Our unofficial picks for The Game Awards 2017 winners

The Game Awards are back next month and last night the Geoff Keighley-fronted industry award show announced its nominees for 2017 - a massive 102 games, as well as some personalities and esports stars, spread across a ridiculous 29 categories.

You can go to The Game Awards website now and cast your vote in a bunch of categories, while some - including the new "Student Game" - have juries of preselected industry luminaries calling the shots.

We're impatient at AllGamers, though, and we can't possibly wait until Thursday December 7 for the live stream to find out the official winners, so we've gone through the categories and picked out the nominees we think should take the prize. We haven't done it for every single category, because there are some that we simply can't comment on (Best Chinese Game, for example), so we've stuck to the main ones.

Disagree with our picks? Get your own website! Just kidding - it's all in the name of fun. We respect your views and we hope you respect ours.

Game of the Year

"Recognizing a game that delivers the absolute best experience across all creative and technical fields."

It's been a strong year for games, but for us there can only be one winner. Nintendo had never really made a true open-world game before, which makes it all the more remarkable that The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild feels like a creator at the peak of its powers. The developers understood that open-world gaming was at its best when the player is creating his or her own adventures, rejecting the critical path to explore and experiment, and seemingly built everything else to support that principle. The fact that Breath of the Wild was a reinvention of the increasingly dogmatic Legend of Zelda series and a killer application that sold millions of Switch consoles single-handedly seals the deal.

Best Game Direction

"Awarded to a game studio for outstanding creative vision and innovation in game direction and design."

The other games on this shortlist are very well designed, but once again it's hard for us to look past Breath of the Wild. Last month we were given an insight into how Nintendo designed the game after director Fujibayashi Hideyuro and lead artist Makoto Yonezu presented their design concepts for the game to Japan's CEDEC conference, and the details - such as the game's deliberate use of triangles in architecture and geology to unconsciously signal challenges to the player - are ingenious. Breath of the Wild's singular vision feels so elegant and simple to the player, but the feats of engineering and imagination behind it all are astounding.

Best Narrative

"For outstanding storytelling and narrative development in a game."

This feels like one of the hardest to call. We could have chosen any of these games and felt like they were worthy winners. We've gone with What Remains of Edith Finch because it's the only game on this list that we would actively coerce people into playing. The others are great and worth experiencing; Edith Finch is absolutely unmissable.

Best Art Direction

"For outstanding creative and/or technical achievement in artistic design and animation."

This will probably be a controversial choice, but we're going for it. Guerrilla Games is a studio that is famous for building incredible tech, right the way back to Killzone on PS2, but we've never felt that the games built on top lived up to the engineering. Horizon isn't exactly Breath of the Wild in game design stakes either, but to us Horizon Zero Dawn felt like the game where the Dutch studio finally delivered on its technological promise, giving us fantastic gameplay in endlessly beautiful settings that push the PS4 to its limits.

Best Score/Music

"For outstanding music, inclusive of score, original song and/or licensed soundtrack."

You know what? We're not happy with this shortlist, so we're going to subvert it completely by picking something different: Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. It may be a Wii U port, but the Wii U was such a flop that most people had never played it before its April release on Switch, which means that a whole new generation of players were finally exposed to the game's soundtrack. Nintendo used a live band to perform endless upbeat variations on classic Mario Kart tunes, and the results are sensational. The games on The Game Awards list all have great music, but Mario Kart 8 Deluxe wouldn't be the same game without its soundtrack.

Best Audio Design

"Recognizing the best in-game audio and sound design."

Ninja Theory has been kicking around since the early 2000s, and while its games have often found the limelight to some degree - from Heavenly Sword to DmC: Devil May Cry - it still feels like a studio on the fringes, restless and eager to try new things. Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice is perhaps the ultimate expression of that: an action adventure that explores the unpredictability of psychosis. It's a powerful and challenging piece of work that uses bold audio design to convey Senua's auditory hallucinations, and takes this category hands down.

Best Performance

"Awarded to an individual for voice-over acting, motion and/or performance capture."

The quality of acting in video games has skyrocketed in recent years - we've certainly come a long way from the laughable dialogue and stilted performances that were commonplace a decade ago - and this category is a tough one, but we feel as though Melina Juergens has to take the gong for her work on Hellblade. Juergens is utterly convincing as Senua, allowing you to concentrate on the game's detailed portrayal of her psychosis, and that feels like an incredible accomplishment, even by the ever-rising standards of contemporary game acting.

Games for Impact

"For a thought-provoking game with a profound pro-social meaning or message."

At a time when mental health is increasingly part of our cultural conversation, Ninja Theory is one of the few mainstream developers bold enough to make a traditional AAA-style action adventure that really digs into it. Everything on this list deserves praise for different reasons, but Hellblade feels like the winner for us.

Best Ongoing Game

"Awarded to a game for outstanding development of ongoing content that evolves the player experience over time."

We imagine a lot of people will give this to PUBG, and it's hard to argue with the sales figures, but if we stick to the wording of the category, does PUBG feel like the most outstanding example of ongoing development? Or is it more the case that Brendan Greene and his colleagues nailed the original concept and we've yet to run out of interest in it? Grand Theft Auto Online feels like it has a much stronger case, for our money. If you could go back and experience GTA Online as it was when GTA V first launched, it would be unrecognizable next to what you can experience today. Rockstar has allowed the way people play the game to shape its development, and poured seemingly endless resources into it as it has felt its way into "games as a service", with no end in sight. Now that's what we call ongoing game development.

Best Mobile Game

"For the best game playable on a dedicated mobile device."

For years people implored Nintendo to enter the mobile space to save themselves. Of course, Nintendo has never needed saving - even in the darkest moments of Wii U's failure, it was still sitting on a cash fortune that could keep it going for many years - but for whatever reason the company's executives have finally decided the time is right, and after dipping their toe a little with Miitomo, Shigeru Miyamoto himself stepped up to introduce us to Super Mario Run. Simple, elegant and surprisingly deep, Super Mario Run is a fitting mobile debut for the veteran plumber, and the fact it doesn't gouge you with microtransactions feels like something worth saluting in this day and age, too.

Best Handheld Game

"For the best game playable on a dedicated portable gaming system."

The Metroid game we really want is a new Metroid Prime on Nintendo Switch, of course, but Nintendo and MercurySteam's reimagining of Metroid II - dubbed Samus Returns - was a welcome makeweight while other developers busy themselves with Prime 4.

Best VR/AR Game

"For the best game experience playable in virtual or augmented reality, irrespective of platform."

It's been another slow year for virtual reality, which continues to deliver the odd fantastic experience but still feel like an overpriced novelty. With developers like Eve Online's CCP now moving away from VR, it feels like the hype bubble could be about to burst. Evidently nobody told Capcom, though, because Resident Evil 7 went full bore on PlayStation VR, allowing you to play the entire game within a headset. If you're anything like us, then your experience went something like this: "Wow, I'm actually inside a Resident Evil game... Oh s***, I'm inside a Resident Evil game waaaaaahhh!"

Best Action Game

"For the best game in the action genre focused on combat."

There was a time when Bethesda's decision to buy id Software looked like an expensive mistake. Rage was pretty good, but it lacked the sort of personality and cohesion needed to launch a new franchise, while the acrimonious departure of John Carmack to Oculus felt like it might signal the end of the road. Instead, id has reinvented Doom in brilliant fashion, while MachineGames has taken Wolfenstein and made it its own. This year's second installment in the rebooted series is one of the best shooters in recent memory.

Best Action/Adventure Game

"For the best action/adventure game, combining combat with traversal and puzzle solving."

We're not sure whether we'd call it an action-adventure game, but if you put Breath of the Wild in a category then we will generally vote for it.

Best Role-Playing Game

"For the best game designed with rich player character customization and progression, including massively multiplayer experiences."

PlatinumGames is an extraordinary developer, and NieR: Automata is perhaps the best thing it's ever produced. It seems strange that this wasn't considered a Game of the Year contender.

Best Fighting Game

"For the best game designed primarily around head-to-head combat."

It's been a slightly disappointing year for fighting games, with none of the potential big-hitters really landing their blows. Instead, ARMS came out of nowhere and gave the Nintendo Switch its first cult classic. Nintendo's post-release support for the game has been fantastic, too, helping to establish a small but dedicated community of players.

Best Family Game

"For the best game appropriate for family play, irrespective of genre or platform."

We own all of these games, so we're giving this award to the only game our family ever asks to play when they come to visit. 1-2 Switch would also have been in with a shout - it may have a reputation for being overpriced, but it's exactly the sort of game you will want to have on hand when the in-laws bring their noisy kids round over the Christmas holiday and you're struggling for an activity that you can all get involved in.

Best Strategy Game

"Best game focused on real time or turn-based strategy gameplay, irrespective of platform."

We're not as big on strategy as we are on some other genres, but our more strategic friends tell us this is a very close call and that they would probably give it to Firaxis' XCOM 2 expansion. We would probably give it to Mario + Rabbids, but we can't have the Switch win everything, so let's have some positive discrimination on behalf of the PC.

Best Sports/Racing Game

"For the best traditional and non-traditional sports and racing game."

The loot boxes were a dumb move and we wish they weren't part of the game, but if you can look past them - and it's not that difficult to do so - then Forza Motorsport 7 is one of the most comprehensive, entertaining and varied racing games ever made. GT Sport has more characters and the other sports games are pretty epic, but Turn 10's standard bearer for the Xbox One X nails the apex in pretty much every way.

Best Multiplayer

"For outstanding online multiplayer gameplay and design, including co-op and massively multiplayer experiences, irrespective of game genre."

Any objections?

Most Anticipated Game

"Awarded to an upcoming game that has shown significant ambition and promise. Title must be announced and scheduled for release after December 7, 2017."

Ditto?

Best Independent Game

"For outstanding creative and technical achievement in a game made outside the traditional publisher system."

Seriously, everyone needs to play What Remains of Edith Finch.

Best Esports Game

"For the game that has delivered the best overall eSports experience to players (inclusive of tournaments, community support and content updates), irrespective of genre or platform."

This feels like a bit of a dumb category at first blush. Would you have a "Best Sport" award? ("And this year the winner is... golf!") But we suppose it makes some sort of sense if you're going to judge the overall spectacle and experience of engaging with an esport. On that basis, we're going to go with CS:GO. Valve has taken a light touch with content updates - although the new Inferno was a clear success - but competition at the top of the sport is incredibly intense and exciting, the big championships have been surprisingly unpredictable, and the viewing experience is fantastic thanks to superb analysis from a range of experts.

Best Esports Player

"The eSports player judged to be the most outstanding performer in 2017, irrespective of game."

This is a list that doesn't include anyone from the teams that won either of the CS:GO Majors or the League of Legends World Championship, but hey ho. Let's give it to KuroKy, because Team Liquid's victory at The International still feels incredible.

Best Esports Team

"The eSports team judged to be the most outstanding for performance in 2017, inclusive of multi-team organizations."

No space for Gambit, who won the CS:GO PGL Major against all expectations? Or even Astralis, who have had a tough season but were worthy kings of the world at the ELEAGUE Major in January? And what about League of Legends' Samsung Galaxy, a ragtag team who rose out of the ashes of the disbanded Samsung teams of three years ago, lost the last Worlds final and returned to conquer the mighty SKT T1 this year? Again, might as well give it to Team Liquid for The International.

Best Debut Indie Game

"Recognizing a new independent studio that released its first game in 2017. Winner selected by fan voting."

It's not everyone's cup of tea, but StudioMDHR's aesthetically pleasing boss rush was the talk of the internet this year and the game lived up to the hype.

And finally, here are a few categories we feel utterly unsuitable to judge, but you might as well check out the nominees anyway:

Best Chinese Game

"A fan-voted award to recognize the most popular game in China, as judged by The Game Awards viewers in China."

Best Student Game

"Awarded the best student project created at the high school or college level."

Trending Gamer

"For a streamer, influencer or media member who has made an important impact on the industry this calendar year."

The real Game Awards take place Thursday, December 7.