Every year, the Game Critics Awards, a consortium of more than 50 major publications that cover the video game industry, gets together to choose the best games at the E3 Expo. The nominees for “Best of E3 2018” were announced this morning, and BioWare’s Anthem lead the way with five nominations (including “Best of Show”).
From Software’s Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is also in the running for “Best of Show,” and it’s standing close behind Anthem with four total nominations. After that, a mob of games collided in third place with three nominations apiece (including Battlefield V, Dreams, Marvel’s Spider-Man, Resident Evil 2, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate). All but Battlefield V and Dreams are also up for “Best of Show.”
The PS4 was the most-honored platform with 58 nominations, followed by the PC (with 55), the Xbox One (with 51), and the Switch (with 10).
Several games that clicked with fans at home during the pre-E3 press conferences (including Cyberpunk 2077, Death Stranding, The Last of Us Part II, and many others) weren’t eligible for nomination because they weren’t available to play by the judging panel.
But most of those games will likely get another shot next year (especially since I expect to be old and gray before Death Stranding is released), and you can find all of this year’s nominees after the break. The winners will be announced this coming Monday, July 2.
Best of Show
- Anthem (BioWare/EA)
- Marvel’s Spider-Man (Insomniac Games/SIE)
- Resident Evil 2 (Capcom)
- Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (FromSoftware/Activision)
- Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (Bandai Namco Studios/Sora/Nintendo)
Best Original Game
- Anthem (BioWare/EA)
- Days Gone (SIE Bend Studio/SIE)
- Dreams (Media Molecule/SIE)
- Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (FromSoftware/Activision)
- Skull & Bones (Ubisoft Singapore/Ubisoft)
Best Console Game
- Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (Ubisoft Quebec/Ubisoft)
- Dreams (Media Molecule/SIE)
- Marvel’s Spider-Man (Insomniac Games/SIE)
- Resident Evil 2 (Capcom)
- Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (FromSoftware/Activision)
- Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (Bandai Namco Studios/Sora/Nintendo)
Best PC Game
- Anthem (BioWare/EA)
- Battlefield V (EA DICE/EA)
- Metro: Exodus (4A Games/Deep Silver)
- Rage 2 (Avalanche/id/Bethesda)
- Total War: Three Kingdoms (Creative Assembly/Sega)
Best AR/VR Game
- Astro Bot: Rescue Mission (SIE Japan Studio/SIE)
- Deracine (FromSoftware/SIE Japan Studio/SIE)
- Echo Combat (Ready at Dawn/Oculus Studios)
- Tetris Effect (Resonair/Enhance Inc)
- Trover Saves the Universe (Squanch Games)
Best Action Game
- Anthem (BioWare/EA)
- Battlefield V (EA DICE/EA)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (Treyarch/Activision)
- Metro: Exodus (4A Games/Deep Silver)
- Rage 2 (Avalanche/id/Bethesda)
Best Action/Adventure Game
- Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (Ubisoft Quebec/Ubisoft)
- Marvel’s Spider-Man (Insomniac Games/SIE)
- Resident Evil 2 (Capcom)
- Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (FromSoftware/Activision)
- Shadow of the Tomb Raider (Eidos Montreal/Square Enix)
- Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 (Massive Entetainment/Ubisoft)
Best RPG
- Divinity: Original Sin II (Larian Studios/Bandai Namco)
- Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age (Square Enix)
- Kingdom Hearts III (Square Enix)
- Octopath Traveler (Square Enix/Acquire/Nintendo)
- Pokemon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Eevee! (Game Freak/Nintendo)
Best Fighting Game
- Dead or Alive 6 (Team Ninja/Koei Tecmo)
- Jump Force (Spike Chunsoft/Bandai Namco)
- Soul Calibur VI (Bandi Namco)
- Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (Bandai Namco Studios/Sora/Nintendo)
Best Racing Game
- F1 2018 (Codemasters)
- Forza Horizon 4 (Playground Games/Turn 10/Microsoft Studios)
- Team Sonic Racing (Sumo Digital/Sega)
- The Crew 2 (Ivory Tower/Ubisoft)
- Trials Rising (Red Lynx/Ubisoft)
Best Sports Game
- FIFA 19 (EA Vancouver/EA)
- Mario Tennis Aces (Camelot Software Planning/Nintendo)
- Pro Evolution Soccer 2019 (PES Productions/Konami)
Best Strategy Game
- Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden (The Bearded Ladies/Funcom)
- Total War: Three Kingdoms (Creative Assembly/Sega)
- Two Point Hospital (Two Point Studios/Sega)
- Wargroove (Chuckle Fish)
Best Family/Social Game
- Dreams (Media Molecule/SIE)
- Lego DC Super-Villains (Traveler’s Tales/WBIE)
- Pokemon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Eevee! (Game Freak/Nintendo)
- Overcooked 2 (Ghost Town Games/Team 17)
- Mario Tennis Aces (Camelot Software Planning/Nintendo)
Best Online Multiplayer
- Anthem (BioWare/EA)
- Battlefield V (EA DICE/EA)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (Treyarch/Activision)
- Destiny 2: Forsaken (Bungie/Activision)
- Skull & Bones (Ubisoft Singapore/Ubisoft)
- Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 (Massive Entertainment/Ubisoft)
Best Independent Game
- Ori and the Will of Wisps (Moon Studios/Microsoft)
- Outer Wilds (Mobius Digital/Annapurna Interactive)
- Overcooked 2 (Ghost Town Games/Team 17)
- Sable (Shedworks/Raw Fury)
- Tunic (Andrew Shouldice/Finji)
Best Ongoing Game
- Destiny 2: Forsaken (Bungie/Activision)
- For Honor (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft)
- Fortnite (Epic)
- PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG Corp)
- Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft)
Best Hardware/Peripheral
- NeoGeo Mini (SNK)
- Poke Ball Plus (Nintendo)
- Starlink: Battle for Atlas (Ubisoft Toronto/Ubisoft)
- Vantage Controller for PS4 (SCUF Gaming)
- Xbox Adaptive Controller (Microsoft)
Special Commendation for Graphics
3 Award Winners, To Be Announced Monday, July 2Special Commendation for Sound
1 Award Winner To Be Announced Monday, July 2Special Commendation for Innovation
1 Award Winner, To Be Announced Monday, July 2
