From the moment it was released, Elden Ring was hyped by fans and critics as a Game of the Year candidate. The sales and reception for the game catapulted FromSoftware from a niche studio to a breakout star.

Elden Ring has now received its first Game of the Year trophy from the Japan Game Awards at the Tokyo Game Show and it seems many more awards will follow.

The FromSoftware game won a total of three awards at the Japan Game Awards. Earlier in the awards show, Elden Ring also received the Award for Excellence which is given to all Game of the Year Finalists. Hidetaka Miyazaki was recognized in the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Award for contributions "to the development of the Japanese home video game industry.”

Elden Ring is FromSoftware’s best-selling game of all time with over 17 million copies sold since its release in February. The game is also one of the top ten best-selling games of all time in the US.

Hidetaka Miyazaki, FromSoftware President and creative director of Elden Ring, deserves a lot of the recognition that the game enjoys. The decision to collaborate with Game of Thrones director George R.R. Martin to create a world that is not only massive but rich in lore has been the difference maker for Elden Ring.

In 2021, Ghost of Tsushima and Monster Hunter Rise shared the grand prize award for the JGA.

Winners from the JGA

Aside from Elden Ring, several other games also received recognition at the Japan Game Awards.

The Award for Excellence was also given to the following games:

• Resident Evil Village
• Sky: Children of the Light
• Tales of Arise
• Lost Judgment
• Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker
• Pokemon Legends: Arceus
• Horizon Forbidden West
• Ghostwire: Tokyo
• Kirby and the Forgotten Land

Call of Duty: Vanguard won the Global Award for Foreign Product. Meanwhile, Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl won the Global Award for Japanese Product and Best Sales Award. The roguelike deck-building game Inscryption also won The Game Designers Award. Finally, 7 Days to End With You and Needy Streamer Overload were also recognized as Honorable Mentions for the award.

Other contenders for GOTY

Several games are in the running for GOTY. The leading candidates are Pokemon Legends: Arceus and Horizon Forbidden West. Others that could get nominated are Stray and Gotham Knights. But, most eyes are on God of War: Ragnarok. The upcoming Santa Monica Studio title is set to come out on November 9, just a month before The Game Awards in December.

It looks to be a two-horse race between Elden Ring and God of War Ragnarok. The two games have previously been nominated for Most Anticipated game in 2020 and 2021 with Elden Ring winning both years.

FromSoftware has previously won the coveted Game of the Year award in 2019 for Sekiro Die Twice while Santa Monica Studio’s God of War also won the award in 2018.