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General knowledge · Film, TV & games

The BAFTA Games Awards

First held 2004

Video games — the British Academy's annual prizes for games

The video game awards of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, held annually in London since 2004 and presented with the same bronze mask trophy as the film and television ceremonies. The academy had recognised games since 1998, when they shared an Interactive Entertainment ceremony, and it remains unusual among major awards bodies in treating games as a craft alongside film and television, with categories for narrative, music, performance and technical achievement as well as a Best Game award and a public-voted Players' Choice.

How to spot them

  • ▸The same bronze mask as the film awards, given for games each spring in London
  • ▸Judged by academy members, not sales; indie games regularly beat blockbusters
  • ▸Categories for narrative, animation, music, performance and 'Game Beyond Entertainment'
  • ▸A Players' Choice award decided by public vote, and a Fellowship for lifetime achievement

Key facts

A bronze mask handed out for video games each spring at the Southbank Centre in London

The same trophy designed by Mitzi Cunliffe that is used for the film and television ceremonies

First held as a separate ceremony in 2004, games having shared an Interactive Entertainment ceremony since 1998 (2004)

The British Academy was among the first mainstream arts bodies to treat games as a craft

Baldur's Gate 3 swept five prizes including Best Game in 2024 (2024)

Larian Studios' role-playing game, which had also won game of the year almost everywhere else

Vampire Survivors, an indie game largely made by one person, took the top prize in 2023 (2023)

A famous upset over far larger and more expensive nominees

Astro Bot took Best Game in 2025 (2025)

Team Asobi's PlayStation 5 platformer

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 won both Best Game and Debut Game on 17 April 2026 (2026)

Sandfall Interactive's French role-playing game; Jennifer English won Performer in a Leading Role

A category decided entirely by public vote, rather than by academy members

The EE Players' Choice Award

Fellowships given to Shigeru Miyamoto in 2010 and Hideo Kojima in 2020 (2010)

The academy's highest honour, occasionally awarded to a studio rather than an individual

Quick-fire facts

  • •The British Academy has recognised video games since 1998 and has held a separate games ceremony since 2004
  • •The trophy is the same bronze mask used at the film and television awards
  • •Awards are voted on by academy members; a Players' Choice category is decided by the public
  • •There is a 'Game Beyond Entertainment' category for games with a social or educational purpose
  • •Vampire Survivors won Best Game in 2023, one of the most celebrated indie upsets in games awards
  • •Baldur's Gate 3 won five awards including Best Game in 2024
  • •Astro Bot won Best Game in 2025
  • •Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 won Best Game and Debut Game in 2026, with Jennifer English taking Performer in a Leading Role
  • •The 2026 ceremony was held on 17 April at the Southbank Centre in London, hosted by Elz The Witch
  • •Shigeru Miyamoto (2010) and Hideo Kojima (2020) are among the recipients of the games Fellowship

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Sources