Expedition 33 Dominates at the 2025's Gaming Honors
The forty-third annual Golden Joystick Awards took place this past week, and through an impressive display, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 claimed the title of the biggest winner. This standout role-playing game from Sandfall Interactive secured the coveted Ultimate Game of the Year award, along with accolades for Best Storytelling and Best Visual Design.
Enhancing the developer's success, the talented actors also were honored with personal awards. Jennifer English was named Best Lead Performer for her performance as Maelle, while Ben Starr earned Best Supporting Actor for his acting as Verso. Moreover, Sandfall Interactive itself was honored as Best Development Team. In total, Clair Obscur and its creative team won 7 awards during the show.
Additional major winners featured Ghost of Yōtei, which won Outstanding Audio and Best Console Game, and Hollow Knight: Silksong, honored with Outstanding Independent Game and Premier PC Title. Worth mentioning, the lion's share of Golden Joystick Awards are chosen by the public, with only 4 special—Critics' Pick, Breakthrough Award, Hall of Fame inductee, and Streamers’ Choice—judged by experts.
Below is the full list of award recipients from the Golden Joystick Awards 2025:
- Best Storytelling – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Best Audio Design – Ghost of Yōtei
- Best Multiplayer – Peak
- Best Visual Design – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Best Expansion – Lies of P: Overture
- Best Indie Game Self Published – Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Best Independent Game – Blue Prince
- Studio of the Year – Sandfall Interactive
- Top Early Access Title – REPO
- Best Soundtrack – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Top Game Trailer – Grand Theft Auto 6 Trailer 2
- Mobile Game Still Played – Pokémon Go
- Still Playing - Consoles & PC – Minecraft
- Streamers’ Choice – Peak
- Top Remake – The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered
- Breakthrough Award – Schedule I
- Top Gaming Gear – AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D
- Best Game Adaptation – Arcane Season 2
- Supporting Performance Award – Ben Starr, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Lead Performance Award – Jennifer English, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Hall of Fame Inductee – The Sims
- Best PC Game – Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Top Console Game – Ghost of Yōtei
- Critics Pick – Donkey Kong Bananza
- Most Anticipated – Grand Theft Auto 6
- Game of the Year – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
If you missed out on the full ceremony, the Golden Joystick Awards 2025 is available to watch online here.
