Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Baldur's Gate 3 top GDC Award nominations

Acclaimed blockbusters lead the field with seven nominations each as Cocoon wraps up five nods

News by Brendan Sinclair Managing Editor

Published on Jan. 16, 2024

The organizers of the Game Developers Conference today revealed the nominees for the 24th annual Game Developers Choice Awards, which will be held at the conference on March 20.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Baldur's Gate 3 racked up the most nominations with each being short-listed for seven awards, including Game of the Year.

Cocoon was another oft-nominated choice, up for five categories and securing a Game of the Year nomination of its own.

The remaining Game of the Year nominees were Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (four nominations in total), Dredge (three total nominations), and Dave the Diver (Game of the Year and Best Debut).

Separate from those nominee counts, there is also an Audience Award with a field of 16 possible games to choose from, including all the games mentioned above.

Voting for the Audience Award is open to the public through January 31 and people can make their choices through the organizer's website.

The full list of nominees follows below:

BEST AUDIO

●Baldur's Gate 3 (Larian Studios)

●Hi-Fi Rush (Tango Gameworks / Bethesda Softworks)

●Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

●The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo)

●Venba (Visai Games)

Honorable Mentions: COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive), Diablo IV (Blizzard Entertainment), Final Fantasy XVI (Square Enix), Hogwarts Legacy (Avalanche Software / Portkey Games), Humanity (tha ltd. and Enhance / Enhance)

BEST DEBUT

●COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive)

●Dave the Diver (Mintrocket)

●Dredge (Black Salt Games / Team17)

●Venba (Visai Games)

●Viewfinder (Sad Owl Studios / Thunderful Publishing)

Honorable Mentions: BattleBit Remastered (SgtOkiDoki, Vilaskis, and TheLiquidHorse / SgtOkiDoki), Party Animals (Recreate Games / Source Technology), Pizza Tower (Tour De Pizza), Planet of Lana (Wishfully Studios / Thunderful), Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical (Summerfall Studios / Humble Games)

BEST DESIGN

●Baldur's Gate 3 (Larian Studios)

●COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive)

●Dredge (Black Salt Games / Team17)

●Hi-Fi Rush (Tango Gameworks / Bethesda Softworks)

●The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo)

Honorable Mentions: Dave the Diver (Mintrocket), Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Sea of Stars (Sabotage Studio), Street Fighter 6 (Capcom), Super Mario Bros. Wonder (Nintendo)

INNOVATION AWARD

●Baldur's Gate 3 (Larian Studios)

●COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive)

●Hi-Fi Rush (Tango Gameworks / Bethesda Softworks)

●The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo)

●The Making of Karateka (Digital Eclipse)

Honorable Mentions: Dave the Diver (Mintrocket), Dredge (Black Salt Games / Team17), Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Starfield (Bethesda Game Studios / Bethesda Softworks), Viewfinder (Sad Owl Studios / Thunderful Publishing)

BEST NARRATIVE

●Alan Wake II (Remedy Entertainment / Epic Games)

●Baldur's Gate 3 (Larian Studios)

●Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

●The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo)

●Venba (Visai Games)

Honorable Mentions: Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty (CD Projekt), Dredge (Black Salt Games / Team17), Goodbye Volcano High (KO_OP), Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Starfield (Bethesda Game Studios / Bethesda Softworks)

SOCIAL IMPACT AWARD

●A Space for the Unbound (Mojiken Studio / Toge Productions)

●Assassin's Creed Mirage (Ubisoft Bordeaux / Ubisoft)

●Baldur's Gate 3 (Larian Studios)

●Terra Nil (Free Lives / Devolver Digital)

●Venba (Visai Games)

Honorable Mentions: Goodbye Volcano High (KO_OP), Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Tchia (Awaceb / Kepler Interactive), Thirsty Suitors (Outerloop Games / Annapurna Interactive)

BEST TECHNOLOGY

●Alan Wake II (Remedy Entertainment / Epic Games)

●Baldur's Gate 3 (Larian Studios)

●Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

●Starfield (Bethesda Game Studios / Bethesda Softworks)

●The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo)

Honorable Mentions: COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive), Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty (CD Projekt), Diablo IV (Blizzard Entertainment), Final Fantasy XVI (Square Enix), Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

BEST VISUAL ART

●Alan Wake II (Remedy Entertainment / Epic Games)

●COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive)

●Final Fantasy XVI (Square Enix)

●Hi-Fi Rush (Tango Gameworks / Bethesda Softworks)

●The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo)

Honorable Mentions: Diablo IV (Blizzard Entertainment), Dredge (Black Salt Games / Team17), Lies of P (Neowiz Games and Round8 Studio / Neowiz Games), Sea of Stars (Sabotage Studio), Super Mario Bros. Wonder (Nintendo)

GAME OF THE YEAR

●Baldur's Gate 3 (Larian Studios)

●COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive)

●Dave the Diver (Mintrocket)

●Dredge (Black Salt Games / Team17)

●Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

●The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo)

Honorable Mentions: Alan Wake II (Remedy Entertainment / Epic Games), Diablo IV (Blizzard Entertainment), Final Fantasy XVI (Square Enix), Sea of Stars (Sabotage Studio), Starfield (Bethesda Game Studios / Bethesda Softworks), Super Mario Bros. Wonder (Nintendo)