Three months and a few days into 2020 and I’m still not ready to shut up about just how damn amazing 2019 was. Y’know, back when the world was simpler, happier and far healthier. During that sojourn around the sun, last year saw many a good game released and honoured in various awards show run by prestigious events, personalities and hack websites manned by people whose name rhymes with Sharon Flop Chase.
Now it’s time for the classiest awards show on the block to take a crack at handing out the highest of fives and kudos to the best of the best! The BAFTA awards kicked off from the palatial estate of comedian Dara Ó Briain’s living room, with acceptance speeches being delivered via Zoom conference videos that made for hell of a strange night.
Still, weirdness aside, everyone who received a nomination last night deserved to win, but that’s not how life works. Here’s the list of winners (Cheers Forbes), that saw The Outer Wilds, Disco Elysium and Untitled Goose Game take home the bulk of the top awards.
Best Original Property: Outer Wilds
Runners-up: Baba Is You, Control, Death Stranding, Disco Elysium, Untitled Goose Game
Best Music: Disco Elysium
Runners-up: Control, Death Stranding, Outer Wilds, The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening, Wattam
Best Evolving Game: Path of Exile
Runners-up: Apex Legends, Destiny 2, Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers, Fortnite, No Man’s Sky Beyond
Best Debut Game: Disco Elysium
Runners-up: Ape Out, Death Stranding, Katana ZERO, Knights and Bikes, Manifold Garden
Best Family Game: Untitled Goose Game
Runners-up: Concrete Genie, Knights and Bikes, Luigi’s Mansion 3, Vacation Simulator, Wattam
Best Game Design: Outer Wilds
Runners-up: Baba Is You, Control, Disco Elysium, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, Wattam
EE Mobile Game of the Year (public vote): Call of Duty: Mobile
Runners-up: Assemble With Care, Dead Man’s Phone, Pokémon Go, Tangle Tower, What the Golf?
Best Animation: Luigi’s Mansion 3
Runners-up: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Control, Death Stranding, Sayonara Wild Hearts, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
Best Narrative: Disco Elysium
Runners-up: Control, Life Is Strange 2 (Episodes 2-5), Outer Wilds, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, The Outer Worlds
Artistic Achievement: Sayonara Wild Hearts
Runners-up: Concrete Genie, Control, Death Stranding, Disco Elysium, Knights and Bikes
British Game: Observation
Runners-up: DiRT Rally 2.0, Heaven’s Vault, Knights and Bikes, Planet Zoo, Total War: Three Kingdoms
Audio Achievement: Ape Out
Runners-up: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Control, Death Stranding, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Untitled Goose Game
Best Multiplayer Game: Apex Legends
Runners-up: Borderlands 3, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Luigi’s Mansion 3, Tick Tock: A Tale for Two, Tom Clancy’s The Division 2
Game Beyond Entertainment: Kind Words (lo-fi chill beats to write to)
Runners-up: Civilization VI: Gathering Storm, Death Stranding, Life Is Strange 2 (Episodes 2-5), Neo Cab, Ring Fit Adventure
Best Performer in a Supporting Role: Martti Suosalo (Ahti, Control)
Runners-up: Jolene Andersen (Karen Reynolds, Life Is Strange 2), Sarah Bartholomew (Lucy Rose Jones/Cassidy, Life Is Strange 2), Troy Baker (Higgs Monaghan, Death Stranding), Lea Seydoux (Fragile, Death Stranding), Ayisha Issa (Félicité “Fliss” DuBois, The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan).
Technical Achievement: Death Stranding
Runners-up: A Plague Tale: Innocence, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Control, Metro Exodus, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
Best Performer in a Leading Role: Gonzalo Martin (Sean Diaz, Life is Strange 2)
Runners-up: Laura Bailey (Kait Diaz, Gears 5), Courtney Hope (Jesse Faden, Control), Logan Marshall-Green (David Smith, Telling Lies), Barry Sloane (Captain John Price, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare), Norman Reedus (Sam Porter Bridges, Death Stranding)
Best Game winner: Outer Wilds
Runners-up: Control, Disco Elysium, Luigi’s Mansion 3, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, Untitled Goose Game
Well drop my monocle and call me Susan, that’s a hell of a list of quality right there. If Ó Briain can host an awards show from his lounge, then tune in next week for the Critical Hit best of 2017 which will be held live from my shower. Ad breaks will be held during the bits of the broadcast where I get shampoo in my eyes.
Last Updated: April 3, 2020
MaSeKind
April 3, 2020 at 15:00
Can’t argue against any of those really. Outer Wilds was mad. I was on the moon at that dial thing looking at the planets and the sun when the “Event” occurred, just by chance. Initially thought it was because of that before I knew it always happens after 22 minutes. Such a refreshing new experience.