Well, it’s that time of year again. The time when PlayStation users got to vote on their pick for Sony’sGame of the Year. More than 2.5 million people cast their votes across 17 categories, leading to some surprising and not so surprising results.
The Last of Us 2won big this time around, taking home the most awards and being named PS4 Game of the Year. Developer Naughty Dog also won Studio of the Year, followed by Insomniac Games, Sucker Punch, and Square Enix. Meanwhile,Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Moraleswon thetop prize for PS5.Demon’s Souls,Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, andAstro’s Playroomfilled out the remaining spots.
RELATED:The Last of Us Part 2 Wins Game of the Year at The Game Awards
In an unsurprising turn of events,The Last of Us 2swept the awards this time around. The sequel to Naughty Dog’s narrative masterpiece came away with platinum awards for Best Narrative, Best Accessibility Features, Best Graphical Showcase, Best Soundtrack, Best Sound Design, and Best Gaming Moment of the Year. The latter was for Abbie and Ellie’s showdown at the end of the game.
The Last of Us 2also performed respectably in Best Art Direction and Best New Character. Historical epicGhost of Tsushimaended up winning the top prize for art direction, relegatingThe Last of Usto second place.Spider-Man: Miles MoralesandFinal Fantasy 7took third and fourth. Miles himself won best new character, followed byGhost of Tsushimaprotagonist Jin Sakai.Abby fromThe Last of Us 2and Eivor fromAssassin’s Creed Valhallarounded out third and fourth.
Ghost of Tsushimalikely would have been the big winner if not forThe Last of Us 2. Sucker Punch’s samurai sandbox came in second for the PS4 Game of the Year. It also had the most second-place awards, cementing its status as runner up.
Best Multiplayer unsurprisingly went toCall of Duty: Warzone. Meanwhile,Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockoutearned the gold second place trophy.Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold WarandGhost of Tsushimacame away with silver and bronze.Best VR was no huge shockeither, withStar Wars Squadronswinning the grand prize. Nor was it a suprise thatAstro’s Playroomhandily won Best Use of Dualsense.
2020’s Best Independent Game ended up beingFall Guys. The kooky battle royal platformer came out ahead ofBugsnax, withWorms RumbleandSkater XLlanding the silver and bronze. Skater fans will be pleased to hear that the re-release ofTony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1and2rolled away with the best sports game.FIFA 21,NBA 2K21, andDirt 5rounded out the rest of the top four. As for games that haven’t been released yet, Most Anticipated went to the unnamedGod of Warsequel.
The Last of Us 2’sGOTY win is likely to be just as controversial. Just look at therecent The Game Awards backlash. The game averaged an impressive 93% on Metacritic, landing on the site’s must-play list. However, there was also a very vocal backlash from fans. Many objected to the games’ treatment of previous protagonist Joel. Others were unsatisfied with the game’s ending. Despite these objections, the player consensus appears to have swung the other way. It’s safe to sayThe Last of Us 2has secured place in gaming history.
