Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End Steals SXSW Video Game of the Year

Other big winners include Overwatch, DOOM, and Battlefield 1

By Brandon Krajewski

Partner Content by SXSW

Over 460,000 votes were cast and Sony Computer Entertainment/ Naughty Dog’s Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End  walked off with the hearts of gamers around the world, nabbing five out of the eight categories in which it was nominated.  IGN readers might’ve seen all the accolades coming, as Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End won the People’s Choice award at IGN’s Best of 2016. 

Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End walked off with the hearts of gamers around the world

The other big winner of the night was Blizzard Entertainment’s Overwatch, picking up four awards, including Excellence in Multiplayer and Esports Game of the Year. Overwatch was IGNs pick for Game of the Year in 2016 for providing nearly endless opportunities for exhilarating, coordinated play.

For the third year in a row, SXSW Gaming partnered with Imaginary Forces to create the shows geektastic Opening Credits and graphics.  The team behind the opening titles to Mad Men, Jessica Jones, and Stranger Things, started with gaming hardware, added a big slice of NASA space photography, a dash of retro sci-fi book covers, and pinch of Kubrick's 2001. Keep your eyes peeled for a certain mustachioed plumber.

The Gamer’s Voice Award, the two categories that could only be voted on by festival goers, had 44 nominees. Voters sifted through the choices and picked Owlboy by D-Pad Studio, an open-world adventure where Otus, a mute owl flies around the vast skies of mystery and history  in Single Player, and ARENA GODS by Supertype, a spectacle combat game of breakneck action, fleeting chance, and brutal consequence of gladiator life in the Multiplayer category.

If you missed the speeches, the comedic chemistry between hosts Xavier Woods and OMGitsfirefoxx, or live performances, you can watch it all here.

The Full List of Winners is below:

Video Game of the Year: Uncharted 4: A Thief's End

Table Top Game of the Year: Arkham Horror: The Card Game

Mobile Game of the Year: Pokémon GO

Esports Game of the Year: Overwatch

Trending Game: Overwatch

Fan Creation of the Year: Brutal Doom 64

Excellence in Gameplay: DOOM

Excellence in Art: Firewatch

Excellence in Animation: Uncharted 4: A Thief's End

Excellence in Technical Achievement: Battlefield 1

Excellence in Visual Achievement: Uncharted 4: A Thief's End

Excellence in Narrative: Uncharted 4: A Thief's End

Excellence in Design: Dishonored 2

Excellence in SFX: Battlefield 1

Excellence in Musical Score: DOOM

Excellence in Multiplayer: Overwatch

Excellence in Convergence: Batman: The Telltale Series

Most Memorable Character: Uncharted 4: A Thief's End - Nathan Drake

Most Promising New Intellectual Property: Overwatch

Most Fulfilling Community-Funded Game: Starbound

Matthew Crump Cultural Innovation Award: That Dragon, Cancer

Gamer's Voice Single Player: Owlboy

Gamer's Voice Multiplayer: Arena Gods

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