Here are all the winners from The Game Awards 2021

Game Awards 2021 Image (Image credit: Game Awards)

The Game Awards always bring a bevy of game announcements, with exciting reveals and updates on previously-announced upcoming titles, and The Game Awards 2021 is no exception. It's also, as the name implies, an awards show, with games being recognized across the industry from the biggest AAA first-party titles to the smallest indie games, many of which join the ranks of the best Xbox games available.

The big winner of the night was It Takes Two, which was the surprise winner of the big Game of the Year category. It also took home the prizes for Best Family Game and Best Multiplayer Game.

This year, the Xbox first-party family of Xbox Game Studios and Bethesda Softworks led the nominations, so of course the company took home a few prizes. Deathloop from Bethesda's Arkane Lyon won Best Game Direction and Best Art Direction and Forza Horizon 5, despite not getting nominations in huge categories, won Innovation in Accessibility, among other awards.

Game of the Year

Deathloop - Arkane Studios, Bethesda Softworks
It Takes Two - Hazelight, EA - WINNER
Metroid Dread - MercurySteam, Nintendo
Psychonauts 2 - Double Fine, Xbox Game Studios
Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart - Insomniac Games, PlayStation Studios
Resident Evil Village - Capcom

Best Performance

Giancarlo Esposito - Far Cry 6
Jason E. Kelley - Deathloop
Ozioma Akagha - Deathloop
Erika Mori - Life is Strange: True Colors
Maggie Robertson - Resident Evil Village - WINNER

Best Action-Adventure

Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy - Eidos Montreal, Square Enix
Metroid Dread - MercurySteam, Nintendo - WINNER
Psychonauts 2 - Double Fine, Xbox Game Studios
Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart - Insomniac Games, PlayStation Studios
Resident Evil Village - Capcom

Best Indie

12 Minutes - Luis Antonio, Annapurna Interactive
Death's Door - Acid Nerve, Devolver Digital
Inscyption - Daniel Mullins Games, Devolver Digital
Kena: Bridge of Spirits - Ember Lab - WINNER
Loop Hero - Four Quarters, Devolver Digital

Best Debut Indie

The Artful Escape - Beethoven and Dinosaur, Annapurna Interactive
The Forgotten City - Modern Storyteller, Dear Villagers
Kena: Bridge of Spirits - Ember Lab - WINNER
Sable - Shedworks, Raw Fury
Valheim - Iron Gate Studio, Coffee Stain

Games for Impact

Before Your Eyes - Goodbyeworld Games, Skybound Games
Boyfriend Dungeon - Kitfox Games
Chicory: A Colorful Tale - Greg Lobanov, Finji
Life is Strange: True Colors - Deck Nine, Square Enix - WINNER
No Longer Home - Humble Grove

Best Audio Design

Deathloop - Arkane Studios, Bethesda Softworks
Forza Horizon 5 - Playground Games, Xbox Game Studios - WINNER
Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart - Insomniac Games, PlayStation Studios
Resident Evil Village - Capcom
Returnal - Housemarque, PlayStation Studios

Best Action Game

Back 4 Blood - Turtle Rock, WB Games
Chivalry 2 - Torn Banner Studios, Tripwire Interactive
Deathloop - Arkane Studios, Bethesda Softworks
Far Cry 6 - Ubisoft Toronto, Ubisoft
Returnal - Housemarque, PlayStation Studios - WINNER

Best Art Direction

Deathloop - Arkane Studios, Bethesda Softworks - WINNER
Kena: Bridge of Spirits - Ember Lab
Psychonauts 2 - Double Fine, Xbox Game Studios
Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart - Insomniac Games, PlayStation Studios
The Artful Escape - Beethoven & Dinosaur, Annapurna Interactive

Best Family Game

It Takes Two - Hazelight, EA - WINNER
Mario Party Superstars - Nocube, Nintendo
New Pokémon Snap - Bandai Namco/The Pokémon Company, Nintendo
Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury - Nintendo
Warioware: Get it Together! - Intelligent Systems, Nintendo

Best Game Direction

Deathloop - Arkane Studios, Bethesda Softworks - WINNER
It Takes Two - Hazelight, EA
Returnal - Housemarque, PlayStation Studios
Psychonauts 2 - Double Fine, Xbox Game Studios
Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart - Insomniac Games, PlayStation Studios

Best Multiplayer

Back 4 Blood - Turtle Rock, WB Games
It Takes Two - Hazelight, EA - WINNER
Knockout City - Velant, EA
Monster Hunter Rise - Capcom
New World - Amazon Games
Valheim - Iron Gate Studios, Coffee Stain

Best Narrative

Deathloop - Arkane Studios, Bethesda Softworks
It Takes Two - Hazelight, EA
Life is Strange: True Colors - Deck Nine, Square Enix
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy - Eidos Montreal, Square Enix - WINNER
Psychonauts 2 - Double Fine, Xbox Game Studios

Best Ongoing

Apex Legends - Respawn Entertainment, EA
Call of Duty: Warzone - Infinity Ward/Raven Software, Activision
Final Fantasy 14 - Square Enix - WINNER
Genshin Impact - Mihoyo
Fortnite - Epic Games

Best Role-Playing

Cyberpunk 2077 - CD Projekt Red
Monster Hunter Rise - Capcom
Scarlet Nexus - Bandai Namco
Shin Magami Tensei V - Atlus, Sega
Tales of Arise - Bandai Namco - WINNER

Best Score and Music

Cyberpunk 2077 - P. T. Adamczyk, Marcin Przybyłowicz, Paul Leonard-Morgan
Deathloop - Tom Salta
Nier Replicant - Keichii Okabe - WINNER
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy - Richard Jacques
The Artful Escape - Johnny Galvatron, Josh Abrahams

Best Sim and Strategy

Age of Empires 4 - Relic Entertainment/World's Edge, Xbox Game Studios - WINNER
Evil Genius 2 - Rebellion Developments
Humankind - Amplitude Studios, Sega
Inscryption - Daniel Mullins Games, Devolver Digital
Microsoft Flight Simulator - Asobo Studio, Xbox Studio Studios

Best Sports and Racing

F1 2021 - Codemasters, EA
FIFA 22 - EA Vancouver, EA
Forza Horizon 5 - Playground Games, Xbox Game Studios - WINNER
Hot Wheels Unleahed - Milestone
Riders Republic - Ubisoft Annecy, Ubisoft

Best Mobile

Fantasian
Genshin Impact - WINNER
League of Legends: Wild Rift
Marvel Future Revolution
Pokémon Unite

Innovation in Accessibility

Far Cry 6 - Ubisoft Toronto, Ubisoft
Forza Horizon 5 - Playground Games, Xbox Game Studios - WINNER
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy - Eidos Montreal, Square Enix
Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart - Insomniac Games, PlayStation Studios
The Vale: Shadow of the Crown - Creative Bytes Studios, Falling Squirrel

Most Anticipated Game

Elden Ring - FromSoftware, Bandai Namco - WINNER
God of War: Ragnarok - Sony Santa Monica, PlayStation Studios
Horizon Forbidden West- Guerrilla Games, PlayStation Studios
Sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild - Nintendo
Starfield - Bethesda Game Studios, Bethesda Softworks

Best VR and AR

Hitman 3 - IO Interactive
I Expect You to Die 2 - Schell Games
Lone Echo 2 - Ready at Dawn, Oculus Games
Resident Evil 4 - Armature Studios/Capcom, Oculus Studios - WINNER
Sniper Elite 4 - Coatsink/Just Add Water, Rebellion Developments

Best Esports game

Call of Duty – Activision
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive – Valve
Dota 2 – Valve
League of Legends – Riot Games - WINNER
Valorant – Riot Games

Best Esports team

Atlanta Faze
DWG KIA
Natus Vincere - WINNER
Team Spirit
Sentinels

Best Esports event

2021 League of Legends Championship - WINNER
PGL Major Stockholm 2021
PUBG Mobile Global Championship
The International 2021
Valorant Champions Tour: Stage 2 Masters

Content Creator of the Year

Dream - WINNER
Fuslie
Gaules
Ibai
Grefg

CATEGORIES

Samuel Tolbert is a freelance writer covering gaming news, previews, reviews, interviews and different aspects of the gaming industry, specifically focusing on Xbox and PC gaming on Windows Central. You can find him on Twitter @SamuelTolbert.