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The Game Awards (TGAs) for 2023 are right around the corner, planned for early December, and Geoff Keighley’s biggest show of the year is bound to be a good one. This year’s Game of the Year Nominations have been revealed, and although they’re jam-packed with gems, some heavy hitters have not made the cut, and people are disappointed. Hogwarts Legacy, the Harry Potter simulator of everyone’s dreams, has not been included in the GOTY nominations for 2023.
Hogwarts Legacy was not alone in being dropped, as Final Fantasy 16 also met the same fate even though it was also a surefire nomination. You can see the complete list of nominations below:
Of course, it’s fair to say that this year’s nominations are made up of some of the best games ever made. See, the reason for Hogwarts Legacy‘s absence does not entirely fall upon TGAs because 2023 has arguably been one of the best years in video game history. The year’s amazing releases were only sullied by the consecutive layoffs that continue to take place across the entire video game industry. But at the same time, it could easily be argued that Hogwarts Legacy could have been nominated in the above-mentioned list of masterpieces.
Why Hogwarts Legacy Deserved To Be Nominated For GOTY
Hogwarts Legacy released to universal critical acclaim and fans of the Harry Potter series received it with open arms, for the most part. Portkey Games truly went above and beyond the call of duty when bringing the world of Harry Potter to life. Expectations for Hogwarts Legacy weren’t nearly as high as the level of quality the game delivered.
But what threw a wrench in the works was the controversy surrounding the writer of the legendary book series, J.K Rowling. Even though Portkey Games openly said before the release of Hogwarts Legacy, that this game is in no way associated with the writer, clearly that wasn’t enough. On top of this, the relatively weak marketing — especially when compared to some of the other big games of this year, like Spider-Man 2 or even Alan Wake 2 — was likely another fly in the ointment. But even with these shortcomings, Hogwarts Legacy sold over 12 million copies within two weeks of release, generating revenue of over $1 Billion as of May 2023.
Meanwhile, Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kindom, Larian Studios’ Baldur’s Gate 3, and Insomianc Games’ Spider-Man 2 may end up getting the GOTY award instead. All of these games are sequels to established franchises and have pushed their respective genres forward. While the same could be said about Alan Wake 2 and Super Mario Wonder, neither has the scope of Hogwarts Legacy. If any game can indeed be removed in favor of Portkey’s spellcasting adventure, it could be either Alan Wake 2 or Super Mario Wonder.
Which GOTY Nomination Spot Makes Sense For Hogwarts Legacy
Although sales numbers aren’t everything, both Alan Wake 2 and Super Mario Wonder fell well short of the numbers achieved by Hogwarts Legacy. That, coupled with the massive scope of Hogwarts Legacy, was a sizeable undertaking to say the least. As a result, a nomination should’ve been a no-brainer.
But this certainly does not take away from how amazing both Alan Wake 2 and Super Mario Wonder are. And being a subjective matter, many could argue other games off the list in favor of Hogwarts Legacy for a GOTY nomination.
The most important thing about TGAs is the fact that they’re there to celebrate gaming as a whole. And regardless of which games get the awards, we, as gamers, have had a wonderful year of remarkable titles back-to-back. The Game Awards 2023 will start on December 7 at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. Other than awards, the event will have a ton of World Premieres that gamers are excitedly looking forward to. Hopefully, we’ll have some surprises without any leaks.
