The Complete Game of the Year Winners List (2014–2025)

Game of the Year is gaming's biggest prize, handed out every December by a handful of ceremonies that actually carry weight across the industry — winning one is often the moment a game stops being "this year's big release" and starts being remembered as a genuine landmark. This list uses The Game Awards as its anchor, since it's the industry's largest and most-watched ceremony, but for every year a winner also swept the D.I.C.E. Awards or BAFTA Games Awards, that's noted too — a genuine sweep across all three shows is one of the clearest signals a game actually earned its reputation, rather than just winning one popularity contest on one night.

This is the complete, unbroken list: one winner for every year the show has existed, starting in 2014 when The Game Awards began (succeeding the old Spike Video Game Awards), counted down from the most recent ceremony to the very first one. Every entry also includes the other games that were in the running that year, so you can see not just what won, but what it had to beat to get there. Whether you're catching up on a decade of gaming history or just want to know what beat what, here's every Game of the Year in exact chronological order.

Game of the Year 2025 — Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

Also nominated: Death Stranding 2, Donkey Kong Bananza, Hades II, Hollow Knight: Silksong

A debut studio's turn-based RPG, Clair Obscur blends classic JRPG-style combat with real-time dodge and parry timing, all wrapped in a striking, painterly Belle Époque world. The story follows Expedition 33 on a race against a mysterious force that erases anyone who reaches the age it paints each year. It swept most of the night's major categories, an extraordinary result for a studio's very first release.

Game of the Year 2024 — Astro Bot

Also nominated: Balatro, Black Myth: Wukong, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Metaphor: ReFantazio

Astro Bot is a joyful, inventive 3D platformer where nearly every level introduces a brand-new gimmick, from gravity flips to shape-shifting suits. The whole game doubles as a love letter to PlayStation's history, packing in cameos and references spanning three decades of Sony consoles. It won largely on the strength of its platforming fundamentals and its standout use of the DualSense controller's haptics.

Game of the Year 2023 — Baldur's Gate 3

Also nominated: Alan Wake 2, Marvel's Spider-Man 2, Resident Evil 4, Super Mario Bros. Wonder, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Baldur's Gate 3 is a massive, D&D 5e-based RPG where nearly every choice ripples outward, shaping companions, quests, and endings in ways that feel truly authored rather than randomly generated. Years in early access before its full launch, it arrived with an almost unmatched density of hand-crafted content for a game this size. Its win proved turn-based, choice-driven RPGs could still be a mainstream hit in 2023.

Game of the Year 2022 — Elden Ring

Also nominated: A Plague Tale: Requiem, God of War Ragnarök, Horizon Forbidden West, Stray, Xenoblade Chronicles 3

Elden Ring takes FromSoftware's punishing, precise combat and sets it loose in a genuinely open world for the first time, with lore co-written by fantasy author George R. R. Martin. Players could approach bosses and regions in almost any order, building a character around dozens of viable weapon and magic combinations. It went on to become one of the best-selling and most influential RPGs of its generation.

Game of the Year 2021 — It Takes Two

Also nominated: Deathloop, Forza Horizon 5, Metroid Dread, Psychonauts 2, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, Resident Evil Village

It Takes Two is a co-op-only adventure about a married couple, Cody and May, who are shrunk into doll form and forced to work together to save their fractured relationship. Nearly every chapter introduces a brand-new mechanic, from magnetism to time manipulation, so the gameplay never repeats itself for long. It's one of the few big-budget games built entirely around two-player teamwork, with no single-player option at all.

Game of the Year 2020 — The Last of Us Part II

Also nominated: Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Doom Eternal, Final Fantasy VII Remake, Ghost of Tsushima, Hades

A bold, unflinching sequel that follows Ellie years after the events of the first game, The Last of Us Part II pushed technical presentation and narrative ambition further than almost anything that came before it. Its animation and combat were widely called best-in-class for the console generation. It also took real storytelling risks rather than delivering an easy, comfortable continuation of the original.

Game of the Year 2019 — Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

Also nominated: Control, Death Stranding, Disco Elysium, Resident Evil 2, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Sekiro drops the character-build variety of FromSoftware's Dark Souls games in favor of one fixed protagonist and a single, razor-sharp combat system built around posture-breaking sword clashes. A mobility-boosting grappling hook and a resurrection mechanic add fresh options on top of the studio's usual difficulty. It's tough by design, and mastering its rhythm is considered one of the most satisfying feelings in action gaming.

Game of the Year 2018 — God of War

Also nominated: Assassin's Creed Odyssey, Celeste, Marvel's Spider-Man, Monster Hunter: World, Red Dead Redemption 2

This reinvention moved Kratos from Greek to Norse mythology, swapping his twin blades for a magic axe and centering the story on his relationship with his young son, Atreus. The entire game plays out in a single unbroken camera shot, with no cuts between combat, exploration, or cutscenes. It beat out heavy competition including Red Dead Redemption 2 and Marvel's Spider-Man for the top prize.

Game of the Year 2017 — The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Also nominated: Horizon Zero Dawn, Persona 5, PUBG, Super Mario Odyssey

Breath of the Wild tore up the traditional Zelda formula, dropping players into Hyrule with almost no restrictions and letting physics-based experimentation solve the vast majority of puzzles. It launched alongside the Nintendo Switch and quickly became the console's defining game. Its influence on open-world design is still visible in games released years later.

Game of the Year 2016 — Overwatch

Also nominated: DOOM, Inside, Titanfall 2, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End

Overwatch introduced a roster of distinct, colorful heroes with wildly different abilities, turning objective-based team play into the game's central hook rather than an afterthought. It became a genuine cultural phenomenon within months of launch, spawning its own esports scene, animated shorts, and a huge cosplay community. On the night, it won four awards including the top prize, Game of the Year.

Game of the Year 2015 — The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Also nominated: Bloodborne, Fallout 4, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, Rocket League

Geralt of Rivia's biggest adventure combines a huge, densely detailed open world with quest writing so strong that even minor side missions often rival the main story in quality. Nearly every choice carries real narrative weight, with consequences that can surface many hours later. Its two expansions, Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine, are still considered among the best DLC ever released for any game.

Game of the Year 2014 — Dragon Age: Inquisition

Also nominated: Destiny, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

Dragon Age: Inquisition won the very first Game of the Year at the very first Game Awards ceremony, beating out Destiny and Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. It cast players as the leader of the Inquisition, a political and military order trying to close a rift tearing the world of Thedas apart. The game leaned into large, explorable regions and a war-table system for managing agents and resources between missions.

That's every Game of the Year winner since The Game Awards began in 2014. Which one holds up best today?