Elden Ring has done it. The action role-playing game developed by FromSoftware and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment won Game of the Year at the Game Awards in 2022.
It beat other heavy hitters including A Plague Tale: Requiem, God of War Ragnarök, Horizon Forbidden West, Stray, and Xenoblade Chronicles 3 to take home the prized award.
Not only did it receive widespread critical acclaim, but it also became FromSoftware’s best-selling game in the span of a year, surpassing Bloodborne, Dark Souls I, II, and III, Demon’s Souls, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and more.
Elden Ring was also a huge step forward for FromSoftware.
It was the first time they took their immensely popular and notoriously difficult formula into an open-world setting, and it fit perfectly. The exhilaration of exploring and discovering new locations and enemies in the Lands Between, a massive and gorgeous landmass ruled by demigods, was a breathtaking experience like no other.
George R. R. Martin, the author of A Song of Ice and Fire, played an important role in that. The writer was responsible for worldbuilding—a craft he is universally acclaimed for.
There were whispers God of War Ragnarök would give it a run for its money, and Stray could be a dark horse to win Game of the Year.
But in the end, Elden Ring was simply untouchable.
It wasn’t FromSoftware’s first rodeo at The Game Awards, nor was it the first time one of their games was nominated (and won) Game of the Year. Dark Souls II was nominated for it in 2014 but lost to Dragon Age: Inquisition. Similarly, Bloodborne was nominated for it in 2015 but the award ended up going to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, on the other hand, went on to win it in 2019, and now they’ve done it again with Elden Ring.
And with the first DLC already here, the Elden Ring journey still goes on.
