The nominees for the gamescom Awards 2021 have now been announced, and Ubisoft's Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is up for several gongs across a variety of categories.
With a focus on upcoming titles from publishers who are appearing at the show, these nominees have been put together by an international jury of "games experts, journalists, and content creators". The first set of awards, all in the Platform categories, will be given out during gamescom: Opening Night Live which will be streamed online on Wednesday 25th August at 7pm BST / 8pm CEST.
Here are the nominees for the Platform categories:
Best Microsoft Xbox Game
– Elden Ring, Bandai Namco Entertainment
– Far Cry 6, Ubisoft
– Halo Infinite, Microsoft
Best Nintendo Switch Game
– Just Dance 2022, Ubisoft
– Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, Ubisoft
Best PC Game
– Age of Empires IV, Microsoft
– Elden Ring, Bandai Namco Entertainment
– Syberia: The World Before, astragon Entertainment
Best Sony PlayStation Game
– Elden Ring, Bandai Namco Entertainment
– Tales of Arise, Bandai Namco Entertainment
– The Dark Pictures: House of Ashes, Bandai Namco Entertainment
Next up we'll get to see the Genre categories, with the awards being handed out on Thursday 26th and Friday 27th August:
Best Action Adventure Game
– Elden Ring, Bandai Namco Entertainment
– Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, Ubisoft
– Syberia: The World Before, astragon Entertainment
Best Action Game
– Far Cry 6, Ubisoft
– Halo Infinite, Microsoft
– Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Extraction, Ubisoft
Best Family Game
– Just Dance 2022, Ubisoft
– Run Prop, Run!, PlayTogether Studio
– Super Dungeon Maker, rokaplay
Best Indie Game
– Dorfromantik, Toukana Interactive
– Inua, Arte France
– Lost in Random, Electronic Arts
Best Role Playing Game
– Elden Ring, Bandai Namco Entertainment
– Encased, Koch Media
– Tales of Arise, Bandai Namco Entertainment
Best Simulation Game
– Climber: Sky is the Limit, Art Games Studio
– Farming Simulator 22, astragon Entertainment
– Undisclosed Title
Best Sports Game
– Climber: Sky is the Limit, Art Games Studio
– FIFA 22, Electronic Arts
– Riders Republic, Ubisoft
Best Strategy Game
– Age of Empires IV, Microsoft
– Company of Heroes 3, SEGA
– Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, Ubisoft
Best Multiplayer Game
– Halo Infinite, Microsoft
– Riders Republic, Ubisoft
– The Dark Pictures: House of Ashes, Bandai Namco Entertainment
Best Ongoing Game
– Apex Legends, Electronic Arts
– Black Desert Online, Pearl Abyss Corp.
– Endzone – A World Apart: Prosperity, Assemble Entertainment
Most Original Game
– Dice Legacy, Koch Media / DESTINYbit
– Riders Republic, Ubisoft
– tERRORbane, Whisper Interactive
But that's not all, as there are plenty of other awards set to be handed out, too. These additional categories include 'best announcement', 'best trailer', best streamer', and the prestigious 'Heart of Gaming' award:
Best Announcement – All announcements, reveals or premieres of gamescom’s partners at gamescom: Opening Night Live are eligible.
Best Lineup – All gamescom partners having submitted to gamescom award 2021 are eligible.
Best of gamescom – All category winners of the category groups Genre and Platform are eligible for the main award Best of gamescom.
Best Trailer – All trailers of gamescom’s partners shown at gamescom: Opening Night Live are eligible.
Best Streamer – Select partner streamers and content creators are eligible in the online voting.
gamescom "Most Wanted" Consumer Award – Nominees in all Genre and Platform categories are eligible in the online voting.
HEART OF GAMING Award – Each and every gamescom highlight is eligible for this extraordinary award: not only games, add-ons, and technologies, but also people, institutions, companies, concepts, or terms.
Are you planing on tuning in to gamescom: Opening Night Live on Wednesday? Which games do you think will take home the awards? Let us know in the comments below.
