Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Leads The Game Awards 2025 Nominations with Record-Breaking 12 Nods

The nominees for The Game Awards 2025 have been announced, with Sandfall Interactive's turn-based RPG, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, making history by receiving a show-record 12 nominations. The game is the leading contender for the coveted Game of the Year award.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, published by Kepler Interactive, dominated the nominations, including recognition in major categories such as Best Game Direction, Best Narrative, Best Art Direction, Best Score and Music, Best Audio Design, and Best RPG. Its success extends to the acting categories, where it received three nominations for Best Performance: Ben Starr (Verso), Charlie Cox (Gustave), and Jennifer English (Maelle).

Leading Nominees and Key Categories

Two other highly anticipated sequels, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (Kojima Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment) and Ghost of Yōtei (Sucker Punch Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment), are close behind with eight nominations each. Death Stranding 2 is also a contender for Game of the Year.

Game of the Year Nominees:

• Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive/Kepler Interactive)

• Death Stranding 2: On The Beach (Kojima Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment)

• Donkey Kong Bananza (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)

• Hades 2 (Supergiant Games)

• Hollow Knight: Silksong (Team Cherry)

• Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 (Warhorse Studios/Deep Silver)

Independent hits Hades 2 and Hollow Knight: Silksong also received multiple major nominations, with six and five nominations, respectively, and both are in the running for Game of the Year.

Publisher Performance and Ceremony Details

• Sony Interactive Entertainment leads all publishers with 18 total nominations across its titles, followed by Kepler Interactive with 14 (12 of which belong to Clair Obscur).

• The awards will be broadcast live from the Peacock Theatre in Los Angeles on Thursday, December 11, 2025, airing at 5pm PT / 8pm ET on platforms including Amazon Prime and Twitch.

Last year's winner, Astro Bot, took home four awards, including Game of the Year. The 2025 ceremony promises a close contest, with the turn-based RPG Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 set as the title to beat