Expedition 33 Dominates at the 2025 Gaming Honors
The forty-third annual Golden Joystick Awards took place on Thursday, and in a stunning display, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 claimed the title of the most decorated winner. This surprise role-playing game from Sandfall Interactive secured the esteemed Top Game award, along with honors for Superb Storytelling and Top Visual Design.
Adding to the studio's triumph, the gifted actors also garnered personal awards. Jennifer English won Best Lead Performer for her role as Maelle, while Ben Starr won Best Supporting Actor for his acting as Verso. Additionally, Sandfall Interactive the studio received Best Development Team. In total, Clair Obscur and its creative team collected seven awards during the ceremony.
Other standout winners included Ghost of Yōtei, which won Top Sound Design and Console Game of the Year, and Hollow Knight: Silksong, receiving Outstanding Independent Game and PC Game of the Year. Notably, the lion's share of Golden Joystick Awards are selected by the audience, with only four awards—Critics’ Choice, Breakthrough, Lifetime Achievement, and Streamer Selection—decided by experts.
Here is the full list of honorees from the 2025 gaming awards:
- Top Story – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Top Audio – Ghost of Yōtei
- Best Multiplayer Game – Peak
- Best Visuals – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Best Game Expansion – Lies of P: Overture
- Best Indie Game Self Published – Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Best Indie Game – Blue Prince
- Top Studio – Sandfall Interactive
- Best Early Access – REPO
- Top Score – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Best Trailer – Grand Theft Auto 6 Trailer 2
- Still Playing - Mobile – Pokémon Go
- Console/PC Game Still Played – Minecraft
- Streamers' Pick – Peak
- Best Remake / Remaster – The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered
- Rising Star Award – Schedule I
- Best Hardware – AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D
- Best Game Adaptation – Arcane Season 2
- Supporting Performance Award – Ben Starr, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Best Lead Performer – Jennifer English, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Hall of Fame Inductee – The Sims
- Best PC Game – Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Best Console Game – Ghost of Yōtei
- Critics' Choice – Donkey Kong Bananza
- Most Anticipated – Grand Theft Auto 6
- Ultimate Game – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
For those missed out on the live event, the Golden Joystick Awards 2025 is available to watch via video here.
