By Gary Watkins
03/12/2022
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Announcing the winners for the eighth annual SXSW Gaming Awards, recognizing the most creative and influential titles, teams, and individuals in the industry.
The winners were revealed during the virtual SXSW Gaming Awards show on Saturday, March 12 at 7:00pm CT.
This year’s SXSW Gaming Awards included 40 nominees across 12 different categories, with winners determined by a weighted total between SXSW staff and advisory board input as well as public voting.
Awarded to the game that exemplifies overall excellence and creates a distinct gaming experience across all platforms and genres.
Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker — SQUARE ENIX
Nominated: It Takes Two — Hazelight / Electronic Arts Psychonauts 2 — Double Fine Productions / Xbox Game Studios Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart — Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment Resident Evil Village — Capcom
Awarded to the independently-developed game that exemplifies overall excellence and creates a distinct gaming experience across all platforms and genres.
Kena: Bridge of Spirits — Ember Lab
Nominated: Chicory: A Colorful Tale — Greg Lobanov / Finji Death’s Door — Acid Nerve / Devolver Digital Inscryption — Daniel Mullins Games / Devolver Digital Loop Hero — Four Quarters / Devolver Digital Lost Words: Beyond the Page — Sketchbook Games / Modus Games The Medium — Bloober Team Unpacking — Witch Beam / Humble Games Valheim — Iron Gate Studio / Coffee Stain Publishing The Wild At Heart — Moonlight Kids / Humble Games
Awarded to the game that exemplifies overall excellence and ingenuity of any tabletop game in any genre.
Dune: Imperium — Dire Wolf Digital / Dire Wolf Digital
Nominated: Cascadia — Randy Flynn, Beth Sobel, Dylan Mangini, Molly Johnson, Robert Melvin, Kevin Russ, Shawn Stankewich, David Lezzi / Flatout Games Oath: Chronicles of Empire & Exile — Cole Wehrle / Leder Games Roll Camera! The Filmmaking Board Game — Malachi Ray Rempen / Keen Bean Studio That Time You Killed Me — Peter C. Hayward, Jeff Fraser, Alex Cutler / Pandasaurus Games
Awarded to the VR game that exemplifies overall excellence in gameplay and design across any VR platform.
Resident Evil 4 VR — Armature Studio / Oculus Studios
Nominated: After The Fall — Vertigo Games Demeo — Resolution Games Lone Echo II — Ready at Dawn / Oculus Studios Song in the Smoke — 17-BIT
Awarded to the game that best challenges the “norm” of everyday gaming and offers a culturally innovative view of a game world, character, or gameplay.
Unpacking — Witch Beam / Humble Games
Nominated: Chicory: A Colorful Tale — Greg Lobanov / Finji Before Your Eyes — GoodbyeWorld Games / Skybound Games Life is Strange: True Colors — Deck Nine Games / Square Enix Lost Words: Beyond the Page — Sketchbook Games / Modus Games
Awarded to the game with the most well-designed and stunning visuals, including animation effects and graphics.
Forza Horizon 5 — Playground Games / Xbox Game Studios
Nominated: Deathloop — Arkane Lyon / Bethesda Softworks Exo One — Exbleative / Future Friends Games Kena: Bridge of Spirits — Ember Lab The Wild At Heart — Moonlight Kids / Humble Games
Awarded to the game with the best overall design concept, gameplay mechanics, and best execution.
Inscryption — Daniel Mullins Games / Devolver Digital
Nominated: Deathloop — Arkane Lyon / Bethesda Softworks Loop Hero — Four Quarters / Devolver Digital Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart — Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment Returnal — Housemarque / Sony Interactive Entertainment
Awarded to the game that best exemplifies artistic excellence in its original musical score and how it progresses the narrative of the game.
Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker — SQUARE ENIX
Nominated: The Artful Escape — Beethoven & Dinosaur / Annapurna Interactive Kena: Bridge of Spirits — Ember Lab The Medium — Bloober Team Wytchwood — Alientrap Games / Whitethorn Games
Awarded to the game with the best player-to-player interaction experience.
It Takes Two — Hazelight / Electronic Arts
Nominated: Back 4 Blood — Turtle Rock Studios / Warner Bros. Games Halo Infinite — 343 Industries / Xbox Game Studios Riders Republic — Ubisoft Annecy / Ubisoft Valheim — Iron Gate Studio / Coffee Stain Publishing
Awarded to the game with the best storyline and dialogue.
Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker — SQUARE ENIX
Nominated: Deathloop — Arkane Lyon / Bethesda Softworks Kena: Bridge of Spirits — Ember Lab Lost in Random — Zoink Games / Electronic Arts Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy — Eidos-Montréal / Square Enix
Awarded to the game with the most outstanding and impactful sound effects.
Resident Evil Village — Capcom
Nominated: Forza Horizon 5 — Playground Games / Xbox Game Studios Hell Let Loose — Black Matter / Team17 Inscryption — Four Quarters / Devolver Digital Twelve Minutes — Luis Antonio / Annapurna Interactive
Awarded to the game that pushed the capabilities of technology and programming furthest or most effectively.
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart — Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment
Nominated: Before Your Eyes — GoodbyeWorld Games / Skybound Games Forza Horizon 5 — Playground Games / Xbox Game Studios Hell Let Loose — Black Matter / Team17 Returnal — Housemarque / Sony Interactive Entertainment
Congrats to all 2022 SXSW Gaming Awards recipients!
Photo Credit: SQUARE ENIX
By Gary Watkins
03/12/2022
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