The Game Awards has disclosed the titles of 30 nominees for the Players’ Voice award and the preliminary voting phases are already generating a significant amount of talk and active campaigning on social networks like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. The overall victor will be determined solely by the fans and as the cutoff for the top 10 is fast approaching, the gaming communities of Warframe, Genshin Impact, and Wuthering Waves are engaged in fierce competition to ascend the throne.
Hello! The Game Awards have shared the names of the 30 games battling for the Players’ Voice award. In such a player-oriented category, there are no judges or critics to influence the decisions. The first round of the voting is happening right now, but it won’t last much longer—you have till tomorrow night (9 PM Eastern Time) to make your top 10 choices. The complete list was not disclosed in the tweet, but the responses offer a very good insight into the areas of hype.
The hype is really high in those replies. It’s more like a gigantic community warfare. Which game is getting the most attention? Warframe. The community is supporting the free-to-play game with its long-standing history. One user, Todo_The_Proto, has just introduced, “Warframe mentioned, hello chat,” and another, Pupsker, has just screamed, “Warframe mentioned, woooooo.” The same sentiment pops up all over, like NoChillSherloc’s “Warframe for the win” and krzsq_’s “Not gonna lie, Warframe, by far.” It seems that one user artwagermano is trying to activate the “50 player of warframe” to augment the vote, which looks like some kind of strategic rallying. The Tenno indeed feel like they are recruiting for this one.
Warframe alone cannot claim the spotlight; there are also other contenders for the award. Among them, Genshin Impact is the strongest rival. Users like TENNO257 would be putting it together with Warframe as their hottest picks. And, as usual with this game, there is already opposition. A user like Oremicak1 has been rude when he predicted, “Genshit will again win because, as always, Hoyo bootlickers want their 10 free pulls.” Which is, okay, pretty harsh, but it does point to the intensity of the community voting. It is never just about the game; it is also about the fandom that the game is perceived to have.
Moreover, the new ones are effortlessly shifting the focus on them. Wuthering Waves, the Kuro Games’ coming action RPG that has been eagerly awaited, still has its supporters. One user, Aurora_Dawns, could be seen cheering “Woohoo WuWa,” while another, legendsorigin, even went for the full shout: “WUTHERING WAVES WUTHERING WAVES WUTHERING WAVES.” Tau_Ridill was also inquiring about a PC version amid the voting chaos, thus, Stellar Blade got attention too. It is a great combination of celebrating new games and showing everlasting affection for the old ones.
Naturally, one cannot overlook some dissatisfaction and uncertainty that often accompany fan votes. Certain players are unhappy because their favorites were not chosen. Senichiro_TTV noted that their choice was probably Digimon, and since it wasn’t included, they were not going to participate. Frosty_4267 wrote an elaborate comment bemoaning the “Kirby Air Riders” very unfortunate timing, claiming it had been caught in a strange eligibility limbo. And, Dave_Korus, could not help taking a slight jab, reminding everyone that “Trails not getting nominated for Player’s Choice after Trails fans’ constant whining about the TGA nomination.” To be honest, the drama is part of the fun.
In the discussions, a few other titles like “Expedition 33” and “Clair obscur” surfaced, hinting at the existence of some niche gaming communities supporting different genres. However, the main point coming through the comments was well expressed by Rozeaye_: “no matter which game you think deserves what award. i think we all can agree that this was such a good year for gamers!” And they are absolutely correct! It is really impressive to have a list that can include something as classic as Warframe next to the newest buzz like Wuthering Waves.
So, what’s next? The next step is your participation in the voting process. You have to visit the official site and pick your favorite 10 from the 30 nominees before the time runs out. Then based on the results of this round of voting, the list will be shortened for the next rounds until the final winner is determined at The Game Awards show in December. This is the most direct form of player choice in the whole event and already the campaigns have started in the reply section.
