The BAFTAs are rolling around, Britain’s last good contribution to the wider world in the form of a videogame awards show. A long history, enjoyable stream and lack of cringe have lead to it feeling like one of the more legitimate awards. This year’s show is April 6, and nominations have now been announced. Indie superstar Inside leads the PC pack with seven while doubtless crowd-favourite Overwatch grabs four.
What are the best PC games ever? We’ve decided it’s these.
Here’s the full list, as well as some predictions:
Artistic Achievement
- Abzû
- Dishonored 2
- Inside
- The Last Guardian
- Uncharted 4
- Unravel
First of eight nominations for Uncharted 4 here. It is quite a good game, to be fair. Come on Naughty Dog, think how great everything you’ve ever made would be on a mouse and keyboard. Help us out. We won’t tell Sony.
Audio Achievement
- Battlefield 1
- Doom
- Inside
- The Last Guardian
- Rez Infinite
- Uncharted 4
Expect reactions akin to those brought on by a Berserk powerup if Doom doesn’t win this. It’s not simply having great music, it’s how it’s integrated into the game, which id’s latest nails on all fronts.
Best Game
- Firewatch
- Inside
- Overwatch
- Stardew Valley
- Titanfall 2
- Uncharted 4
In the year of Overwatch, good luck games that aren’t Overwatch. Honestly, any of these would have won in most of the last few years, showing again that 2016 was truly ridiculous. Go on, BAFTAs, give it to Titanfall 2.
British Game
- Batman: Arkham VR
- Forza Horizon 3
- No Man’s Sky
- Overcooked
- Planet Coaster
- Virginia
Well, Tim’s vote will certainly be for Planet Coaster. Whatever you may think of the final product, No Man’s Sky should be a contender on ambition alone. Harder to call than the Grand Theft Auto years, anyway.
Debut Game
- Firewatch
- Overcooked
- Oxenfree
- That Dragon, Cancer
- The Witness
- Virginia
The Witness being from a new studio but mainly designed by the bloke who did Braid makes it an odd inclusion. Seems like a frontrunner, but Firewatch is similarly brilliant.
Evolving Game
- Destiny: Rise of Iron
- Elite Dangerous: Horizons
- Eve Online
- Final Fantasy XIV: Online
- Hitman
- Rocket League
Excuse a personal complaint as I wonder how WoW didn’t end up in this category. Anyway, loads of good choices, but Hitman seems the easiest winner – they had something new once every fortnight for most of the year.
Family
- Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens
- Overcooked
- The Playroom VR
- Pokémon GO
- Ratchet & Clank
- Toca Hair Salon 3
Game Design
- Battlefield 1
- Dishonored 2
- Inside
- Overwatch
- Titanfall 2
- The Witness
Depends on your definition of design, I suppose, but The Witness seems like it could win this. It certainly did the most weird things, even if it was a bunch of line puzzles. Counter-argument: Overwatch is a good videogame.
Game Innovation
- Batman: Arkham VR
- Firewatch
- Pokémon GO
- That Dragon, Cancer
- Unseen Diplomacy
- The Witness
Pokémon GO not winning any character it’s in out of pure world-conquering effect seems unlikely. Same goes for the below.
Mobile
- The Banner Saga 2
- Dawn Of Titans
- Deus Ex GO
- Pokémon GO
- Pokémon Sun & Moon
- Reigns
Multiplayer
- Battlefield 1
- Forza Horizon 3
- Overcooked
- Overwatch
- Titanfall 2
- Tom Clancy’s The Division
Are you noticing a common theme of multiplayer game competiton? We are. I’ll be waving my Titanfall flag.
Music
- Abzû – Austin Wintory
- Doom – Mick Gordon, Chris Hite, Chad Mossholder
- Inside – Martin Stig Andersen, Søs Gunver Ryberg
- The Last Guardian – Takeshi Furukawa
- Uncharted 4 – Henry Jackman, Jonathan Mayer, Scott Hanau
- Virginia – Lyndon Holland
I’ll just leave this here:
Narrative
- Dishonored 2
- Firewatch
- Inside
- Mafia III
- Oxenfree
- Uncharted 4
Original Property
- Firewatch
- Inside
- The Last Guardian
- Overwatch
- Unravel
- The Witness
For similar reasons as Pokémon GO’s guaranteed wins, I think a universe that has taken over the internet as hard as Overwatch has probably gets the nod for ‘original property’ depending on definitions.
Performer
- Alex Hernandez as Lincoln Clay In Mafia III
- Cissy Jones as Delilah In Firewatch
- Emily Rose as Elena Fisher In Uncharted 4
- Navid Negahban as Hajj Agha In 1979 Revolution: Black Friday
- Nolan North as Nathan Drake In Uncharted 4
- Troy Baker as Sam Drake In Uncharted 4
Bit of a stacked deck, eh Naughty Dog?
BAFTA Ones To Watch Award
- Among The Stones – Lukasz Gomula, Alberto Taiuti, James Wood, Roberton Macken, Kevin Mckenna, Rory Sweeney – Bluedoor Games
- Pentagrab – Andrew Fullarton, Thomas Slade, Nick Kondylis, Cari Watterton, Dale Smith – Ludico
- Rebound – Kieran Gallagher, Isaac Pringle, Mark Tempini, Andrew Graham, Alexander Macdiarmid, Vlady Veselinov, Craig Russell, Alex Donaldson – Hexterion
AMD eSports Audience Award
- Clash Royale
- Counter Strike: Global Offensive
- Dota 2
- League of Legends
- Overwatch
- Street Fighter V
Of note, this last award is voted for by those most notorious of fools, the general public. Therefore, not quite as easy a win for CS:GO as it should be, but perhaps justice will prevail.
That’s the lot. April 6 for the show, streamed live over on Twitch. You can book a ticket if you’re in London and have £60 spare. Danny Wallace, of Thomas Was Alone and much of the Assassin’s Creed series, takes the hosting spot this time.