The Golden Joystick Award for Game of the Year is an award presented annually at the Golden Joystick Awards ceremony, which had its winners originally voted in by the British general public, but can now be voted in globally via GamesRadar+. The award is given in honor to the best video game released in a particular year. The first Golden Joystick Awards were held in 1983, with the Ultimate Play the Game–developed shooter Jetpac winning Game of the Year.
The award was initially given to 8-bit computer games, as 8-bit microcomputers were the most popular home video game platforms in the UK market for much of the 1980s. Following the rise of 16-bit home computers and 8-bit game consoles in the late 1980s, they began awarding separate Game of the Year awards for 8-bit computers, 16-bit computers and game consoles from 1989. From 1991, they began awarding a single Game of the Year award for all platforms.
The award was originally given under the Game of the Year name and held this name from the original 1983 ceremony to the 2002 ceremony, with the exception of the 1991/1992 ceremonies, and later again in 2013 and 2014. From 1988 to 1990, the Golden Joystick Awards handed out several Game of the Year awards, for an 8-bit computer game, 16-bit computer game, and console game. During the 1991 ceremony, the award was presented as the Overall Game of the Year (including all systems), in order to distinguish it from another category (16-bit Game of the Year, specifically for 16-bit computers), before switching back for the 1992/93 ceremony. In 1996/97, the top award was once again given under the Game of the Year name. However, the Golden Joystick Awards were put on hiatus until 2002. Returning for one year under its original name, the award was then presented as the Ultimate Game of the Year for the 2003 ceremony, a moniker it held until 2012, and then again from 2015 onwards.
Winners Year Game Developer Publisher Genre Platform(s) 1983 (1st) Jetpac Ultimate Play the Game Ultimate Play the Game Shooter VIC-20ZX Spectrum 1984 (2nd) Knight Lore Ultimate Play the Game Ultimate Play the Game Action-adventure ZX Spectrum 1985 (3rd) The Way of the Exploding Fist Beam Software Melbourne House Fighting Commodore 64 1986 (4th) Gauntlet Atari Games U.S. Gold Hack and slash Amstrad CPCCommodore 64MSXZX Spectrum 1987 (5th) Out Run Sega AM2 U.S. Gold Arcade racing Amstrad CPCCommodore 64MSXZX Spectrum 1988(6th) Operation Wolf (8-bit computers) Taito Ocean Software Light gun shooter Amstrad CPCCommodore 64MSXZX Spectrum Speedball (16-bit computers) The Bitmap Brothers Image Works Sports AmigaAtari ST Thunder Blade (game consoles) Sega Sega Combat flight simulator Master System 1989(7th) The Untouchables (8-bit computers) Ocean Software Ocean Software Side-scroller Amstrad CPCCommodore 64MSXZX Spectrum Kick Off (16-bit computers) Dino Dini Anco Software Sports AmigaAtari ST 1990(8th) Rick Dangerous 2 (8-bit computers) Core Design Micro Style Platform Amstrad CPCCommodore 64ZX Spectrum Kick Off 2 (16-bit computers) Dino Dini Anco Software Sports AmigaAtari ST Mega Man (8-bit consoles) Capcom Nintendo Action-platformer NES John Madden Football (16-bit consoles) Park Place Productions Electronic Arts Sports (American football) Sega Mega Drive 1991(9th) Sonic the Hedgehog Sonic Team Sega Platform Sega Mega Drive 1992(10th) Street Fighter II Capcom Capcom Fighting Super NES 1994(12th) Super Mario All-Stars (consoles) Nintendo EAD Nintendo Platformer Super NES The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (handheld) Nintendo EAD Nintendo Platformer Game Boy 1996 / 1997 (14th) Super Mario 64 Nintendo EAD Nintendo Platformer Nintendo 64 2002 (20th) Grand Theft Auto III DMA Design Rockstar Games Action-adventure Third-person shooter PlayStation 2 Windows Xbox 2003 (21st) Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Rockstar North Rockstar Games Action-adventure Third-person shooter PlayStation 2 Windows Xbox 2004 (22nd) Doom 3 id Software Activision First-person shooter Windows 2005 (23rd) Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas Rockstar North Rockstar Games Action-adventure Third-person shooter PlayStation 2 Windows Xbox 2006 (24th) The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Bethesda Game Studios Bethesda Softworks 2K Games Action role-playing Windows Xbox 360 PlayStation 3 2007 (25th) Gears of War Epic Games Microsoft Game Studios Third-person shooter Windows Xbox 360 2008 (26th) Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Infinity Ward Activision First-person shooter Windows Xbox 360 PlayStation 3 2009 (27th) Fallout 3 Bethesda Game Studios Bethesda Softworks Action role-playing Windows Xbox 360 PlayStation 3 2010 (28th) Mass Effect 2 BioWare Electronic Arts Action role-playing Windows Xbox 360 PlayStation 3 2011 (29th) Portal 2 Valve Valve Electronic Arts Puzzle platformer Windows OS X Linux Xbox 360 PlayStation 3 2012 (30th) The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Bethesda Game Studios Bethesda Softworks Action role-playing Windows Xbox 360 PlayStation 3 2013 (31st) Grand Theft Auto V Rockstar North Rockstar Games Action-adventure PlayStation 3 Windows Xbox 360 2014 (32nd) Dark Souls II FromSoftware Bandai Namco Entertainment Action role-playing PlayStation 3 Windows Xbox 360 2015 (33rd) The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt CD Projekt Red CD Projekt Action-adventure PlayStation 4 Windows Xbox One 2016 (34th) Dark Souls III FromSoftware Bandai Namco Entertainment Action role-playing PlayStation 4 Windows Xbox One 2017 (35th) The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Nintendo EPD Nintendo Action-adventure Nintendo SwitchWii U 2018 (36th) Fortnite Battle Royale Epic Games Epic Games Battle royale Various 2019(37th) Resident Evil 2 Capcom R&D Division 1 Capcom Survival horror PlayStation 4 Windows Xbox One 2020(38th) The Last of Us Part II Naughty Dog Sony Interactive Entertainment Action-adventure PlayStation 4 2021(39th)Resident Evil VillageCapcom R&D Division 1CapcomSurvival horrorPlayStation 5WindowsXbox Series X/S 2022(40th)Elden RingFromSoftwareBandai Namco EntertainmentAction role-playingPlayStation 5WindowsXbox Series X/S 2023(41st)Baldur's Gate 3Larian StudiosLarian StudiosRole-playingPlayStation 5WindowsXbox Series X/S 2024(42nd)Black Myth: WukongGame ScienceGame ScienceAction role-playingPlayStation 5WindowsXbox Series X/S 2025(43rd)Clair Obscur: Expedition 33Sandfall InteractiveKepler InteractiveRole-playingPlayStation 5WindowsXbox Series X/S
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