The Game Awards is focusing back on games, with 40-50 to be shown
And maybe the metaverse.
The Game Awards host Geoff Keighley has shared more details about December's show in an interview with Epic, and said it will place an emphasis back on video games (shock, I know!).
"You know, it's great to have celebrities, it's great to have music, but I think focusing really on games is important," Keighley said. "What we really learned last year was at the end of the day, it really is the games and the trailers that drive the show."
The world of traditional entertainment will still feature as well, however - although more for things which are video games adjacent, like a television show or movie inspired by or recreating a video game.
Indeed, Keighley said new categories may need to be added to the awards: "Probably next year, we may be able to add a best adaptation category to The Game Awards."
I think this will be a welcome departure to the show's format, which saw last year saw hardcore gamer (but mostly just a movie director), Christopher Nolan, present the Game of the Year award.
Keighley also said he expects the show to feature 40 to 50 games this year "someway or another" and the number of new games being announced is probably in the double digits.
Keighley couldn't reveal more about the specifics of what will be shown, he did say that the show is going to have some next-gen content.
"I still feel like we've only kind of sort of touched the surface of what's possible on the PS5 and Xbox Series X, so I think you'll see some stuff in the show that is truly pretty stunning," he said. "We'll see footage of games that will remind people that the best of this industry is still to come."
Keighley also said he sees potential in expanding the show, using the industry's favourite new buzzword, to the metaverse.
"We're really interested in the metaverse style of how people watch the show," he said. "We're starting to explore the idea of finding new ways to distribute it using games and game technology. That's actually kind of our next platform, right? We're a show about video games, so of course, we should be airing it inside of video games if we can."
Thankfully, Keighley said he's not interested in the industry's other favourite buzzword: NFTs.
"We're not doing any NFT stuff," he said.
The Game Awards will arrive on 10th December at 1am GMT.