Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gaming
  3. News

Resident Evil 2 takes home Ultimate Game of the Year at Golden Joystick Awards

By

Capcom’s Resident Evil 2 is the biggest winner at The 37th Golden Joystick Awards, as the remake of the 1998 classic was named Ultimate Game of the Year.

The Golden Joystick Awards covers a variety of categories, with the winner of each award determined through public voting. The most coveted title is Ultimate Game of the Year, and in the 2019 ceremony that was held at the Bloomsbury Big Top in London, it was presented to Resident Evil 2.

Resident Evil 2 edged out 11 other games for the award, including the likes of Apex Legends, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Gears 5, and The Outer Worlds. The remake of the classic horror survival game also nabbed the Best Audio award.

Related

Fortnite, the Ultimate Game of the Year at The 36th Golden Joystick Awards, took home another trophy this year as Esports Game of the Year, and its developer, Epic Games, was named Studio of the Year. The only other multi-winner for this year was Days Gone, which took home the Best Storytelling award and PlayStation Game of the Year. Gears 5 was named Xbox Game of the Year, while Super Smash Bros. Ultimate was Nintendo Game of the Year.

This year, The Golden Joystick Awards presented the Lifetime Achievement award to designer and producer Yu Suzuki, who was the creative mind behind some of the most popular Japanese games in Sega’s history such as Virtua Racing, Shenmue, and Space Harrier.

“This is the 37th Golden Joystick Awards, but it just so happens this is my 37th year since I first entered into the world of game making,” said Suzuki in his acceptance speech. “I couldn’t be happier to be here and be given such an award. Thank you very much indeed.” Suzuki then reminded everyone that Shenmue 3 will finally launch next week, after years of waiting from the series’ die-hard fans.

Here is the complete list of winners at The 37th Golden Joystick Awards:

  • Best Storytelling – Days Gone
  • Best Multiplayer Game – Apex Legends
  • Still Playing Award – Minecraft
  • Best Visual Design – Devil May Cry 5
  • Best Indie Game – Outer Wilds
  • Esports Game of the Year – Fortnite
  • Best Audio – Resident Evil 2
  • Best Game Expansion – GTA Online: Diamond Casino Update
  • Best VR/AR Game – Beat Saber
  • Best Gaming Hardware – Nvidia 20-Series Super Graphics Card
  • Best Performer – Logan Marshall-Green
  • Studio of the Year – Epic Games
  • Best New Streamer/Broadcaster – Ewok
  • Breakthrough Award – House House
  • Mobile Game of the Year – BTS World
  • Outstanding Contribution – Life is Strange
  • PC Game of the Year – World of Warcraft Classic
  • PlayStation Game of the Year – Days Gone
  • Xbox Game of the Year – Gears 5
  • Nintendo Game of the Year – Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
  • Most Wanted Game – Cyberpunk 2077
  • Critics’ Choice Award – Control
  • Lifetime Achievement – Yu Suzuki
  • Ultimate Game of the Year – Resident Evil 2

Editors’ Recommendations

Topics
Aaron Mamiit
Aaron Mamiit
Contributor
Aaron received a NES and a copy of Super Mario Bros. for Christmas when he was 4 years old, and he has been fascinated with…
The best video games of March 2023: Resident Evil 4, Tchia, and more
Leon and Ashley in the Resident Evil 4 remake.

It's not October, but we just had a very good month for horror games. From the indie scene to AAA and from VR to a traditional gaming experience, fans of scary games had a lot to enjoy in March 2023. Of course, there was the highly anticipated remake of Resident Evil 4, one of the best horror games of all time, and it didn't disappoint. Keeping up the scares were experimental horror games like Paranormasight: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo and Dredge, while The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR affirmed why virtual reality is a good fit for horror. Even Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty will also be a scary experience for some because of its difficulty.
We also recommend trying the environmentally conscious reverse city-builder Terra Nil, exploring islands inspired by New Caledonia in Tchia, or taking in the beautiful art of Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon. While horror fans were treated particularly well this month, it was a good one for gaming all the way around. As such, we recommend checking one of the following eight games if you're looking for something new to play. 
Resident Evil 4 remake

Capcom's comprehensive remake of Resident Evil 4 is by far the most notable release of March 2022. Remaking a game that is so beloved and highly influential was a major risk, but Capcom was able to pull it off. It not only lovingly recreates iconic moments from the original, but actively improves the experience by enhancing the gameplay with features like a knife parry and recontextualizing some of its classic plot beats and set pieces.
"It’s a truly transformative remake that isn’t afraid to throw out what didn’t work and put its own creative spin on everything from story to level design to its wildly improved combat," Digital Trends' Giovanni Colantonio wrote in a four-and-a-half star review of Resident Evil 4's remake. "That makes for a refreshingly confident project that excels both as a look back to the past and a bold step forward for the series’ future."
The remake of Resident Evil 4 is available now for PC, PlayStation 4, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty

Read more
All Resident Evil games, ranked from best to worst
A zombie crawls after someone in Resident Evil 2.

Many people credit the Resident Evil games with the birth of the survival-horror genre in video games. From spinoffs to sequels to remakes, sifting through all the Resident Evil games can be a challenge. If you’ve never played one before, you want to make sure you start with the right game. 

Everyone might have their own ideas about the “best” or “worst” Resident Evil games, but we’ve done our best to rank the games in the series for you. Keep in mind that we’ll only consider games with "Resident Evil" in the title, so we won’t include spinoff titles like Operation Raccoon City or Umbrella Chronicles.

Read more
Don’t start the Resident Evil 4 remake before playing these 5 games
Saddler looms in front of amber in the Resident Evil 4 remake.

Capcom’s Resident Evil 4 remake is just a few days away and the anticipation couldn’t be higher. After a wave of glowing reviews, fans of the GameCube classic are ready to have their heads chainsawed off all over again. That wait will come to an end on Friday, March 24, but impatient players may find themselves looking for a way to kill the time until then.

If you’re in the boat, or simply want to properly prepare yourself for the remake, we’re here to help. Part of the Resident Evil 4 remake’s appeal is the way it engages with not just the original game or the series’ past, but the 20 years’ worth of gaming history that would follow it. With a game as important and influential as Resident Evil 4, you don’t need to go far to see how it impacted the action-adventure genre. The remake shines because it’s seemingly aware of that idea, examining the original through a modern lens.

Read more