Expedition 33 Dominates at the 2025 Golden Joystick Awards
The 43rd yearly Golden Joystick Awards took place this past week, and through an impressive performance, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 emerged as the biggest winner. The breakout role-playing game from Sandfall Interactive earned the prestigious Top Game award, along with prizes for Outstanding Narrative and Top Visual Design.
Complementing the developer's triumph, the gifted performers also garnered personal awards. Jennifer English was named Outstanding Lead Performance for her role as Maelle, while Ben Starr took home Best Supporting Performer for his role as Verso. Furthermore, Sandfall Interactive itself was named Studio of the Year. Overall, Clair Obscur and its creative team achieved seven awards throughout the show.
Additional notable winners featured Ghost of Yōtei, which received Best Audio Design and Console Game of the Year, and Hollow Knight: Silksong, receiving Top Self-Published Indie and Best PC Game. Notably, the majority of Golden Joystick Awards are selected by the audience, with only 4 categories—Critics' Pick, Rising Star, Lifetime Achievement, and Streamers' Favorite—decided by experts.
Following is the entire list of award recipients from the 2025 gaming awards:
- Top Story – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Top Audio – Ghost of Yōtei
- Best Multiplayer – Peak
- Best Visuals – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Best Expansion – Lies of P: Overture
- Best Self-Published Indie – Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Top Indie Title – Blue Prince
- Best Development Studio – Sandfall Interactive
- Top Early Access Title – REPO
- Best Music – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Best Game Trailer – Grand Theft Auto 6 Trailer 2
- Mobile Game Still Played – Pokémon Go
- Still Playing (Console/PC) – Minecraft
- Streamers' Pick – Peak
- Best Remake / Remaster – The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered
- Rising Star Award – Schedule I
- Best Gaming Hardware – AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D
- Best Adaptation – Arcane Season 2
- Best Supporting Performer – Ben Starr, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Best Lead Performer – Jennifer English, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Lifetime Achievement – The Sims
- PC Game of the Year – Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Best Console Game – Ghost of Yōtei
- Critics' Choice – Donkey Kong Bananza
- Most Wanted Game – Grand Theft Auto 6
- Game of the Year – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
For those missed out on the full ceremony, the 2025 Golden Joystick Awards is available to watch via video here.
