Indie Games Shine at Golden Joystick Awards 2024

The Golden Joystick Awards 2024: Indie Games Shine, GOTY Controversy Brews

The Golden Joystick Awards, celebrating gaming excellence since 1983, unveiled its 2024 nominees across numerous categories. A notable highlight is the inclusion of a brand-new category specifically for self-developed and self-published indie games, reflecting the growing prominence of smaller studios. This year's awards, covering games released between November 11, 2023, and October 4, 2024, show a strong indie presence, with titles like Balatro and Lorelei and the Laser Eyes receiving multiple nominations.

The 19 categories showcase a diverse range of gaming achievements, with the new indie self-publishing category designed to recognize the hard work of smaller teams lacking the backing of larger publishers. The awards ceremony takes place on November 21, 2024.

Here's a selection of the nominated games across various categories:

Selected Nominee Highlights:

• Best Soundtrack: A Highland Song, Astro Bot, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Hauntii, Silent Hill 2, Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance
• Best Indie Game: Animal Well, Arco, Balatro, Beyond Galaxyland, Conscript, Indika, Lorelei and the Laser Eyes, Thank Goodness You’re Here!, The Plucky Squire, Ultros
• Best Indie Game - Self Published: Arctic Eggs, Another Crab’s Treasure, Crow Country, Duck Detective: The Secret Salami, I Am Your Beast, Little Kitty, Big City, Riven, Tactical Breach Wizards, Tiny Glade, UFO 50
• Console Game of the Year: Astro Bot, Dragon’s Dogma 2, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Helldivers 2, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
• PC Game of the Year: Animal Well, Balatro, Frostpunk 2, Satisfactory, Tactical Breach Wizards, UFO 50

GOTY Controversy:

While the full list of Ultimate Game of the Year (UGOTY) nominees is pending (to be revealed November 4th, with voting from November 4th-8th), the omission of several fan favorites from the initial Game of the Year (GOTY) shortlist for PC and Console has sparked considerable online debate.