a0solutions<\/span>\u00a0to this problem<\/span>,\u00a0neither of them\u00a0perfect,\u00a0but\u00a0may<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>be slightly\u00a0<\/span>more\u00a0<\/span>fair! The first one is to set a rule that if an indie game is nominated in Game of the Year category,\u00a0<\/span>it will be\u00a0<\/span>exclud<\/span>ed\u00a0<\/span>from\u00a0<\/span>the\u00a0<\/span>indie game section; t<\/span>he seco<\/span>nd<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>would\u00a0<\/span>be\u00a0<\/span>to remove\u00a0the indie\u00a0game category completely and nominate 10 or even 15 games in the main category. I know these are not good\u00a0solutions,\u00a0a<\/span>nd I <\/span>am open to\u00a0hearing\u00a0more suggestions!<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

How<\/span>ever\u00a0we want to look at it, two things are obvious.\u00a0Whether we like it or not, The Game Awards\u00a0<\/span>are\u00a0<\/span>becoming\u00a0really important\u00a0for\u00a0the video\u00a0game industry;\u00a0and\u00a0thanks to strong indie games, this year we are in for a hell of a ride!<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We don’t have much time until The Game Awards 2025. So, let’s sit back, relax and talk a bit about the games that have a high chance of winning this year. #TGA2025 #ClairObsecurExpedition33 #IndieGames<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":247,"featured_media":16666,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ocean_post_layout":"","ocean_both_sidebars_style":"","ocean_both_sidebars_content_width":0,"ocean_both_sidebars_sidebars_width":0,"ocean_sidebar":"","ocean_second_sidebar":"","ocean_disable_margins":"enable","ocean_add_body_class":"","ocean_shortcode_before_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_after_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_before_header":"","ocean_shortcode_after_header":"","ocean_has_shortcode":"","ocean_shortcode_after_title":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_bottom":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_bottom":"","ocean_display_top_bar":"default","ocean_display_header":"default","ocean_header_style":"","ocean_center_header_left_menu":"","ocean_custom_header_template":"","ocean_custom_logo":0,"ocean_custom_retina_logo":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_height":0,"ocean_header_custom_menu":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_family":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_subset":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_size":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_unit":"px","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_line_height":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_unit":"","ocean_menu_typo_spacing":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_unit":"","ocean_menu_link_color":"","ocean_menu_link_color_hover":"","ocean_menu_link_color_active":"","ocean_menu_link_background":"","ocean_menu_link_hover_background":"","ocean_menu_link_active_background":"","ocean_menu_social_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_links_color":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_color":"","ocean_disable_title":"default","ocean_disable_heading":"default","ocean_post_title":"","ocean_post_subheading":"","ocean_post_title_style":"","ocean_post_title_background_color":"","ocean_post_title_background":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_image_position":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_attachment":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_repeat":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_size":"","ocean_post_title_height":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay":0.5,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay_color":"","ocean_disable_breadcrumbs":"default","ocean_breadcrumbs_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_separator_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_hover_color":"","ocean_display_footer_widgets":"default","ocean_display_footer_bottom":"default","ocean_custom_footer_template":"","ocean_post_oembed":"","ocean_post_self_hosted_media":"","ocean_post_video_embed":"","ocean_link_format":"","ocean_link_format_target":"self","ocean_quote_format":"","ocean_quote_format_link":"post","ocean_gallery_link_images":"on","ocean_gallery_id":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[172],"tags":[2181,2180,2179],"class_list":["post-16661","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","tag-clair-obscur-expedition-33","tag-indie-games","tag-the-game-awards-2025","entry","has-media"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tuni.fi\/playlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16661","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tuni.fi\/playlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tuni.fi\/playlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tuni.fi\/playlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/247"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tuni.fi\/playlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16661"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.tuni.fi\/playlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16661\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16740,"href":"https:\/\/www.tuni.fi\/playlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16661\/revisions\/16740"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tuni.fi\/playlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16666"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tuni.fi\/playlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16661"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tuni.fi\/playlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16661"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tuni.fi\/playlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16661"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}