The Legend of Zelda, Baldur's Gate 3, and COCOON lead GDCA 2024 nominations

The 2024 Game Developers Choice Awards finalists have been revealed, and it looks like the lands of Hyrule and Faerûn may be poised for an epic showdown—along with an adventure across worlds within worlds.

Organizers of the 2024 Game Developers Conference are thrilled to reveal this year's finalists for the 24th annual Game Developers Choice Awards, the leading peer-based video game event celebrating the industry's top games and developers. 

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This year, the GDCA nominations are led by The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo) and Baldur’s Gate 3 (Larian Studios), which each received a total of seven nominations including Game of the Year. Following close behind is indie game COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive), which received five total nominations at GDCA including Game of the Year. The other titles in the Game of the Year category include Dave the Diver (Mintrocket), Dredge (Black Salt Games | Team17), and Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games | Sony Interactive Entertainment).

Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is a direct sequel to the 2017 GDCA Game of the Year winner, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The game quite literally builds upon the open-world exploratory structure of its predecessor, introducing new crafting abilities that expand creative possibilities for players. It's been nominated for: Best Audio, Best Design, Innovation Award, Best Narrative, Best Technology, Best Visual Art, and Game of the Year. 

Larian Studios’ Baldur’s Gate 3—set within the rich storytelling world of Dungeons & Dragons—gives players the freedom to explore and embark on their own elaborate tales of danger, survival, romance, and adventure in a larger-than-life story of devils, deities, and sinister otherworldly forces. It's been nominated for: Best Audio, Best Design, Innovation Award, Best Narrative, Social Impact Award, Best Technology, and Game of the Year. 

COCOON by developer Geometric Interactive and Annapurna Interactive is a mesmerizing, worlds-spanning puzzle adventure from the mind of Jeppe Carlsen, previously the Lead Gameplay Designer of past GDCA winners LIMBO and INSIDE. It's been nominated for: Best Debut, Best Design, Innovation Award, Best Visual Art, and Game of the Year. COCOON is also a frontrunner at the 2024 Independent Games Festival Awards with three nominations, including the Seumas McNally Grand Prize. 

In addition to the categories listed below, the Audience Award welcomes the GDC audience to cast their vote for their favorite game from the past year. You can cast your ballot for the Audience Award here. 

The Game Developers Choice Awards is part of GDC 2024, which will be held in San Francisco March 18-22. 

Here is the full list of GDCA 2024 nominees, including honorable mentions: 

Best Audio 

Baldur’s Gate 3 (Larian Studios)

Hi-Fi Rush (Tango Gameworks / Bethesda Softworks)

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo)

Venba (Visai Games)

Honorable Mentions: COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive), Diablo IV (Blizzard Entertainment), Final Fantasy XVI (Square Enix), Hogwarts Legacy (Avalanche Software / Portkey Games), Humanity (tha ltd. and Enhance / Enhance)

Best Debut 

COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive)

Dave the Diver (Mintrocket)

Dredge (Black Salt Games / Team17)

Venba (Visai Games)

Viewfinder (Sad Owl Studios / Thunderful Publishing)

Honorable Mentions: BattleBit Remastered (SgtOkiDoki, Vilaskis, and TheLiquidHorse / SgtOkiDoki), Party Animals (Recreate Games / Source Technology), Pizza Tower (Tour De Pizza), Planet of Lana (Wishfully Studios / Thunderful), Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical (Summerfall Studios / Humble Games)

Best Design 

Baldur's Gate 3 (Larian Studios)

COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive)

Dredge (Black Salt Games / Team17)

Hi-Fi Rush (Tango Gameworks / Bethesda Softworks)

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo)

Honorable Mentions: Dave the Diver (Mintrocket), Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Sea of Stars (Sabotage Studio), Street Fighter 6 (Capcom), Super Mario Bros. Wonder (Nintendo)

Innovation Award 

Baldur's Gate 3 (Larian Studios)

COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive)

Hi-Fi Rush (Tango Gameworks / Bethesda Softworks)

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo)

The Making of Karateka (Digital Eclipse)

Honorable Mentions: Dave the Diver (Mintrocket), Dredge (Black Salt Games / Team17), Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Starfield (Bethesda Game Studios / Bethesda Softworks), Viewfinder (Sad Owl Studios / Thunderful Publishing)

Best Narrative

Alan Wake II (Remedy Entertainment / Epic Games)

Baldur's Gate 3 (Larian Studios)

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo)

Venba (Visai Games)

Honorable Mentions: Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty (CD Projekt), Dredge (Black Salt Games / Team17), Goodbye Volcano High (KO_OP), Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Starfield (Bethesda Game Studios / Bethesda Softworks)

Social Impact Award 

A Space for the Unbound (Mojiken Studio / Toge Productions)

Assassin's Creed Mirage (Ubisoft Bordeaux / Ubisoft)

Baldur's Gate 3 (Larian Studios)

Terra Nil (Free Lives / Devolver Digital)

Venba (Visai Games)

Honorable Mentions: Goodbye Volcano High (KO_OP), Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Tchia (Awaceb / Kepler Interactive), Thirsty Suitors (Outerloop Games / Annapurna Interactive) 

Best Technology 

Alan Wake II (Remedy Entertainment / Epic Games)

Baldur's Gate 3 (Larian Studios)

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

Starfield (Bethesda Game Studios / Bethesda Softworks)

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo) 

Honorable Mentions: COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive), Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty (CD Projekt), Diablo IV (Blizzard Entertainment), Final Fantasy XVI (Square Enix), Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

Best Visual Art 

Alan Wake II (Remedy Entertainment / Epic Games)

COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive)

Final Fantasy XVI (Square Enix)

Hi-Fi Rush (Tango Gameworks / Bethesda Softworks)

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo)

Honorable Mentions: Diablo IV (Blizzard Entertainment), Dredge (Black Salt Games / Team17), Lies of P (Neowiz Games and Round8 Studio / Neowiz Games), Sea of Stars (Sabotage Studio), Super Mario Bros. Wonder (Nintendo)

Game of the Year 

Baldur's Gate 3 (Larian Studios)

COCOON (Geometric Interactive / Annapurna Interactive)

Dave the Diver (Mintrocket)

Dredge (Black Salt Games / Team17)

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (Insomniac Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo)

Any video game that released and made publicly available during the 2023 calendar year was eligible for free nomination for the 2024 Game Developers Choice Awards. Both nominees and winners are selected by the Game Developers Choice Awards-specific International Choice Awards Network (ICAN), which is an invitation-only organization, composed of leading game creators from all parts of the industry.

Winners will be announced at the GDCA ceremony on Wednesday, March 20 (with a simultaneous broadcast on GDC Twitch). GDCA follows the Independent Games Festival Awards, which celebrates independent games and their creators. Both the GDCA and IGF ceremonies are available to watch for all GDC 2024 pass holders! 

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