The Game Awards 2023 Nominees Livestream: Start Time and Predictions

Over the last several years, The Game Awards have slowly replaced E3 as the biggest gaming event of the year. While that’s largely due to the number of reveals and exclusive trailers the show has treated us to during that time, The Game Awards are still about…well, the awards. While we won’t know who wins at this year’s show until it is broadcast on December 7, we will soon know all of this year’s nominees.

So here is what you (hopefully) need to know about tuning into this year’s nominee reveal show as well as a few of our predictions about which games might secure the biggest nominations.

The Game Awards 2023 Nominee Reveal Stream: Start Time and How to Watch

The Game Award 2023 nominees will be revealed via a livestream that begins on November 13 at 9:00 AM PST, 11 AM CT, 12 PM EST, 5 PM GMT, and all other corresponding global times. The nominees across 30 different categories will be revealed during that livestream.

Interestingly enough, the announcement for that livestream event just lists The Game Awards website as the place to see the show. However, it seems likely you will be able to follow the show via The Game Awards’ Twitch and YouTube channels.

Furthermore, please note that there have been no indications that this livestream will include information regarding what games may be revealed at The Game Awards 2023 show. While it’s possible that we’ll learn a little more about those upcoming reveals during the broadcast, it’s best to treat this as a simple nominee reveal showcase.

Game Awards 2023 Nominee Predictions

While we don’t yet know the full list of categories for The Game Awards 2023, it feels safe to start predicting nominees for some of the show’s biggest legacy categories.

Just note that the categories, number of candidates, and eligibility requirements are based on the most recent Game Awards shows. Furthermore, I’m currently only predicting nominees rather than winners, and my predictions are largely based on who I think will get nominated rather than who I would prefer to see be nominated.

The Game Awards 2023: Game of the Year Nominee Predictions

Baldur’s Gate 3

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Alan Wake 2

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2

Super Mario Bros. Wonder

Starfield

Baldur’s Gate 3 and Tears of the Kingdom are mortal locks for Game of the Year nominations. I can’t fathom the series of decisions that would lead to either of those games not securing a nomination. I’m not ready to call this a two-horse race quite yet, but those are the guaranteed nominees for this year. 

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 isn’t necessarily guaranteed a nomination, but I have a hard time imagining it being snubbed here. Not only is it an exceptional game, but The Game Awards have historically included at least one PlayStation exclusive among the GOTY nominees (when applicable), and that is certainly the best PS5 exclusive of the year. 

The rest of the nominees are more difficult to predict. Alan Wake 2 feels like the next safest game to predict given both its sheer quality and its history with the Game Awards show (it was announced at The Game Awards 2021). Maybe it gets snubbed here if it ends up dominating other categories, but that would still be pretty surprising. 

The final two spots are wild cards. Super Mario Bros. Wonder hasn’t necessarily generated the hype that some other games have, but it’s an exceptional entry into a legacy franchise and a Nintendo game to boot. As for Starfield…well, I’m torn between that and Resident Evil 4 Remake for the final spot. I think Resident Evil might have more support overall, but it will likely be tempting to nominate an Xbox title here for platform distribution purposes and as a nod to Bethesda. Despite some of my criticisms of Starfield, it’s also a very good game. 

Other Notable Contenders: Resident Evil 4 Remake, Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon, Diablo 4, Final Fantasy 16, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor

The Game Awards 2023: Best Game Direction Nominee Predictions

Alan Wake 2

Baldur’s Gate 3

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Final Fantasy 16

This category has historically echoed the Game of the Year category fairly closely, and I don’t think this year will be any different. Alan Wake 2, Baldur’s Gate 3 and Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 are all exceptional experiences that also represent the kind of games that are typically nominated for direction.

Believe it or not, it’s Tears of the Kingdom I’m a little less confident in. Historically, the nominees in this category tend to be a little more traditionally cinematic than titles like Tears of the Kingdom. However, Breath of the Wild did win this award in 2017, and Tears of the Kingdom is certainly a little closer to the typical nominee than that game was. 

Appropriately enough, the final spot most likely goes to Final Fantasy 16. Again, that game has some issues, but the sheer scope of its cinematic audacity is undeniably stunning. I don’t know how that game will fare this year in other categories, but I do think it deserves a nomination here. 

Other Notable Contenders: Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon, Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty (depending on eligibility), Hogwarts Legacy, System Shock

The Game Awards 2023: Best Narrative Nominee Predictions

Baldur’s Gate 3

Alan Wake 2

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2

Octopath Traveller 2

Final Fantasy 16

Once again, Baldur’s Gate 3, Alan Wake 2, and Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 earn nearly guaranteed nominations in another major category. I feel like this category will end up being a very tough race between those three titles, but that is a discussion for another day. 

Octopath Traveller 2 is probably the biggest dark horse candidate for this category, but every time I looked at the game amongst the other notable titles of the year, I just couldn’t justify leaving it off. It’s a truly exceptional RPG with one of the boldest and most satisfying role-playing stories of the year. My guess is that enough voters will feel the same. 

As for Final Fantasy 16…well, I don’t feel great about it, to be honest. There have certainly been quite a few complaints aimed at aspects of the game’s story, and I find that most of those criticisms are consistent and valid. However, when I look at the other notable possible nominees from this year, I just have a hard time seeing which one could generate enough collective support to elevate it over Final Fantasy 16. Again, I mean that purely from a logistical perspective.

That said, this is one area where I’m really curious to see how the voters treat Phantom Liberty. If that game is eligible and not at least softly looked down upon for “only” being DLC, I do think it could secure the final spot in this category. 

Other Notable Candidates: Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty (if eligible), Mortal Kombat 1, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon, Dave the Diver, Dredge

The Game Awards 2023: Best Independent Game Nominee Predictions

Cocoon

Dredge

Dave the Diver

Pizza Tower

Humanity

It’s a testament to the continuing quality of the indie game scene that this category becomes just a little more difficult to predict year after year. However, whereas previous years have typically featured at least one “breakthrough” indie game that seemingly led the pack (such as last year’s winner, Stray), this year’s field seems to be wide open. 

That said, Cocoon feels like the front-runner in this category. Created by Jeppe Carlsen (the lead gameplay designer of Inside and Limbo), Cocoon is a stunningly beautiful mind-bending puzzle game that represents years of work and a lifetime of creative passion. It’s exactly the kind of game that this category exists to honor. 

Dredge and Dave the Diver occupy somewhat similar spaces on this list, and that’s not just because they’re both aquatic-based adventures that benefit from a number of well-implemented twists. Each game has generated a steady stream of hype throughout the year from a variety of media outlets and players. I’m 90% confident both will get a nomination, and I could see either eventually winning this award. 

Pizza Tower is certainly a personal favorite of mine from this year, though I do wonder if its early release date and relative lack of mainstream buzz will work against it. My guess is that anyone who reviews the year’s candidates will have a hard time ignoring this wonderful throwback to the Wario Land games that doubles as one of 2023’s most pleasantly intense experiences. 

Sea of Stars gets my final nomination prediction, though I could see that spot going to about five or six different titles. Sea of Stars’ warm hug RPG gameplay and pedigree (it’s from the team that developed The Messenger) may be enough to put it over the top. 

Other Notable Contenders: Humanity, Path Quest, Tchia, Season: A Letter to The Future, Cassette Beasts

The Game Awards 2023: Best Action Game Nominee Predictions

Remnant 2

Armored Core 6

Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun

Hi-Fi Rush

El Paso, Elsewhere

Part of the reason I’m highlighting this category is that it has historically been used to shine a light on some of the games that don’t get a lot of love in other major categories. That makes it both incredibly difficult to predict and a lot of fun to talk about. 

Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon is probably the most obvious nominee here. It’s the biggest bubble candidate in several other categories, but I definitely think it will grab this nomination at the very least. It’s an exceptional action experience from a team that has gotten a lot of love at The Game Awards in years past. Honestly, I might even be selling it short elsewhere. 

I’d be surprised if Remnant 2 didn’t get a nomination here, though this is certainly where things become more unpredictable. I think Remnant 2 is one of the best action games of the year and the kind of game that other studios have been trying to make for much longer than that. A ton of buzz seems to be on Remnant 2’s side, so I think it gets this valuable nomination. 

Hi-Fi Rush also feels like a pretty safe bet, though I suppose it could be moved to the action/adventure category. I was actually going to put it in the indie category before I remembered it is very much not an indie game. Regardless, expect this game to secure a few nominations in various technical categories and possibly a big nomination here. 

Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun’s nomination may depend on how many people actually got around to playing it. It’s an incredible “boomer shooter” that modernizes that genre in intelligent ways while also paying tribute to pretty much everything Warhammer. It’s as glorious of a pure action experience as we’ve gotten this year. 

Finally, El Paso, Elsewhere is simply my preferred dark horse candidate for this category. Though sometimes clunky, it’s a wonderful Max Payne throwback with style to burn. Given that the action game category has typically valued quality and quantity of pure action over other factors, I think that it has a chance of being rightly recognized here. 

Other Notable Contenders: Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, Dead Island 2, RoboCop: Rogue City, The Lords of the Fallen