The shortlists for the rather extensive list of awards for the 2013 Golden Joystick Awards have been released and voting has begun. Unlike many other other awards, the Golden Joysticks are open to public voting so it’s basically like the People’s Chose Awards of gaming. Nominees comprise games released between August 25, 2012 to September 2013.
It’s doubtful you’ll find much wrong with many of the nominees although you might raise an eyebrow at the inclusion of certain nominees on some of the shortlists. Is anybody really looking forward to Need for Speed: Rivals?
Below is the full list of categories and nominees. Be sure to cast your vote. Perhaps I’m cynical but these awards didn’t seem to be in association with so many companies last year. Then again, the number of awards does seem to have grown and somebody needs to pay for all that gold.
Game of the Year
Borderlands 2 (2K Games)
Dishonored (Bethesda)
Forza Horizon (Microsoft)
Halo 4 (Microsoft)
The Last of Us (Sony)
Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
Tomb Raider (Square Enix)
BioShock Infinite (2K Games)
The Walking Dead (TellTale)
Pikmin 3 (Nintendo)
Call of Duty: Black Ops II (Activision)
Guild Wars 2 (NCsoft)
Fire Emblem Awakening (Nintendo)
Hotline Miami (Devolver Digital)
Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch (Namco Bandai)
Saints Row IV (Deep Silver)
Splinter Cell Blacklist (Ubisoft)
Most Wanted
Xbox One (Microsoft)
PlayStation 4 (Sony)
The Elder Scrolls Online (Bethesda)
Thief (Square Enix)
Watch Dogs (Ubisoft)
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (Konami)
Destiny (Activision)
Battlefield 4 (EA)
Call of Duty: Ghosts (Activision)
Super Smash Bros. Wii U (Nintendo)
Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (Namco Bandai)
The Division (Ubisoft)
Titanfall (EA)
Dark Souls II (Namco Bandai)
Need for Speed: Rivals (EA)
Batman: Arkham Origins (Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc)
Best Indie Game
Hotline Miami (Devolver Digital)
Gunpoint (Suspicious Developments)
Mark of the Ninja (Klei)
State of Decay (Undead Labs)
Guacamelee! (Drinkbox Studios)
The Unfinished Swan (Giant Sparrow)
Ridiculous Fishing (Vlambeer)
FTL: Faster Than Light (Subset Games)
Super Hexagon (Terry Cavanagh)
Best Newcomer
The Last of Us (Sony)
The Walking Dead (TellTale)
Dishonored (Bethesda)
Hotline Miami (Devolver Digital)
DUST 514 (CCP)
Forza Horizon (Microsoft)
ZombiU (Ubisoft)
Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch (Namco Bandai)
Remember Me (Capcom)
State of Decay (Microsoft)
Injustice: Gods Among Us (Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc)
DayZ (Dean ‘Rocket’ Hall/Bohemia Interactive)
Best Handheld Game
Animal Crossing: New Leaf (Nintendo)
Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon (Nintendo)
Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate (Capcom)
LittleBigPlanet PSVita (Sony)
Fire Emblem: Awakening (Nintendo)
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate (Nintendo)
Assassin’s Creed III Liberation (Ubisoft)
Soul Sacrifice (Sony)
Persona 4 Golden (Square Enix)
Hotline Miami (Devolver Digital)
Best Gaming Platform in association with Digital Spy
Steam (Valve)
Wii U (Nintendo)
Nintendo 3DS (Nintendo)
Xbox 360 (Microsoft)
PlayStation 3 (Sony)
PS Vita (Sony)
Gog.com (CD Projekt RED)
Google Play (Google)
iOS App Store (Apple)
Best Storytelling
The Last of Us (Sony)
BioShock Infinite (2K Games)
Metro: Last Light (Deep Silver)
The Walking Dead (TellTale)
Halo 4 (Microsoft)
Dishonored (Bethesda)
LEGO City: Undercover (Nintendo)
Tomb Raider (Square Enix)
Call of Juarez: Gunslinger (Ubisoft)
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons (505)
COD: Black Ops II (Activision)
Virtue’s Last Reward (Rising Star Games)
Best Mobile/Tablet Game of the Year
XCOM: Enemy Unknown (2K Games)
Ridiculous Fishing (Vlambeer)
Super Hexagon (Terry Cavanagh)
Deus Ex: The Fall (Square Enix)
Rayman Jungle Run (Ubisoft)
Total War Battles: Shogun (Sega)
Joe Danger Touch (Hello Games)
Year Walk (Simogo)
Punch Quest (Rocketcat)
Best Online Game
World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria (Blizzard)
ShootMania Storm (Ubisoft)
Firefall (Red 5)
PlanetSide 2 (Sony Online Entertainment)
SimCity (EA)
DayZ (Dean ‘Rocket’ Hall/Bohemia Interactive)
Curiosity – What’s Inside the Cube? (22Cans)
Defiance (Trion Worlds)
World of Tanks (Wargaming.net)
League of Legends (Riot Games)
Dota 2 (Valve)
Eve Online – Odyssey (CCP)
Guild Wars 2 (NCsoft)
Runescape 3 (Jagex)
Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn (Square Enix)
Star Wars: The Old Republic (EA)
Disney Infinity (Disney Interactive)
The Secret World (EA/Funcom)
Rift (Trion Worlds)
Aion (Gameforge)
Best Multiplayer
FIFA 13 (EA)
PES 2013 (Konami)
Call of Duty: Black Ops II (Activision)
Nintendo Land (Nintendo)
Halo 4 (Microsoft)
Borderlands 2 (2K Games)
Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed (Sega)
StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm (Blizzard)
Company of Heroes 2 (Sega)
F1 2012 (Codemasters)
Battlefield 3 End Game Expansion (EA)
Payday 2 (505 Games)
Innovation of the Year in association with T3
Ouya
Twitch.tv
Nintendo Direct (Nintendo)
Miiverse (Nintendo)
Wonderbook (Sony)
SmartGlass (Microsoft)
Oculus Rift (Oculus)
Defiance (Trion Worlds)
Curiosity – What’s Inside the Cube? (22Cans)
Earforce XP510 headset (Turtle Beach)
Studio of the Year
TellTale Games
Ubisoft Montreal
Naughty Dog
343 Industries
EA Canada
Irrational Games
Nintendo Intelligent Systems
Ninja Theory
Playground Games
Riot Games
DICE
Arkane Studios
The Creative Assembly
Sports Interactive
Best Visual Design
BioShock Infinite (2K Games)
Dishonored (Bethesda)
Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch (Namco Bandai)
Hotline Miami (Devolver Digital)
The Unfinished Swan (Giant Sparrow)
Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon (Ubisoft)
Borderlands 2 (2K Games)
Pikmin 3 (Nintendo)
DMC (Capcom)
The Last of Us (Sony
Metro: Last Light (Deep Silver)
Halo 4 (Microsoft)
God of War: Ascension (Sony)
Best Gaming Moment in association with Absolute Radio
Trying Oculus Rift for the first time. (Oculus)
MGS Revengeance – Senator boss fight (Capcom)
Bioshock Infinite – Hallelujah (2K)
Mass Effect 3 – Citadel DLC party (EA)
DMC – Bob Barbas boss fight (Capcom)
Dishonored – Lady Boyle’s Last Party (Bethesda)
Far Cry 3 – The Definition of Insanity (Ubisoft)
Hotline Miami – Chapter 8 (disco) (Devolver Digital)
The Walking Dead – The boy in the attic (Telltale)
Assassin’s Creed III – The Templar Twist (Ubisoft)
The Unfinished Swan – The King’s Dream (Giant Sparrow)
The Last of Us – Joel’s loss (Sony)
Tomb Raider – Radio Tower climb (Square Enix)
Dead Space 3 – A surprising death (EA)
Halo 4 – Cortana’s fate (Microsoft)
The YouTube Gamer Award
Yogscast
Ali A
Smooth McGroove
Francis
Fitzthislewitz
Tam McGleish (Gamewank)
Bitsocket