The Game Awards 2018: How to Watch, Categories, Nominees, and more

Geoff Keighley’s The Game Awards will have its fifth anniversary this year, and if it’s anything like the shows we’ve seen in years past, it will feature not only recognition for the year’s best games, but also lifetime achievement awards, musical performances, and plenty of new game announcements. Next to E3 and Gamescom, The Game Awards is one of the biggest events of the year, and we’re giddy with anticipation for 2018’s show. Here’s everything you need to know about The Game Awards, including its date, location, how to watch, categories and nominees.

When and where is it?

The Game Awards will be held on Thursday, December 6 at 8:30 p.m. ET. The event will take place at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, CA and tickets are currently available to purchase at AXS.

Last year’s show ran for about three hours, so you can expect it to end around midnight. This length of time doesn’t allow Keighley and industry veterans to present all of the awards that are being given out that night, so check the official website for a full list of winners.

How to watch the Game Awards 2018

The Game Awards aren’t available on television, but you can stream them from a variety of different services across multiple devices. Last year’s show was streamed on Twitch, YouTube, Facebook Live, Steam, and Mixer, as well as directly through Xbox One and PlayStation. We’ll be showing one of the broadcasts on Digital Trends, as well, so you can watch right here if you don’t want to go to a different website.

YouTube and Twitch are both great options for The Game Awards, but in the past, there has been some form of interactivity when viewing it directly on game consoles. If you want to vote along with other viewers, this could be the best option.

How nominees and winners are selected

Last year, the nominees for The Game Awards’ many gaming categories were selected by a jury of 51 different outlets, each of whom picked five games per category. The three esports categories were picked by a separate esports jury.

Winners were primarily determined by the juries themselves, who got 90 percent of the voting power, while fans got 10 percent in most categories. Fans were the sole voters on the winners in the Best Esports Game, Best Esports Player, Best Esports Team, Most Anticipated Game, and Trending Gamer categories. Keighley also revealed that fans will be able to vote using Discord Server Vote in 2018.

The Game Awards 2018 categories and nominees

Geoff Keighley revealed the nominees for The Game Awards on November 13. We’ve listed the game-specific nominees below.

Game of the Year

Best Game Direction

Best Narrative

Best Art Direction

Best Score/Music

Best Audio Design

Best Performance

Games for Impact

Best Ongoing Game

Best Mobile Game

Best VR/AR Game

Best Action Game

Best Action/Adventure Game

Best RPG

Best Fighting Game

Best Family Game

Best Strategy Game

Best Sports/Racing Game

Best Multiplayer 

Best Student Game

Best Independent Game

Best Debut Indie Game

Best Esports Game