What is the most influential video game? Forget the obvious contenders like Super Mario 64 (1996) and Tomb Raider (1996) — the British public have voted in Bafta’s online poll over the past month for Shenmue, an unusual Japanese adventure game released on the Sega Dreamcast in 1999.
Shenmue is a left-field winner, but it has had an impact on one of contemporary gaming’s most dominant elements: the open-world. It allowed us to explore Japan and China at will as well as interact with a vast number of non-playable characters (NPCs), a rarity at the time.
Also on Bafta’s list is the runner-up (and my personal choice), the seminal Doom (1993), a first-person shooter that has us fighting demons in space.
After that, the list has the usual suspects. Gaming’s most recognisable character, Mario, takes third with Super Mario Bros (1985). It’s followed in fourth by Half-Life (1998), a sci-fi horror shooter that ushered in a wave of games prioritising immersive storytelling. In fifth place is the ambitious The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998), while Minecraft (2011) comes in sixth.
In an unusual twist, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is at number seven. The medieval adventure game was only released in February, so there’s a chance its inclusion is down to the voters’ recency bias.
What about the best video games of the past year? The shortlists for the 21st annual Bafta Games Awards are dominated by British titles. Leading the way, with 11 nominations, is the dark adventure game made in Cambridge, Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II. Despite all the nods, it’s not up for the coveted best game award.
A horror set on an oil rig, produced by a studio in Brighton, called Still Wakes the Deep follows with eight nominations, as does Sony’s Tokyo-made platformer, Astro Bot. Thank Goodness You’re Here!, an absurd comedy created by a team of two in Yorkshire, is up for seven awards and is unlikely to go home empty-handed.
So who should win, and who will win? We deliver our verdict before the ceremony, which will be hosted by the comedian Phil Wang and streamed live on Twitch and YouTube on April 8.
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Nominees list in full
Best game
• Astro Bot (Team Asobi)
• Balatro (LocalThunk)
• Black Myth: Wukong (Game Science)
• Helldivers 2 (Arrowhead Game Studios)
• The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom (Nintendo)
• Thank Goodness You’re Here! (Will Todd, James Carbutt)
Who should win?
Astro Bot. In an era where video games are increasingly complex, Astro Bot stands out by being refreshingly simple. It’s also a technical marvel: Sony’s inventive platformer makes the most of the PS5’s power, featuring dazzling graphics and a sublime use of the haptic abilities in the console’s DualSense controller.
Who will win?
Considering it won the same award at the Game Awards (America’s equivalent ceremony) in December, Astro Bot is the favourite, but Bafta likes a plot twist. The indie hit Vampire Survivors pipped the blockbuster God of War Ragnarok to best game in 2023, and we could see a similar turn with Thank Goodness You’re Here! or Balatro winning instead. It’s unlikely, though — Sony’s game will doubtless take the gold.
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Still Wakes the Deep
THE CHINESE ROOM
British game
• A Highland Song (Inkle)
• Lego Horizon Adventures (Studio Gobo, Guerrilla Games)
• Paper Trail (Newfangled Games)
• Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II (Ninja Theory)
• Still Wakes the Deep (The Chinese Room)
• Thank Goodness You’re Here! (Will Todd, James Carbutt)
Who should win?
The level of quality in this category demonstrates just how innovative the British gaming industry is at the moment. Of all the titles nominated, Thank Goodness You’re Here!deserves the award the most because it’s created by a studio consisting of just two friends from Barnsley.
Who will win?
Thank Goodness You’re Here! has managed to punctuate gaming discourse for capturing the nuances of living in a small English town with eccentric humour. Bafta will recognise just how definitively British the game is and give it the gong. Plus, who doesn’t love an underdog story?
Game beyond entertainment
• Botany Manor (Balloon Studios)
• Kind Words 2 (Ziba Scott, Luigi Guatieri, Clark Aboud)
• Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II (Ninja Theory)
• Tales of Kenzera: Zau (Surgent Studios)
• Tetris Forever (Digital Eclipse, Blue Planet Software, Tose, Spike Chunsoft)
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Who should win?
This category acknowledges games that offer a little more than just entertainment value. Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II feels less like a video game and more like an interactive piece of art about a warrior suffering from the symptoms of psychosis. The work that went into grounding that experience in reality is immense; the developer, Ninja Theory, consulted with neurologists and psychologists to ensure it accurately represented the symptoms, offering the player a fascinating insight into life with the condition.
Who will win?
The first Hellblade game swept the 2018 Bafta Games Awards, where it collected the game beyond entertainment award. Its sequel, Senua’s Saga, will do the same here.
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
NINTENDO
Game design
• Animal Well (Billy Basso)
• Astro Bot (Team Asobi)
• Balatro (LocalThunk)
• Helldivers 2 (Arrowhead Game Studios)
• The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom (Nintendo)
• Tactical Breach Wizards (Tom Francis, Steve Lee, John Roberts)
Who should win?
This is a tough category to predict, as all of the games nominated do something unique with their gameplay, but it would be wonderful to see Balatro win. The game’s developer is a one-person studio called LocalThunk, who turned a hobby into one of the year’s most inventive games with a devilishly addictive take on poker.
Who will win?
It really could go any way: Helldivers 2 put an innovative spin on live service gaming while Animal Well’spuzzles were mesmerising, but it’s hard to not see Astro Bot winning here for its accessibility to all types of players.
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Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
SQUARE ENIX
Music
• Astro Bot (Kenneth CM Young)
• Black Myth: Wukong (Game Science)
• Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (Square Enix)
• Helldivers 2 (Wilbert Roget II, Ross Tregenza, Keith Leary)
• Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II (Ninja Theory)
• Star Wars Outlaws (Wilbert Roget II, Simon Koudriavtsev, Erik Jacobsson)
Who should win?
The trio behind Star Wars Outlaws had a task on their hands stepping into John Williams’s shoes, but Final Fantasy VII Rebirth’s score is towering and it deserves the gold.
Who will win?
Final Fantasy games are known for their iconic scores and Rebirth continued that trend. The music is filled with emotion and action that complements its story perfectly. It won’t miss out on the trophy here.
Narrative
• Black Myth: Wukong (Game Science)
• Dragon Age: The Veilguard (BioWare)
• Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (Square Enix)
• Metaphor: ReFantazio (Atlus, Studio Zero)
• Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II (Ninja Theory)
• Still Wakes the Deep (The Chinese Room)
Who should win?
Black Myth: Wukong did a stellar job adapting the 16th-century Chinese novel Journey to the West, but Still Wakes the Deep should win. The game’s elevator pitch is “John Carpenter’s The Thing on an oil rig” but there’s much more to it. The plot’s otherworldly events are bookended by a gritty domesticity, which makes the conclusion all the more heartbreaking.
Who will win?
Metaphor: ReFantazio fended off the likes of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II at the Game Awards, and it’ll do the same here. It explores complex themes such as social class and discrimination remarkably well, so a victory wouldn’t be unjust.
Performer in a leading role
• Alec Newman(Still Wakes the Deep)
• Humberly Gonzalez(Star Wars Outlaws)
• Isabella Inchbald(Indika)
• Luke Roberts(Silent Hill 2)
• Melina Juergens(Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II)
• Y’lan Noel(Call of Duty: Black Ops 6)
Who should win?
Alec Newman’s performance as Caz, the lead character in Still Wakes the Deep was grounded and relatable, but Melina Juergens’ raw turn as Senua in Hellblade II is unrivalled this year.
Who will win?
Betting against Juergens would be unwise. The German actress won the same award at 2018’s ceremony, and it’d be surprising to see her snubbed this time.
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