The Game Awards 2025: Game of the Year Revealed, New Announcements Dominate the Show
Gaming’s biggest night, The Game Awards 2025, has concluded. Hosted by Geoff Keighley, the ceremony honored 2025’s defining titles while unveiling massive projects coming in the years ahead.
The evening’s undisputed champion was Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, while surprise announcements from the Star Wars and Resident Evil franchises sent excitement through the roof. However, the show also faced criticism for certain award choices and excessive advertising.
Here’s everything that went down at The Game Awards 2025: winners, announcements, and all the details.
The Night’s Star: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Developed by Sandfall Interactive, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 absolutely dominated the evening. Not only did the title claim Game of the Year, but it also swept the ceremony with a record-breaking 9 awards total, including Best Game Direction, Best Narrative, Best Art Direction, and Best RPG.
An independent studio outshining industry giants to achieve this feat proves once again that storytelling and artistry remain gaming’s most vital pillars.
Exciting Announcements
The ceremony wasn’t just about awards. Long-awaited sequels and fresh IPs were officially unveiled:
- Star Wars: Fate of the Old Republic: One of the night’s biggest surprises. Developed by original Mass Effect and KOTOR director Casey Hudson, this single-player, narrative-driven RPG is being positioned as “KOTOR’s spiritual successor.” Hudson’s return to the Star Wars universe has fans buzzing.
- Resident Evil Requiem: Capcom is bringing back series legend Leon Kennedy. The 48-year-old “more mature” Leon wielding a chainsaw stole the trailer. The game will balance action and horror through two different characters (Leon and Grace).
- Double Tomb Raider News: A fantastic night for Lara Croft fans. The series-roots return Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis (Remake) arrives in 2026, while the all-new adventure Tomb Raider: Catalyst launches in 2027.
- Control: Resonant: Following Alan Wake 2’s success, Remedy Entertainment is expanding the Control universe. Sam Lake’s team announced the game for 2026.
- Divinity: Fresh off world-shaking Baldur’s Gate 3, Larian Studios revealed its next massive RPG project, Divinity. The studio claims this will be even bigger than BG3.
Controversial Decisions and Criticism
As with any awards show, TGA 2025 sparked debate. The Last of Us Season 2 winning “Best Adaptation” despite not yet airing and receiving mixed fan reactions drew particular backlash on social media.
Another controversy erupted when Kingdom Come: Deliverance II lost the RPG category to Clair Obscur, with players valuing role-playing mechanics calling it “unfair.”
Key Award Winners
The major winners from Geoff Keighley’s show:
| Category | Winner |
|---|---|
| Game of the Year (GOTY) | Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 |
| Best Action | Hades II |
| Best Action/Adventure | Hollow Knight: Silksong |
| Best RPG | Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 |
| Most Anticipated Game | Grand Theft Auto VI |
| Best Ongoing Game | No Man’s Sky |
| Best Mobile Game | Umamusume: Pretty Derby |
| Best Adaptation | The Last of Us Season 2 |
| Player’s Voice | Wuthering Waves |
Other Notable Developments
- GTA 6 unsurprisingly claimed “Most Anticipated Game.”
- Lego Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight was confirmed for May 29, 2026.
- Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve and Total War: Warhammer 40,000 were the night’s other surprises for strategy and simulation fans.
The Game Awards 2025 will be remembered for Expedition 33’s dominance and major franchise returns like Star Wars. However, the show’s final hour pacing issues and advertising overload are lessons the organization should learn from moving forward.