Golden Joystick Awards

The world's longest-running video game awards ceremony, launched in the UK in 1983, with winners selected by public vote.

Golden Joystick Awards

Overview

The Golden Joystick Awards are the world's longest-running video game awards ceremony, originating in the UK in 1983. It was founded by games magazine Computer and Video Games (CVG), and is currently organized by games outlet GamesRadar+. Unlike other major awards ceremonies, its weighting is overwhelmingly in favor of general gamers' public voting rather than a jury, maintaining its identity as “an award chosen directly by players.”

Key details

History and origins

The first ceremony was held in London, UK, in 1983. The award's name is derived from the game controller, the “joystick,” and the trophy itself is made in the shape of a golden joystick. At the time of its founding, 8-bit home computers such as the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, and BBC Micro were spreading into UK homes, and the early winners directly reflected the tastes of the UK game market at the time. After a hiatus in the mid-1990s, it was revived in the early 2000s, and has been held annually since. Thanks to its history of over 40 years, it is regarded in the game industry as “the oldest authoritative public award.”

Voting method and characteristics

Its biggest characteristic is that it is thoroughly based on fan voting. When GamesRadar+ reveals the nominees for each category, users around the world participate in online voting, and the title with the most votes wins. Because of this, commercially successful titles tend to perform strongly, while popular titles that receive relatively little attention at critics-centered awards ceremonies often win. The ceremony is held offline at a venue in London, and during the COVID-19 pandemic it was sometimes replaced by online broadcasting. The hosting is handled by game industry figures and broadcasters, and acceptance speeches are delivered directly by people from the development studios.

Main categories

The representative category is “Ultimate Game of the Year,” the ceremony's highest honor. Other categories include Best Storytelling, Best Visual Design, Best Audio, Best Game Performance, Best Indie Game, Best Multiplayer, Best Community, and Best Gaming Hardware. In particular, the “Still Playing Award” is a unique category that highlights live-service and long-running games that continue to be played steadily long after release. In addition, the Critics' Choice Award, Lifetime Achievement (achievement award), and Breakthrough Award are presented separately.

Major past winners

The top prize, Ultimate Game of the Year, was won by The Last of Us Part II in 2020, Resident Evil Village in 2021, Elden Ring in 2022, Baldur's Gate 3 in 2023, and Black Myth: Wukong in 2024. In 2023, Baldur's Gate 3 swept several categories, including Best Storytelling and Best Game Performance, and was recorded as the most-awarded title of that year; in 2024, Black Myth: Wukong from Chinese developer Game Science took both the top prize and Best Visual Design, imprinting the presence of Asian studios.

Influence and standing

Although based in the UK, its nominees and voting target the whole world, so it functions as a de facto global awards ceremony. If the US's The Game Awards (TGA) emphasizes flashy staging in the form of a large-scale show, the Golden Joystick Awards are relatively closer to a substantive industry-centered event. New game announcements and trailer reveals are often held alongside it, so it also has value as a marketing stage.

Latest trends

The 2024 ceremony was held in November, with Black Myth: Wukong taking the top prize, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth winning in the storytelling and music categories, and Helldivers 2 winning in the multiplayer category, confirming the influence of live-service games. The ceremony continues in 2025, and the trend toward a greater share for indie games, mobile categories, and accessibility-related items is clear. In addition, the rise of studios from non-Western regions such as China, Korea, and Poland, the reorganization of evaluation criteria for early access and live-service models, and attempts to combine fan voting with critics' assessments are key points of recent discussion. Criticism that the 100% public voting method is vulnerable to organized “fandom voting” has also been steadily raised, and discussions on adjusting weights by category are proceeding alongside it.