Xbox heads into another year without any Game of the Year nominations for their exclusive IP. Since the introduction of the Game Awards, the console only got one nomination for the prestigious award. This marks Xbox Game Studios' 11th year without any Game of the Year wins. While the Microsoft-owned console received nominations for other categories, having no IP-exclusive title on the running list for GotY doesn’t look good for Xbox.

All Xbox Nominations for Game Awards 2024

This year, Xbox Game Studios received two nominations for games they developed. Unfortunately, only one was an exclusive IP. Here are the Xbox games that got nominations:

  • Age of Mythology: Retold Standard Edition for Best Sim/Strategy
  • Senua's Sage: Hellblade II for Best Narrative, Best Audio Design, Best Performance (Melina Juergens), and Games for Impact

Other Xbox-related games that got nominated were developed by third-party partners or studios under Microsoft. If we count them under the console, we have 11 nominations for Xbox-owned games. Here are the other titles that were nominated for various categories:

  • Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 for Best Audio Design, Innovation in Accessibility, Best Action Game, and Best Multiplayer
  • Diablo 4 for Innovation in Accessibility and Best Ongoing

Since Microsoft acquired Activision-Blizzard, Xbox technically owns the Call of Duty and Diablo franchises. However, these games weren't developed under Xbox Games Studios and are not console-exclusive. 

Xbox Gets No GotY Nominations

This year marks the 11th time Xbox received no Game of the Year award since they don't have any IP in the running. While some GotY nominees can be played on the platform, none are owned by Microsoft. Here are all of this year’s nominees:

  • Astro Bot
  • Balatro
  • Black Myth: Wukong
  • Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
  • Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
  • Metaphor: ReFantazio

Why is Xbox Not Getting Any Nominations

Xbox has released several good IPs, but they've yet to make one that stands out due to their focus on optimizing the platform and other customer service concerns. In general, Xbox made a hard push for accessibility to their console via the Series X and S and inclusivity via the Game Pass. These moves met degrees of success on both fronts.

Microsoft's focus on making Xbox more accessible came at the cost of neglecting their IPs. Many console-exclusive IPs were untouched for many years, and by the time the devs finally made updates and sequels, fans had already moved on to greener pastures. Halo was primarily seen as one of Xbox's biggest franchises, but the departure of Bungie as its developer severely affected the IP's chances of producing hits that could win GotY. 

Xbox's move for accessibility has also incurred unintended consequences for the GotY potential. Series S is way cheaper and more accessible to a larger community but has a weaker processor. Due to this trade-off, it’s harder and more costly for studios to downsize or make titles compatible with the Xbox Series S. Many publishers opted to release their games on other platforms, and some became PS4 or PS5-exclusives.

Despite the lack of potential GotY titles, Xbox's choice to include more games via the Game Pass increased user numbers. According to Statista, the number of Game Pass subscribers reached 120 million monthly users overall. With Microsoft's success on the inclusivity and accessibility front, many question whether pushing for GotY is even worth fretting over.