Game Developers Choice Awards 2026

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The 26th annual Game Developers Choice Awards celebrate the best games of 2025.

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Overview

The twenty-sixth annual Choice Awards was held on March 12, 2026 during the Game Developers Conference at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, California. The show was hosted by Sam Maggs.

Personal Awards

Lifetime Achievement Award

• Don L. Daglow (Person)

Ambassador Award

• Rebecca Ann Heineman (Person)

Game of the Year

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Developer: Sandfall Interactive (Company) Publisher: Kepler Interactive (Company) Nominees Blue Prince (Game) (Dogubomb (Company) / Raw Fury (Company)) Donkey Kong Bananza (Game) (Nintendo EPD (Company) / Nintendo (Company)) Hollow Knight: Silksong (Team Cherry (Company)) Split Fiction (Game) (Hazelight Studios / Electronic Arts (Company)) Honorable Mentions Absolum (Game) (Guard Crush Games (Company) & Supamonks (Company) / Dotemu) Ball X Pit (Kenny Sun & Friends / Devolver Digital (Company)) Hades II (Game) (Supergiant Games (Company))

Best Audio

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Developer: Sandfall Interactive (Company) Publisher: Kepler Interactive (Company) Nominees Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (Kojima Productions / SIEA) Ghost of Yōtei (Sucker Punch Productions / SIEA) Rift of the NecroDancer (Game) (Brace Yourself Games (Company) & Tic Toc Games (Company) / Klei) South of Midnight (Game) (Compulsion Games (Company) / Xbox Game Studios (Company)) Honorable Mentions ARC Raiders (Game) (Embark Studios (Company)) Donkey Kong Bananza (Game) (Nintendo EPD (Company) / Nintendo (Company)) Doom: The Dark Ages (id Software (Company) / Bethesda Softworks (Company)) Lumines Arise (Game) (Enhance (Company) / Monstars Inc. (Company)) To a T (uvula LLC / Annapurna Interactive (Company))

Best Debut

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Developer: Sandfall Interactive (Company) Publisher: Kepler Interactive (Company) Nominees Ball X Pit (Kenny Sun & Friends / Devolver Digital (Company)) Blue Prince (Game) (Dogubomb (Company) / Raw Fury (Company)) Dispatch (Game) (Adhoc Studio) Honorable Mentions ARC Raiders (Game) (Embark Studios (Company)) Consume Me (Game) (Jenny Jiao Hsia) Hollow Knight: Silksong (Team Cherry (Company)) The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy (Too Kyo Games (Company) & Media Vision / Aniplex (Company)) The Roottrees are Dead (Game) (Evil Trout Inc.)

Best Design

Blue Prince (Game) Developer: Dogubomb (Company) Publisher: Raw Fury (Company) Nominees Ball X Pit (Kenny Sun & Friends / Devolver Digital (Company)) Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive (Company) / Kepler Interactive (Company) Donkey Kong Bananza (Game) (Nintendo EPD (Company) / Nintendo (Company)) Split Fiction (Game) (Hazelight Studios / Electronic Arts (Company)) Honorable Mentions The Alters (Game) (11 Bit Studios (Company)) Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (Kojima Productions / SIEA) Ghost of Yōtei (Sucker Punch Productions / SIEA) Kingdom Come: Deliverance II (Warhorse Studios (Company) / Deep Silver (Company))

Best Narrative

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Developer: Sandfall Interactive (Company) Publisher: Kepler Interactive (Company) Nominees Despelote (Game) (Julián Codero & Sebastián Valbuena / Panic (Company)) Dispatch (Game) (Adhoc Studio) Ghost of Yōtei (Sucker Punch Productions / SIEA) Split Fiction (Game) (Hazelight Studios / Electronic Arts (Company)) Honorable Mentions Lost Records: Bloom & Rage (Don't Nod Montréal / Don't Nod) South of Midnight (Game) (Compulsion Games (Company) / Xbox Game Studios (Company)) The Outer Worlds 2 (Game) (Obsidian Entertainment (Company) / Xbox Game Studios (Company)) The Séance of Blake Manor (Spooky Doorway (Company) / Raw Fury (Company))

Best Technology

Death Stranding 2: On the Beach Developer: Kojima Productions Publisher: SIEA Nominees Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive (Company) / Kepler Interactive (Company) Donkey Kong Bananza (Game) (Nintendo EPD (Company) / Nintendo (Company)) Ghost of Yōtei (Sucker Punch Productions / SIEA) Split Fiction (Game) (Hazelight Studios / Electronic Arts (Company)) Honorable Mentions ARC Raiders (Game) (Embark Studios (Company)) Battlefield 6 (Game) (Battlefield Studios / Electronic Arts (Company)) Hollow Knight: Silksong (Team Cherry (Company)) Kingdom Come: Deliverance II (Warhorse Studios (Company) / Deep Silver (Company)) Peak (Game) (Team Peak / Aggro Crab (Company) & Landfall)

Best Visual Art

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Developer: Sandfall Interactive (Company) Publisher: Kepler Interactive (Company) Nominees Absolum (Game) (Guard Crush Games (Company) & Supamonks (Company) / Dotemu) Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (Kojima Productions / SIEA) Ghost of Yōtei (Sucker Punch Productions / SIEA) Hades II (Game) (Supergiant Games (Company)) Keeper (Game) (Double Fine Productions / Xbox Game Studios (Company)) Honorable Mentions Hollow Knight: Silksong (Team Cherry (Company)) The Midnight Walk (Game) (MoonHood / Fast Travel Games (Company)) South of Midnight (Game) (Compulsion Games (Company) / Xbox Game Studios (Company)) Sword of the Sea (Game) (Giant Squid (Company))

Innovation Award

Blue Prince (Game) Developer: Dogubomb (Company) Publisher: Raw Fury (Company) Nominees Ball X Pit (Kenny Sun & Friends / Devolver Digital (Company)) Baby Steps (Game) (Gabe Cuzzilo, Maxi Boch (Company), and Bennett Foddy (Company) / Devolver Digital (Company)) Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive (Company) / Kepler Interactive (Company) Donkey Kong Bananza (Game) (Nintendo EPD (Company) / Nintendo (Company)) Honorable Mentions CloverPit (Game) (Panik Arcade (Company) / Future Friends Games (Company)) Consume Me (Game) (Jenny Jiao Hsia) REPO (Semiwork Studios) Sunderfolk (Game) (Secret Door (Company) / Dreamhaven (Company)) To a T (uvula LLC / Annapurna Interactive (Company))

Social Impact Award

Consume Me (Game) Developer: Jenny Jiao Hsia Publisher: Jenny Jiao Hsia Nominees And Roger (Game) (TearyHand Studio (Company) / Kodansha) Despelote (Game) (Julián Codero & Sebastián Valbuena / Panic (Company)) Dispatch (Game) (Adhoc Studio) Honorable Mentions Herdling (Game) (Okomotive (Company) / Panic (Company)) Lost Records: Bloom & Rage (Don't Nod Montréal / Don't Nod) Peak (Game) (Team Peak / Aggro Crab (Company) & Landfall) To a T (uvula LLC / Annapurna Interactive (Company))

Audience Award

And Roger (Game)

• Developer: TearyHand Studio (Company)
• Publisher: Kodansha

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Concept details

Name

Game Developers Choice Awards 2026

Aliases

GDC Awards 2026

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• view all →

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Locations

• Has locations: San Francisco (Location), California (Location), The United States of America (Location)

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People

Related Concepts

• Has related concepts: Game Developers Choice Awards (Concept), D.I.C.E. Awards (Concept), Giant Bomb Game of the Year 2025 (Concept), 29th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards (Concept)