During a four-hour spectacle at The Game Awards, countless developers and industry personalities accepted awards for their efforts. It was a crowning moment for the hard-working teams that make the gaming industry what it is, and it was also the stage upon which dozens of games were announced. There were five esports categories present at The Game Awards, and in an unbelievable sweep, Riot Games, in some way, secured every single award.
Admittedly, the representation of esports at The Game Awards was remarkably weak. There were no awards physically picked up, the categories were run through back-to-back in a number of seconds, and there was no mention of any esports events or topics throughout the entire show. However, next week, the Esports Awards will take place, hosted in Las Vegas. That’s the time for esports to shine, of course.
Riot Games Ruled The Roost
There were five categories related to esports that were presented at The Gaming Awards:
- Best Esports Event
- Best Esports Coach
- Best Esports Team
- Best Esports Athlete
- Best Esports Game
As per The Gaming Awards, the best esports event of the year was the 2022 League of Legends World Championship. This was a monumental event that pulled in millions of viewers, and it beat the likes of the VCT 2022, the PGL Major Antwerp, and EVO 2022.
Outside of that award, almost every prize that Riot Games secured was tied to VALORANT. Firstly, the award for best coach went to bzka of MIBR fame, then the best esports team award went to LOUD, which secured the VALORANT Champions Tour earlier this year. For the best esports athlete award, it was yay who picked up the trophy, beating the likes of Faker, Karrigan, and S1mple. This year, yay worked unimaginably hard to represent OpTic Gaming during the VALORANT Champions Tour.
Then, finally, the best esports game award was secured by VALORANT itself, which is rapidly become Riot Games’ flagship title.
Four Hours of Excitement
It was a star-studded show, with the likes of Al Pacino taking to the stage to present awards. There were dozens of games and expansions announced and revealed, including some hefty, prestigious titles that have been in development for several years. For instance, Space Marine II, Death Stranding 2, Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8, and Company of Heroes 3 were all revealed at The Game Awards.
There was also a staggering number of new IPs revealed, some of which drew an instant and overwhelming interest from both the crowd and critics. Here are some of the best games to keep an eye on from The Game Awards:
- Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden
- Behemoth
- REPLACED
- After Us
- Post Trauma
- Hellboy: Web of Wyrd
It’s going to be a busy few years for gaming, and it all starts in a matter of weeks when 2023 ultimately arrives. That’s it for The Game Awards, though – but it’ll return late next year for more of the same.
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