NAVGTR Awards Winners Will Be Announced in March
The National Academy of Video Game Trade Reviewers (NAVGTR), a 501(c)(3) non-profit media organization representing 547 media voters and more than 15,000 subscribers, has revealed the nominees for its 25th annual awards program celebrating excellence in video game art, technology, and production.
This year’s NAVGTR Awards feature 50 competitive categories that recognize outstanding achievement across animation, art direction, character design, controls, game design, engineering, musical score, sound effects, writing, and more. Since its founding, the academy has honored the work of over 7,500 creative professionals from across the industry.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, developed by Sandfall Interactive, leads the field with an impressive 19 nominations. Ghost of Yōtei from Sucker Punch follows closely with 16 nominations. Death Stranding 2: On the Beach earned 11 nominations, while The Alters secured 10, rounding out the titles with double-digit recognition.
Several other games received strong support from voters. Split Fiction, Dispatch, South of Midnight, Hades 2, and Bye Sweet Carole all earned multiple nominations. Titles such as The Outer Worlds 2, Shinobi: Art of Vengeance, Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, Hollow Knight: Silksong, and DOOM: The Dark Ages received five nominations each, while Mafia: The Old Country, Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, and Blue Prince picked up four apiece.
The Game of the Year nominees include The Alters, Blue Prince, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, Hollow Knight: Silksong, and Split Fiction.
This year’s most recognized developers include Sandfall Interactive, Sucker Punch, Kojima Productions, 11 bit studios, Hazelight, and AdHoc Studio, with publishers such as Sony Interactive Entertainment, Nintendo, SEGA, Xbox Game Studios, and others leading the pack.
NAVGTR will announce the winners on March 11, 2026.