Honestly, looking back at the 2021 Game of the Year nominees feels like opening a time capsule from a very weird era. We were all still kinda shaking off the rust of global lockdowns, and the gaming world was in this strange transition between the old consoles and the elusive PS5/Xbox Series X. Remember when you couldn't actually buy a console without a Twitter bot's help?
That year, the lineup for the top prize at The Game Awards wasn't just a list of big-budget sequels. It was a chaotic mix of a co-op-only indie darling, a time-looping shooter, and a Metroid game that took nearly two decades to actually exist. It was a year where "polished and fun" beat out "massive and gritty."
The Heavy Hitters That Defined the Year
When Geoff Keighley announced the 2021 Game of the Year nominees, the room—and the internet—had plenty to talk about. The list was a weirdly perfect snapshot of what happens when developers are forced to innovate because they can’t just rely on the same old open-world tropes.
You had Deathloop leading the pack with a staggering nine nominations. Arkane Studios basically took the "Groundhog Day" concept and turned it into a stylish, 60s-inspired assassination puzzle. It was cool. It was loud. And Jason E. Kelley and Ozioma Akagha gave performances that made you actually care about why these two people kept killing each other.
Then there was Resident Evil Village. Everyone remembers Lady Dimitrescu—it’s impossible not to—but the game was more than just a tall vampire lady. It was Capcom leaning into the campy, horror-action vibes of RE4 while still trying to tell a heartfelt story about a dad just trying to save his kid.
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The Six Games Fighting for the Crown
- Deathloop (Arkane Studios/Bethesda)
- It Takes Two (Hazelight Studios/EA)
- Metroid Dread (MercurySteam/Nintendo)
- Psychonauts 2 (Double Fine/Xbox Game Studios)
- Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart (Insomniac Games/Sony)
- Resident Evil Village (Capcom)
Why It Takes Two Was the Ultimate Dark Horse
If you had told me in January 2021 that a game where you play as two bickering parents turned into dolls would win the biggest award in gaming, I’d have laughed. Seriously. It seemed like a "Best Family Game" shoo-in, but Game of the Year? That's usually reserved for the "Serious Art" or the "Global Blockbusters."
But Hazelight Studios did something nobody else dared to do: they made a game that required another human being. You literally cannot play It Takes Two alone. It’s a bold, almost annoying requirement in an era of solo-queue gaming.
Director Josef Fares is famous for his "F*** the Oscars" moment, but his real genius is in game design. The game never stays in one genre for more than twenty minutes. One second you're playing a platformer, the next you're in a top-down dungeon crawler, then suddenly it's a flight simulator or a rhythm game. It’s relentless. It’s genuinely funny. And most importantly, it used its mechanics to tell a story about divorce and reconciliation that felt way more "adult" than most shooter games.
The Snubs and the "Next-Gen" Flex
We have to talk about Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart. For a lot of people, this was the first game that actually felt "next-gen." The way you could jump through a portal and instantly be in a completely different world with zero loading screens? That was pure wizardry at the time. It was a technical showcase, a playable Pixar movie.
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But then you had the smaller, more cerebral stuff. Psychonauts 2 was a miracle. We waited 16 years for that sequel. Tim Schafer and the team at Double Fine managed to tackle mental health with so much empathy and creativity that it made the wait feel worth it. It’s rare for a comedy game to have that much soul.
And Metroid Dread? Man. 19 years since Metroid Fusion. Fans had basically given up hope. MercurySteam delivered a game that was punishingly difficult but so precise that every death felt like your own fault. It won Best Action/Adventure that year, and honestly, Samus Aran had never felt better to control.
What Most People Get Wrong About the 2021 Nominees
A lot of critics at the time complained that 2021 was a "weak year" because we didn't have a massive Rockstar game or a new God of War. I think that's a total misunderstanding of what happened.
2021 was actually one of the most diverse years for gaming in a decade. We saw the "Indie-AA" space take center stage. Look at Kena: Bridge of Spirits, which took home Best Indie and Best Debut Indie. Look at Inscryption, which wasn't even nominated for GOTY but was arguably the most talked-about game on PC that December.
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The industry wasn't resting; it was diversifying. The "2021 game of the year nominees" reflected a shift where creativity and unique hooks mattered more than just having the biggest marketing budget or the most realistic sweat textures on a character's face.
The Lasting Legacy of the 2021 Awards
When It Takes Two won, it felt like a win for "fun." It wasn't about the most polygons or the longest playtime. It was about an experience you shared with someone else. Since then, we've seen a lot more studios willing to experiment with "co-op only" or highly stylized narratives.
Even the games that lost have stayed relevant. Resident Evil Village got a massive DLC and a VR mode. Deathloop eventually made its way to Xbox and Game Pass, finding a whole new audience. Forza Horizon 5, while not a GOTY nominee, cleaned up in the technical categories, proving that racing games could be just as "prestigious" as anything else.
If you’re looking to revisit these titles today, you’re in luck because almost all of them are easier to play now than they were back then.
- It Takes Two is often on sale and usually included in EA Play/Game Pass.
- Psychonauts 2 and Deathloop are staples of the Xbox Game Pass library.
- Metroid Dread remains a must-own for anyone with a Switch.
- Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart eventually escaped its PS5 prison and is now available on PC.
Go back and play them. You'll see that 2021 wasn't a "gap year" for gaming—it was the year that proved games didn't need to be open-world chores to be masterpieces.
Your Next Steps: Check your subscription services like Xbox Game Pass or PS Plus, as most of these titles are currently available at no extra cost. If you have a partner or a friend who doesn't game much, start with It Takes Two—it remains the most accessible entry point for non-gamers in the last decade.