PC Gamer’s Game of the Year Awards 2021
We reveal the best PC games of the last 12 months.
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Welcome to our annual Game of the Year Awards. For the past week we’ve been building up to our ultimate Game of the Year award by revealing the winners of each category. You’ll find all of the deserving winners listed below, but the time has come to announce the game that won us over completely in 2021. Check it out below.
Rather than fit the year’s best games into a handful of fixed categories, each staff member was asked to nominate up to six games that released this year—either fully or into Early Access. We then gathered into one big, global call to argue through our choices and decide upon the final list. Once the games are picked, we assign each an award that represents what we feel it excelled at. This is why the categories are alwaysslightlydifferent each year.
Alongside the main awards, each PC Gamer writer has also picked one of their personal favourites to highlight. We’ll be updating this page with new awards and staff picks throughout the rest of the month.
The Awards
Best Ongoing Game:Apex LegendsBest Co-op:Back 4 BloodBest Multiplayer:Chivalry 2Best Horror:Resident Evil VillageBest Strategy:Old WorldBest Characters:Marvel’s Guardians of the GalaxyBest RPG:WildermythBest Shooter:Halo InfiniteBest Design:Loop HeroBest Narrative:SableBest Open World:Forza Horizon 5Best Action:DeathloopBest Stealth:Hitman 3Game of the Year:Valheim
Staff Picks
We’ll be revealing two staff picks per day from December 19 to December 30.
Jacob Ridley:Hell Let LooseMorgan Park:Jackbox Party Pack 8Natalie Clayton:Unbeatable [White Label]Tyler Colp:Outer Wilds: Echoes of the EyeMollie Taylor:Final Fantasy XIV: EndwalkerLauren Morton:Book of TravelsSarah James:UnpackingAndy Chalk:The PathlessLauren Aitken:Assassin’s Creed Valhalla: The Siege of ParisChris Livingston:Farming Simulator 22Jody Macgregor:The Forgotten CityRich Stanton:ScavengersImogen Mellor:Life is Strange: True ColorsWes Fenlon:Cruelty SquadShaun Prescott:Astalon: Tears of the EarthAlan Dexter:Magic the Gathering: ArenaHarry Shepherd:ToemEvan Lahti:Battlefield 2042Robin Valentine:Trials of FireDave James:Metro Exodus Enhanced EditionKatie Wickens:Mini MotorwaysFraser Brown:The AscentPhil Savage:Blaseball
Past Awards
Game of the Year Awards 2020Game of the Year Awards 2019Game of the Year Awards 2018Game of the Year Awards 2017Game of the Year Awards 2016Game of the Year Awards 2015Game of the Year Awards 2014Game of the Year Awards 2013
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Phil has been writing for PC Gamer for nearly a decade, starting out as a freelance writer covering everything from free games to MMOs. He eventually joined full-time as a news writer, before moving to the magazine to review immersive sims, RPGs and Hitman games. Now he leads PC Gamer’s UK team, but still sometimes finds the time to write about his ongoing obsessions with Destiny 2, GTA Online and Apex Legends. When he’s not levelling up battle passes, he’s checking out the latest tactics game or dipping back into Guild Wars 2. He’s largely responsible for the whole Tub Geralt thing, but still isn’t sorry.
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