Shadow of the Erdtree is nominated in the Game of the Year section at TGA 2024

Today the official nominations for the Game of the Year category at The Game Awards 2024 took place sharedand the biggest news is that Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree was included. This is surprising because Shadow of the Erdtree is not a standalone game, but a DLC that requires playing Elden Ring.

Because this is unprecedented, The Game Awards organization has clarified its position on this topic with a newly added FAQ on the event’s official website:

The Game Awards aim to reward the best creative and technical work each year, regardless of the format in which the content is released. Expansion packs, new game seasons, DLCs, remakes and remasters are eligible in all categories, if the jury deems the new creative and technical work worthy of a nomination. Factors such as the novelty of the content and its price/value should be taken into account.

So it’s fair game for all, and Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree is the clear favorite in an otherwise less-than-stellar year. FromSoftware’s admittedly large DLC (according to HowLongToBeat it takes 25.5 hours for the main mission, but over 50 hours for a more completer run) will include Atlus’s Metaphor: ReFantazio, Game Science’s Black Myth: Wukong, Square Enix’s Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Team defeat Asobi’s Astro Bot and PlayStack’s Balatro to repeat 2022’s base game victory. It shouldn’t be too difficult, although on paper Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree is tied with Astro Bot and Metaphor: ReFantazio when it comes to Metacritic score (94 for all three). However, FromSoftware’s latest masterpiece is much more popular, as evidenced by its increased sales.

The DLC received a perfect score on Wccftech from Francesco De Meo. Here is the summarized version of his review:

It wasn’t long before I found myself back in the captivating adventure loop of the Elden Ring experience, searching for map fragments to get a better look at the map, placing markers where seemingly interesting places were located, and being amazed by beautiful vistas, immense castles and vast haunted forests, unaware of the dangers that lurked within. With open world fatigue setting in earlier this year due to the many open world games released in 2024 such as Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Rise of the Ronin and the PC versions of Horizon Forbidden West and Ghost of Tsushima, Shadow of the Erdtree’s open-world design is a testament to how the Elden Ring experience continues to surpass anything on the market. As such, I believe a perfect score is warranted, even with the distinct lack of significant innovation and some technical hiccups.

You can vote for your favorite game on the official The Game Awards website. The ceremony will go live on December 12 at 5pm Pacific.