As anticipated, Astro Bot claimed Game of the Year at The Game Awards 2024. This year’s competition was notably open, with no clear front-runner, adding an extra layer of excitement to the event. Even so, Team Asobi’s charming platformer was perfectly positioned to chart a straightforward path to gaming’s highest honor. In addition to the GOTY title, Astro Bot won four awards in total, including Best Game Direction, Best Action/Adventure Game, and Best Family Game, making it the night’s most celebrated winner.

While some awards-watchers may feel disappointed—especially fans of the Chinese action game Black Myth: Wukong and the indie card game Balatro, both of which had passionate supporters—Astro Bot’s win is unlikely to spark much controversy. That’s precisely why it triumphed. Impeccably polished, irresistibly joyful, and entirely uncontroversial, Astro Bot was the one game in 2024 that everyone could rally behind.

Figure 1. Astro Bot's

That’s not to say Astro Bot's win was entirely without surprises. Games nominated in the Family category don’t typically take home Game of the Year, with It Takes Two being the only other exception when it won in 2021. The Game Awards voting jury tends to favor titles aimed at an adult audience, with mature themes and complex presentations, as well as strong narrative elements—areas where Astro Bot doesn’t quite align. However, it’s important to note that It Takes Two, though a friendly co-op platformer, centered around the theme of divorce, still resonated with a broad adult audience. Similarly, Astro Bot, while appealing to children with its adorable characters and energetic vibe, also tugs at the nostalgic heartstrings of gamers through its 30th anniversary celebration of PlayStation, complete with its highly collectible elements. Both games carry a sentimental and emotional appeal for adults, perhaps even more so than games like Super Mario Bros. Wonder. This emotional connection could have helped Astro Bot strike a deeper chord with the voting jury. Figure 1 shows Astro Bot's.

Nonetheless, it’s heartening to see such high praise for a title that strives to be inclusive of some of gaming’s most overlooked and underserved audiences: children. While the deep-cut references to obscure 1990s Japan-only releases might resonate with fanboys, they don’t hinder the simple, face-value enjoyment of a game that is endlessly creative and incredibly fun to play. (Just ask my 8-year-old, who has already rolled credits on Astro Bot three times.)

In every other way, Astro Bot is a quintessential GOTY winner. It’s a technically impressive console game with high production values, earning stellar reviews and garnering widespread critical consensus. Moreover, it boasts an accessible, universal appeal that transcends cultural boundaries, making it a game that can resonate with every member of the international TGA jury.

All the other nominees had significant drawbacks. Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree was limited by its status as an expansion, even before the public outcry over its nomination. Black Myth: Wukong had immense international and popular backing, but it simply wasn’t a critics’ favorite, and the last decade has repeatedly shown that only games with strong critical support (i.e., high Metacritic scores) can claim victory.

It was tempting to build a narrative around Balatro's chances, especially after we at Polygon named it our own Game of the Year. It had great reviews and, by indie standards, a broad player base. But let's be realistic. The last time an indie game seriously contended for Game of the Year at The Game Awards was Hades in 2020. Despite winning many major outlets' GOTY titles that year, some of us were shocked when it lost to The Last of Us Part 2. A look at a global tracker of Game of the Year awards — counting both titles that won GOTY awards and those that topped end-of-year lists — tells a sobering story. The Last of Us Part 2 claimed GOTY honors 326 times, while Hades garnered just 75. It wasn’t even close. Appreciation for indie games at the same level as AAA titles is largely confined to a specific bubble, and there's simply no way Balatro could amass the broad coalition of support needed to win GOTY at The Game Awards. It just wasn't in the cards. Still, Balatro's developer, LocalThunk, can be proud of its three awards, tying for second place behind Astro Bot.

Astro Bot's closest challenger should have been Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, another polished console game with wide appeal. However, Rebirth’s spotlight was overshadowed by Atlus’ Metaphor: ReFantazio, a more niche but similarly grand RPG that ultimately carried a bit more weight and critical acclaim. With three wins, including a victory over Rebirth in the Best Role-Playing Game category, Metaphor likely secured second place in the GOTY race, coming in just behind Astro Bot.

Astro Bot's victory solidifies Sony’s position as the most successful publisher in the history of The Game Awards, with three GOTY wins — more than any other publisher. (EA has two, Nintendo one, and Microsoft none.) Sony also led the awards in total wins for an unmatched fourth time, with Astro Bot's four awards bolstered by two more for Helldivers 2. Not bad for a company that, at the start of the year, claimed it had no major exclusive games coming in 2024.

While The Game Awards is undeniably the most prestigious event in gaming’s awards season, it stands out for being one of the earliest, unlike film awards, which build toward the Oscars through a months-long cycle of precursor awards. So, does Astro Bot's TGA win signal an easy sweep for Team Asobi at upcoming awards? Not necessarily. While the DICE Awards often align with TGA’s picks, the U.K.’s BAFTA Games Awards have only mirrored TGA's choices twice, and they tend to favor lesser-known titles like Returnal and Outer Wilds in their Best Game category. This could leave room for Balatro to make a strong showing there.

Source: Polygon

Cite this article:

Janani R (2024), Astro Bot's Game of The Year Win Was Safe, Predictable, And Well-Deserved, AnaTechmaz, pp. 77