The 20th annual Game Developers Choice Awards (GDCA) will take place on March 18, 2020, and we now have the full list of nominees. The GDCA runs alongside the Game Developers Conference (GDC), which brings together creators, journalists, and enthusiasts, all in the name of video games. To celebrate, the industry’s leading creators gather together to recognize the previous year’s most important games. 2020’s GDCA will acknowledge games from 2019, including Death Stranding (which won PSLS’s Game of the Year), Control, and Outer Wilds.
Kojima Productions’ Death Stranding has seven nominations, including Best Audio, Best Design, and Game of the Year. It was a divisive game among critics, with many praising its story and uniqueness, though not necessarily its “fun.” We loved it here at PSLS, especially its ending, message, and online functionality.
Control, from developer Remedy Entertainment, also has several nominations, like Best Narrative, Best Technology, and Game of the Year. Like Death Stranding, Control isn’t afraid to get weird, offering a healthy mix of familiar gameplay with a complex and engaging story. Here at PSLS, we liked it but criticized its performance issues and cumbersome map.
It seems being unique has paid off for this year’s nominees, because Outer Wilds is yet another entry that offers a… ahem… wildly different experience. Brought to you by developer Mobius Digital, Outer Wilds sends you through the vastness of space with the goal of discovering the mysteries of the 22-minute time loop you find yourself in.
Here are all the Game Developers Choice Awards nominees:
BEST AUDIO
- Death Stranding (Kojima Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- Sayonara Wild Hearts (Simogo/Annapurna Interactive)
- Control (Remedy Entertainment/505 Games)
- Untitled Goose Game (House House/Panic)
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (Infinity Ward/Activision)
BEST DEBUT
- ZA/UM (Disco Elysium)
- Mobius Digital(Outer Wilds)
- William Chyr Studios(Manifold Garden)
- Foam Sword Games (Knights and Bikes)
- Chance Agency (Neo Cab)
BEST DESIGN
- Baba Is You (Hempuli)
- Outer Wilds (Mobius Digital/Annapurna Interactive)
- Death Stranding (Kojima Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (FromSoftware/Activision Publishing, FromSoftware)
- Untitled Goose Game (House House/Panic)
INNOVATION AWARD
- Untitled Goose Game (House House/Panic)
- Disco Elysium (ZA/UM)
- Baba Is You (Hempuli)
- Death Stranding (Kojima Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- Outer Wilds (Mobius Digital/Annapurna Interactive)
BEST MOBILE GAME
- Sayonara Wild Hearts (Simogo/Annapurna Interactive)
- What the Golf? (Triband Productions/The Label Limited)
- Grindstone (Capybara Games)
- Sky: Children of the Light (thatgamecompany)
- Call of Duty: Mobile (TiMi Studios/Activision)
BEST NARRATIVE
- Disco Elysium (ZA/UM)
- Control (Remedy Entertainment/505 Games)
- Death Stranding (Kojima Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- The Outer Worlds (Obsidian Entertainment/Private Division)
- Outer Wilds (Mobius Digital/Annapurna Interactive)
BEST TECHNOLOGY
- Death Stranding (Kojima Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- Control (Remedy Entertainment/505 Games)
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (Infinity Ward/Activision)
- Apex Legends (Respawn Entertainment/Electronic Arts)
- Noita (Nolla Games)
BEST VISUAL ART
- Control (Remedy Entertainment/505 Games)
- Death Stranding (Kojima Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (FromSoftware/Activision)
- Sayonara Wild Hearts (Simogo/Annapurna Interactive)
- Disco Elysium (ZA/UM)
BEST VR/AR GAME
- Vader Immortal (ILMxLAB/Disney)
- Blood & Truth (SCEE Studio London/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- Asgard’s Wrath (Sanzaru Games/Oculus Studios)
- Boneworks (Stress Level Zero)
- Pistol Whip (Cloudhead Games)
GAME OF THE YEAR
- Death Stranding (Kojima Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
- Control (Remedy Entertainment/505 Games)
- Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (FromSoftware/Activision)
- Untitled Goose Game (House House/Panic)
- Outer Wilds (Mobius Digital/Annapurna Interactive)
Which games do you want to win?
[Source: GDC]
