The BAFTAs announce banger-packed players choice awards nominees including Baldur's Gate 3, and Lethal Company
One final chance to show your love for 2023's biggest hits.
The player's choice nominees for the BAFTA game awards have been announced, and feature a wall-to-wall roster of absolute bangers for the public to pick a champion from. As the last major video game awards show for 2023 heavy-hitters, this could be the last chance for some of these games to take home a trophy come April.
Members of the British public can head to the BAFTA website to cast their vote. Sorry Americans, but you need a British phone number to register, which the BAFTAs will also use to sign voters up for a prize draw. The BAFTAs are one of the few good things we have left on misery island so don't feel too sour.
The games up for voting include:
- Fortnite
- Cyberpunk 2077
- Lethal Company
- Baldur's Gate 3
- The Legend of the Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
- Marvel's Spider-Man 2
All fantastic games, all with a good reason to win. Fortnite may seem like the odd one out, but you've got to remember some of the banger seasonal updates the game saw in 2023. Live Service makes strict barriers for a game "of the year" trickier than it was in the past, but how could you not include the rock-band reviving shooter here.
Cyberpunk 2077 also makes a return thanks to the excellent Phantom Liberty expansion which made the game an open-world classic in our eyes. The game has a rocky history that's for sure, but in 2023 it really did come into its own and reeem itself quality-wise.
The Legend of the Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom kind of got snubbed in the awards season. It was a weird situation - in a year packed for of original releases the sequel didn't quite get the same amount of critical hype at these sorts of shows. It's still amazing - the same quality as its predecessor but taken a level higher in terms of player creativity. It's one of the main reasons to own a Nintendo Switch!
Then there's Marvel's Spider-Man 2, which won big at the DICE awards alongside Baldur's Gate 3. Another fantastic sequel, also somewhat overshadowed like Tears of the Kingdom throughout 2023 at events like The Game Awards. But it was a real bar-setter both for super hero games and third person action alike - well worth playing if you somehow missed it.
However, if there are two games I have my money on being top contenders it's Baldur's Gate 3 and Lethal Company. You coudn't get a more distinct duo. Both games shock the video game industry to its core upon release, with Baldur's Gate 3 capturing hearts with masteful storytelling, brain-melting detail, and untold levels of horniness. Lethal Company is a one-of-a-kind cooperative horror game, doing so much with so little, glued together with talent of the passion of a single developer.
It'll be a tight race for sure. Me? I'd vote for Baldur's Gate 3 but I'd feel awfully conflicted doing it. Lethal Company is so special, and I could probably wake up tomorrow and think of a real good arguement for the other four. Let us know what you'd vote for, or if you'll just roll a dice and let fate decide.