Nominees for most categories of The Game Awards are chosen by an international jury of over 80 global media and influencer outlets, selected for their history of critical evaluation of video games. The full list of outlets <a href="/voting-jury">is available here.</a>
Each voting outlet completes a confidential, unranked ballot based on the collective and diverse opinion of its entire editorial staff, listing out its top five choices in each category. Ballots are tabulated, and the five games that appear on the most ballots are put forth as nominees. In the event of a tie, six (or more) nominees will be announced in a category. Game Awards producer Geoff Keighley is not a member of the jury and does not vote on the nominees.

How are nominees selected for The Game Awards?

Given the sheer number of games released each year, as well as the extended time required to fully evaluate products, a “voting outlet” approach allows for the widest possible critical assessment. A ballot submitted to The Game Awards represents the collective opinion of an entire outlet, not one individual’s point of view.

Why do you use this jury to select the nominees?

Winners are determined by a blended vote between the voting jury (90%) and public fan voting (10%). Fans can vote for their favorite games once every 24 hours on TheGameAwards.com and via Google Search Voting across all categories, and also via Twitter DM and Discord in select categories. In China fans can vote on the winners via Bilibili. Fan voting closes on Wednesday, December 11 at 6 pm PT.

Who selects the winners?

Creating a 100% fan vote presents several challenges. First, given that some games are exclusive to one platform, a public vote puts single-platform games at an inherent disadvantage over multi-platform titles. In addition, it is important that winners cannot be “socially engineered” in any way. We find that a blended vote is the most credible and authentic way to select winners.

Why don’t fans completely chose the winners?

The Game Awards strongly believes that no game developer or publisher should have to pay to have a game considered for nomination. Thus, there are no entry forms or fees required — all games are automatically eligible for nomination. There is no submission process.

Is there an entry fee to submit a game?

At the start of the Awards Season, game publishers and developers are provided with access to a list of outlets that will submit nomination ballots. While most of our voting outlets have access to games through the normal editorial process, publishers and developers are permitted to provide review copies or digital redemption codes.
In order to ensure the credibility of the voting process, The Game Awards maintains a strict “no campaigning” policy. Publishers and developers are asked to avoid any communication that could be interpreted as “campaigning” for nomination. Any violations of this policy are reviewed and may lead to the disqualification of a title or, in extreme cases, disqualification of an entire publisher’s slate from awards eligibility in any given year.
To meet our balloting deadlines, publishers or developers may provide advance or pre-release access to games for critical evaluation.

Are voting outlets given free or advance copies of games for consideration?

Games eligible for The Game Awards this year must be available for public consumption on or before November 15, 2019. Titles that are released after this date will be eligible for The Game Awards ceremony in 2020. (Similarly, games that were released in December 2018 are eligible for this year’s awards).

What is the cutoff date for games to be eligible this year?

The Game Awards recognizes that many games are ongoing services that evolve over time with new content, features, and improvements. Games released in previous years are eligible in all award categories, so long as the jury feels their inclusion is merited due to new content, improvements or service updates. In addition, the “Best Ongoing Game” category specifically recognizes titles that continue to provide value to customers.

How are “games as a service” titles being handled in the voting?

Yes, any game available for public consumption by the deadline is eligible for potential nomination. It’s up to the jury to decide if a title warrants a nomination for creative and/or technical excellence in a given year.

Are early access games eligible for The Game Awards?

There is no formal submission process for The Game Awards. Qualified developers and publishers can contact The Game Awards to receive the list of voting outlets, which is made available in late September every year.

I’d like to submit my game for consideration in the future, what is the process?

No, there is no connection. The voting on nominees and winners is handled by a jury that is wholly unaware of who is sponsoring or participating in other elements of the program.

Do show sponsors or advisory board members have an increased chance of winning (or being nominated) for an award?

No, game developers and publishers, including the Advisory Board, find out the nominees and winners at the same time as the public. The Game Awards does not disclose winners in advance of the live ceremony. There are no exceptions to this rule.

Are game companies made aware of the nominees or winners in advance of the public?

Limited public tickets to the show, December 12 at Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, are <a href="https://www.axs.com/events/372955/the-game-awards-tickets" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">available for purchase</a>.