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Baldur’s Gate 3, one of the biggest surprises of 2023 in the gaming industry, won game of the year and five other awards at The Game Awards gala in Los Angeles yesterday.

The multiplayer role-playing game set in the world of Dungeons and Dragons and developed by Belgian company Larian Studios, has been very well received since its release last summer. 

In addition to game of the year, it also won in the categories of best performance (for voice actors or motion capture), best community support, best RPG, best multiplayer game and players’ voice.

The main award was announced by “Wonka” star Timothée Chalamet, whose resemblance to the protagonist of the game Lies of P was widely commented on social media.

Alan Wake II shines with triple victory

Alan Wake II, developed by Finnish studio Remedy, was the second most awarded game of the gala with three awards: best direction, best art direction and best narrative.

Remedy’s title thus confirms its strengths, with a story and graphic design that were well appreciated by the audience.

Another European studio, Denmark’s Geometric Interactive, won the award for best debut indie game of the year for Cocoon, a game that mixes the adventure genre with puzzles.

While Super Mario Bros. Wonder and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom were in contention to win the GOTY, they didn’t leave the gala empty-handed. 

The former was named best family game and the latter took home the award for best action/adventure game.

In other categories, Armored Core VI claimed the best action game award, Street Fighter 6 and Forza Motorsport emerged victorious in the best fighting game and best sports/driving game categories, respectively. 

Forza Motorsport also won the innovation in accessibility award.

HBO’s The Last of Us series, inspired by the hit video game of the same name, won in the best adaptation category.

Sneak peek into the future of gaming

The Game Awards gala is not just about recognising the best titles of the year: it’s also an important showcase of what’s to come.

Revered Japanese creator Hideo Kojima, responsible for legendary sagas such as Metal Gear, unveiled a mysterious teaser trailer of his new project, titled OD. This game, developed for Xbox, is still shrouded in secrecy. Something typical of Kojima’s work.

Another unexpected revelation at the gala was SEGA’s announcement of new versions for five beloved classic games: Crazy Taxi, Jet Set Radio, Shinobi, Golden Axe, and Streets of Rage.

These are just some of the announcements from The Game Awards 2023, a year celebrated by many for the exceptional video games that have been released.