The Recreation Awards have a stringent cutoff date for eligibility – November 30th. 22 this 12 months. To be eligible for evaluation, video games must be publicly available by mid-November at the latest – allowing for the inclusion of most major year-end releases, yet still accommodating any last-minute surprises that may slip through the cracks online. And yet, one significant contender for Game of the Year has flown under the radar this past 12 months.
was launched on Dec. 9 to instant acclaim. Eurogamer bestowed upon it a rare five-star rating; PC Gamer proclaimed it “joins Batman Arkham and Goldeneye among the god-tier of licensed video games”; Noclip’s Danny O’Dwyer declared it his favourite game of 2024, expressing utter surprise at this revelation. Twelve posts discussed MachineGames’ take on the iconic film character, despite having no visual representation and lacking recognition in any of the categories.
On Metacritic, the game’s Metascore stands at 87, with an unusual harmony between critical and user opinions, both scoring it 8.7 out of 10. While this game’s rating is respectable, it falls short of the top-tier performances in 2024, with standout titles like, , and boasting impressive Metascores of 94 or higher, while registering an impressive 92. While it excels in the AAA action-adventure and role-playing genres, the Game of the Year-winning title, with an impressive 82% rating, stands out even further from its peers.
While it’s rare for The Recreation Awards to give nods to licensed video games. The original sense is an ideal TGA recreation, regardless of perspective. With a strong focus on storytelling and led by talented performer Troy Baker, a TGA favorite in the starring role. This product boasts a distinctly elevated level of technical sophistication, accompanied by an abundance of meticulous attention to detail in its production process. This classic action-adventure game beats with a pulse and challenges players with brain-teasers.
The game feeds also surveyed members of the voting jury, inquiring as to whether they would have selected the sport featured in their nomination poll for “Recreation of the Year” had it been a contender. While the observations were anecdotal in nature, the varying responses still lingered; they ranged from “likely” to “almost certainly” to “completely.”
With a flourish of critical acclaim and widespread enthusiasm, it’s entirely plausible that this game would have been nominated for Game of the Year, likely at the expense of other top contenders. Although a Game of the Year win was improbable, considering the numerous standout titles competing for the accolade, it was still an impressive feat to have made it to the final nominees. While Baker’s performance in the recreation was impressive across various categories, it’s worth noting that she would have also excelled in Greatest Efficiency, potentially dominating the competition in a relatively mild year.
Is eligible for The Recreation Awards in 2025; however, maintaining a strong presence on the jury’s radar over the next 12 months will be challenging, given the influx of massive new contenders like and . Bethesda and MachineGames, presumably motivated by factors beyond the allure of a trophy, opted for a December release date for — considerations that likely outweighed any potential gain from achieving such recognition. Xbox management is acutely aware of the significant gap that exists between it and industry leader Sony, which consistently wins Game of the Year awards.
