PlayStation Exclusive Wins First Game Of The Year Award Of 2022

We may only be halfway through the year but the first Game of the Year award has already been announced. Sorry God of War Ragnarök. Didn’t you hear? The early bird catches the worm.

Jokes aside, God of War Ragnarök will still be in contention for this year’s major awards - namely The Game Awards - although it does only have a small window to prove its worth. It’s unlikely that there’s going to be any surprises this year. I think it’s safe to say that given the cultural behemoth it's become, we’re all expecting a clean sweep from Elden Ring. That being said, it didn’t win this year’s first GOTY trophy.

Speaking of God of War Ragnarök, check out the latest cinematic trailer ahead of the game’s 9 November release. Keep an eye out for Fenrir.

This week, the gaming community came together at Develop:Brighton - one of the UK’s biggest industry events. The annual event included the Develop: Star Awards which delivered the first GOTY award of 2022, and a PlayStation exclusive took home the title. Drum roll, please … Our first GOTY is Guerrilla Games’ Horizon Forbidden West.

Like I said, we’re only halfway through 2022 so I wouldn’t blame you for being a tad confused. As the Develop: Star Awards are held in midsummer, titles from the previous 12 months are eligible. Horizon Forbidden West beat out Deathloop, Forza Horizon 5, Life is Strange: True Colors, OlliOlli World, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, Sifu and Unpacking.

In my opinion, Horizon Forbidden West is hugely deserving of a GOTY title. As the game released just a few weeks before Elden Ring, the hype got lost amidst the Elden Ring fanfare but there’s so much to praise in Guerrilla’s latest effort. In our review, Dine wrote that Horizon Forbidden West “really takes everything that worked in its acclaimed predecessor and builds upon it in spectacular style.” Maybe Elden Ring has some competition after all.