It was becoming increasingly evident that The Game Awards 2023 would be a memorable evening for Baldur’s Gate 3. The game received an astounding eight nominations (tied for most with Alan Wake 2), Larian had already indicated that it would reveal the Xbox Series X/S release date there, and there was always a chance for a major surprise. The depiction of Baldur’s Gate 3 at the 2023 Game Awards exceeded all expectations.
In case anyone missed the show or was simply inquisitive, let’s review the extent to which Baldur’s Gate 3 won the showcase. At The Game Prizes 2023, it took home six prizes overall, including the Player’s Voice Award, out of its eight direct nominations. In addition, Baldur’s Gate 3 shadow-dropped instead of revealing its Xbox Series X/S release, making it an exciting night for Xbox players.
All of the BG3 nominations for The Game Awards
- Year’s Best Video Game
- Optimal Direction for the Game
- The Greatest Story
- Greatest Music and Score
- Best Outcome
- Greatest Community Assistance
- Top RPG
- Top Multiplayer
At TGA 2023, Baldur’s Gate 3 Had An Incredible Sweep
Best Performance, Best Community Support, Best RPG, Best Multiplayer, Player’s Voice Award, and coveted Game of the Year were all won by Baldur’s Gate 3 at The Game Awards 2023. The game and the studio deserve all of these. Given the ripples it created throughout the industry, the first two are obvious, and Neil Newbon won Best Performance for his portrayal of Astarion in Battlegrounds 3. It’s fortunate for all parties that Newbon decided against acting before this game, as he had previously discussed his thoughts about doing so. Astarion’s performance is among the many excellent ones in the game, therefore it was inevitable that someone would get this honor.
It should come as no surprise that Baldur’s Gate 3 has the best community support given the volume of updates that have been released over the year and that the game is fundamentally a role-playing game. It was almost a given that it would win Best RPG because it used the D&D 5e ruleset, albeit somewhat modified, with intriguing choices, builds, and more. Considering how fans responded to it, Best Multiplayer might surprise some people. Players essentially construct a character in another player’s game that they are unable to use outside of it. Therefore, the character may still be employed, for instance, if the host were to play without them. However, it feels much like a tabletop game from the real world, which helps it win.
The only categories in which Baldur’s Gate 3 did not place were Best Music and Score, Best Narrative, and Game Direction, all of which it lost to Alan Wake 2. That honor went to Final Fantasy 16.
