Ratchet & Clank Rift Apart PS5 PlayStation 5

We're heading into the end-of-year awards season, and the first major event is GamesRadar's 39th annual Golden Joysticks.

This awards process is quite different from most other major ceremonies, as the vast majority of categories are voted on by the public rather than an official committee. On that note, voting is now open through here, and will close on 5th November at 11pm GMT.

There's a pretty even spread of games among this year's nominations. Unless we've counted incorrectly, it appears that PlayStation 5 console exclusive Deathloop is up for the most trophies, with five nominations including Best Multiplayer, Best Performer, and Ultimate Game of the Year. Close behind is Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, which is up for Best Visual Design, PlayStation Game of the Year, and Ultimate Game of the Year, while Jennifer Hale may claim Best Performer for Rivet. Resident Evil Village is also nominated four times — Best Audio, PlayStation Game of the Year, Ultimate Game of the Year, and Best Performer for Maggie Robertson's Lady Dimitrescu.

Other Sony highlights include Returnal, up for Best Audio and PlayStation Game of the Year, Dreams with a nod in Best Community, and Ghost of Tsushima's Iki Island expansion has been nominated for, well, Best Expansion.

Here's the full list of nominees. Which games are getting your votes? Tell us in the comments section below.

Golden Joystick Awards 2021 Nominations

Best Storytelling

  • Life is Strange: True Colours
  • Psychonauts 2
  • Wildermyth
  • 12 Minutes
  • Chicory: A Colorful Tale
  • Tales of Arise

Best Multiplayer Game

  • Deathloop
  • It Takes Two
  • Chivalry 2
  • Back 4 Blood
  • Valheim
  • NARAKA: BLADEPOINT

Best Visual Design

  • Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
  • Psychonauts 2
  • The Artful Escape
  • Little Nightmares 2
  • Hitman 3
  • Genesis Noir

Best Indie Game

  • Death's Door
  • Chicory: A Colorful Tale
  • Old World
  • Wildermyth
  • Bonfire Peaks
  • Sable

Studio of the Year

  • Io Interactive
  • Arkane
  • Housemarque
  • Double Fine
  • Capcom
  • Draknek & Friends

Best Game Expansion

  • Ghost of Tsushima: Iki Island
  • Final Fantasy 7 Remake: Episode Intermission
  • The Outer Worlds: Murder on Eridanos
  • Sims 4: Cottage Living
  • Super Mario 3D World: Bowser's Fury
  • DOOM Eternal: The Ancient Gods Part 2

Mobile Game of the Year

  • Clap Hanz Golf
  • Fantasian
  • Overboard!
  • Alba: A Wildlife Adventure
  • Cozy Grove
  • League of Legends: Wild Rift

Best Audio

  • Returnal
  • Jett: The Far Shore
  • Sable
  • Little Nightmares 2
  • Resident Evil Village
  • The Artful Escape

Best Performer

  • Jason Kelley - Colt Vahn, Deathloop
  • Erika Mori - Alex Chen, LiS: True Colors
  • Maggie Robertson, Lady Dimitrescu, Resident Evil Village
  • Ozioma Akagha - Julianna Blake, Deathloop
  • Jennifer Hale - Rivet, Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart
  • Elijah Wood - Gristol/Nick the Post Guy, Pschonauts 2

Best Game Community

  • Final Fantasy 14
  • No Man's Sky
  • Dreams
  • Monster Hunter Rise
  • Destiny 2
  • Magic: The Gathering Arena

PC Game of the Year

  • Wildermyth
  • Chivalry 2
  • Old World
  • Hitman 3
  • Pathfinder
  • The Forgotten City

PlayStation Game of the Year

  • Returnal
  • Deathloop
  • Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
  • Resident Evil: Village
  • Death Stranding Director's Cut
  • Kena: Bridge Of Spirits

Nintendo Game of the Year

  • New Pokemon Snap
  • Neo: The World Ends with You
  • Monster Hunter Rise
  • Bravely Default 2
  • WarioWare: Get It Together
  • Metroid Dread

Xbox Game of the Year

  • Lost Judgment
  • The Ascent
  • Psychonauts 2
  • Microsoft Flight Simulator
  • The Artful Escape
  • 12 Minutes

Best Gaming Hardware

  • PS5
  • Xbox Series X
  • Xbox Series S
  • NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080
  • Nintendo Switch OLED
  • WD_BLACK SN850 NVMe SSD

Still Playing Award

  • Apex Legends
  • Call of Duty: Warzone
  • Final Fantasy 14
  • Destiny 2
  • GTA Online
  • Genshin Impact
  • Fortnite
  • Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege
  • Rocket League
  • Counter-Strike: Global Offensive

Most Wanted Game

  • God of War: Ragnarok
  • Horizon Forbidden West
  • Halo Infinite
  • Marvel's Midnight Suns
  • GTA V: Enhanced Edition
  • Skate 4
  • Elden Ring
  • LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
  • The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2
  • Pokemon Legends: Arceus
  • Starfield
  • Gotham Knights

Ultimate Game of the Year

  • Deathloop
  • Psychonauts 2
  • Resident Evil Village
  • Ratchet and Clank
  • Wildermyth
  • Hitman 3
  • The Forgotten City
  • It Takes Two
  • Metroid Dread
  • Mass Effect Legendary Edition

[source gamesradar.com]