Summary
- The British Academy Game Awards celebrate the achievements in gaming from all over the world and include categories for animation, narrative, and music.
- Some of the notable Game of the Year winners include Call of Duty, Half-Life 2, BioShock, and Super Mario Galaxy.
- These winners have been praised for redefining their respective genres, offering impressive graphics, gameplay, and narratives that have stood the test of time.
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts, more commonly known as BAFTA, has been hosting annual awards shows for over fifty years. They were quick to recognize video games as media worthy of accolades and recognition and established the British Academy Game Awards in 2004. The show is held towards the beginning of the year to celebrate the previous year's achievements in gaming, with the Game Awards celebrating 2023's games on April 11th, 2024. Video games have come a long way in the last few decades, and the British Academy Game Awards have grown to celebrate achievements in gaming from all over the world.
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There's a plethora of categories that reward all aspects of gaming, from animation to narrative to music. One of the biggest categories of the awards show is the Game of the Year, which considers the best of the best in gaming each year and rewards one brilliant entry. It takes a lot of work and dedication to make any video game, but these winners have gone above and beyond by redefining the gaming landscape each year. After one of the best years in gaming history, and before the 2023 Game of the Year is announced, it's a great time to celebrate the evolution of the industry by looking at every Game of the Year winner so far.
1 Call Of Duty - Winner, 1st Annual British Academy Games Awards
Released October 2003
Call of Duty (2003)
Call of Duty delivers the gritty realism and cinematic intensity of World War II's epic battlefield moments like never before - through the eyes of citizen soldiers and unsung heroes from an alliance of countries who together helped shape the course of modern history.
Play through the chaos of battle as part of a well-trained squad, that lays down covering fire and pulls its wounded to safety. In addition to authentic squad movements and tactics, each soldier's distinct personality and training comes out on the battlefield. No one soldier or nation single-handedly won the war.
For the first time, Call of Duty captures the war from multiple perspectives, through the eyes of American, British and Russian soldiers. Battle through 24 missions spanning 4 interconnected historical campaigns. Take on mission objectives ranging from sabotage and all-out assault to stealth, vehicle combat and rescue. Authentic weapons, locations, vehicles and sounds of war all contribute to the realism, immersing you in the most intense World War II experience yet.
- Released
- October 29, 2003
- Developer(s)
- Infinity Ward
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
- Genre(s)
- FPS
The first-ever winner of BAFTA's Game of the Year was the original Call of Duty, which was an apt choice since the franchise has gone on to release dozens of games and sell millions of copies. BAFTA wasn't the only awards show to name it Game of the Year, and across most reviewers, the game received numerous accolades.
Call of Duty was hailed as redefining the genre of first-person shooters, bringing new life to both the genre and the WW2 setting. It's clear that developers Infinity Ward had created a distinct FPS from which to grow, and its impressive success since is evidence enough.
2 Half-Life 2 - Winner, 2nd Annual British Academy Games Awards
Released November 2004
Half-Life 2
Half-Life 2 is another highly celebrated title in gaming that has maintained its celebrated status well into the 2020s. At the second ever BAFTA Game Awards, Half-Life 2 won six of the seven categories it was nominated for - and has overall won over thirty Game of the Year awards since its release.
The game was celebrated for its brilliant graphics and genre-defining narrative. It was instrumental in the evolution of first-person shooter games, as well as computer gaming as a whole - executing it all with professional polish. Most gamers will claim that the title holds up just as well today as it did upon release.
3 Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter - Winner, 3rd Annual British Academy Games Awards
Released March 2006
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter
- Released
- March 9, 2006
- Developer(s)
- Red Storm Entertainment, Ubisoft Paris
- Platform(s)
- PC, PS2, Xbox (Original), Xbox 360
- Genre(s)
- Tactical, Shooter
The third ever BAFTA Game Awards named the tactical shooter Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter its Game of the Year. Released on multiple platforms, the Xbox 360 version is widely believed to be the best. It was nominated in eight categories, winning both Game of the Year and Best Technical Achievement.
Advanced Warfighter was praised for its brilliant graphics and action scenes, as well as its advanced AI system, which gave the game more realistic stealth abilities than ever before. It was hailed as revolutionary in both technology and gameplay.
4 BioShock - Winner, 4th Annual British Academy Games Awards
Released August 2007
BioShock
- Released
- August 21, 2007
- Developer(s)
- Irrational Games
- Genre(s)
- FPS
Unsurprisingly, BioShock took home the fourth-ever BAFTA Game of the Year award. The 2007 first-person shooter not only had fantastic gameplay and graphics but genuinely challenged the constraints of its genre. BioShock is often cited as one of the best games ever made and was one of the earliest popular examples of video games as a legitimate art form.
Despite being a first-person shooter, BioShock integrates elements typically only seen in RPG games, such as moral dilemmas and being able to choose how to encounter an enemy. These mechanics complement the challenging nature of the narrative, which incorporates political, philosophical, and moral themes. Over a decade after its release, BioShock continues to make waves in the gaming space.
5 Super Mario Galaxy - Winner, 5th Annual British Academy Games Awards
Released November 2007
Super Mario Galaxy
- Released
- November 1, 2007
- Developer(s)
- Nintendo
- Platform(s)
- Wii, Nintendo Wii U
- Genre(s)
- 3D Platformer
Thanks to its November release date, Super Mario Galaxy was entered in the fifth annual BAFTA Game Awards celebrating games released from October 2007 to December 2008. Whether or not the game would have beaten BioShock had it been released a bit earlier will forever be a mystery, but it did mark the very first BAFTA Game of the Year win for Nintendo.
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Super Mario Galaxy is generally believed to be one of the best Nintendo games ever made, ranking incredibly high on sites such as Metacritic. Its biggest draw was its vivid art style and brilliant graphics, which made the world immersive and unlike any Mario game released prior. It also introduced the fan-favorite character Rosalina, who was so popular she began to appear in other Mario games immediately after her debut.
6 Batman: Arkham Asylum - Winner, 6th Annual British Academy Games Awards
Released August 2009
Batman: Arkham Asylum
Batman: Arkham Asylum marked the first ever action-adventure genre game to win Game of the Year at the BAFTA Game Awards. The game was released on the cusp of superhero media, a year after the first Iron Man movie, and is widely believed to be the best example of a comic-book-inspired video game.
Batman: Arkham Asylum was praised for its dark atmosphere and narrative, portraying the grittier versions of Batman seen throughout both the comics and the shows. It was written by Paul Dini, a longtime Batman writer who was deeply familiar with the character and environment of Arkham, and saw the return of iconic Batman voice actors Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill, and Arleen Sorkin - proving that being loyal to the source material is often the right choice.
7 Mass Effect 2 - Winner, 7th Annual British Academy Games Awards
Released January 2010
Mass Effect 2
The seventh annual BAFTA Game Awards saw Mass Effect 2 be given the title of Game of the Year, beating the likes of Heavy Rain and Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood. The action RPG is set in outer space during the 22nd century and added more mechanics typical of a shooter game.
Mass Effect 2's characters were a huge point of acclaim, all of them with more complex personalities and stories than the first game. The gameplay was also praised as much better than its predecessor, although it did stray further away from the RPG elements than many expected. Nonetheless, the game managed to be evocative, beautiful, and atmospheric.
8 Portal 2 - Winner, 8th Annual British Academy Games Awards
Released April 2011
Portal 2
Portal 2's win at the eighth annual BAFTA Video Game Awards was the first for both puzzle and platformers. Valve's iconic sequel to its already acclaimed original game saw the introduction of further characters and doubled down on the dark humor of the franchise.
The game is thought to have a fantastic learning curve for new players, and the gameplay perfectly accompanies the atmosphere created by the visuals and narrative. Portal 2 also had a huge voice cast behind it, seeing Ellen McLain return as GLaDOS, as well as new characters voiced by Stephen Merchant and J.K. Simmons - along with music by Jonathon Coulton and The National.
9 Dishonored - Winner, 9th Annual British Academy Games Awards
Released October 2012
Dishonored
Action-adventure game Dishonored won Game of the Year at the ninth BAFTA Game Awards celebrating the best in gaming from 2012. It was praised for its interactivity, which seemed to come at a time when critics felt the gaming landscape had grown a bit mindless.
Dishonored's world design was one of its most acclaimed components, along with the brilliance of the individual missions. The game also has one of the biggest voice casts in video game history, with critically acclaimed actors such as Carrie Fisher, Chloe Grace Moretz, Len Heady, and Susan Sarandon.
10 The Last Of Us - Winner, 10th Annual British Academy Games Awards
Released June 2013
The Last of Us
- Released
- June 14, 2013
- Developer(s)
- Naughty Dog
The Last of Us is easily one of the most talked about games of all time, and it's no surprise that it walked away with Game of the Year. It beat out other iconic titles like Assassin's Creed: Black Flag and Grand Theft Auto 5, but the emotional story and evocative world design certainly set Naughty Dog's action-adventure game apart from the others.
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The Last of Us received universal acclaim from critics and fans alike, quickly being named one of the best games of all time. It breathed new life into both the horror and zombie genres, creating a fresh take on the apocalyptic future with unique dynamics and brutally honest portrayals of humanity, survival, and hope. The gameplay has great variety when it comes to taking down enemies, with a range of weapons and styles. The voice acting for the game has also been universally praised, with Ashley Johnson also taking home an award for her portrayal of Ellie.