Capcom’s survival-horror blockbuster Resident Evil: Requiem on Wednesday won the Ultimate Game of the Year award at the 2026 Golden Joystick Awards, beating out Crimson Desert, 007: First Light and Pragmata, among other titles, according to tech outlet Polygon.

Requiem also took home the crown for Console Game of the Year, while sprawling indie action-adventure Crimson Desert was named PC Game of the Year in the first awards show of this season.

Adding another award to Requiem’s trophy cabinet, Angela Sant’Albano, who portrayed protagonist Grace Ashcroft, also scored Best Lead Performer, beating out Liam McIntyre for Marvel’s Wolverine and Patrick Gibson for 007: First Light.

Being the first awards show of the season, “The Golden Joysticks could be an early indicator of what games will rise to awards recognition, especially at Geoff Keighley’s The Game Awards in December,” Polygon wrote.

The outlet noted that the highly anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI was not in competition at the Golden Joysticks since it would release on November 19, nearly a week after the awards were handed out.

“GTA VI will undoubtedly upend the awards landscape, so later shows could look completely different than what we see today,” Polygon added.

When reviewing Requiem earlier this year, Dawn was impressed by the game’s visual fidelity and mechanics, tense atmosphere and performances by lead actors Sant’Albano and Nick Apostilides as protagonists Grace and Leon.

Big Walk

Indie title Big Walk, developed by House House, took home the Critics’ Choice Award and was nominated in several other categories, including Ultimate Game of the Year, Best Sound Design and Best Indie Game.

However, the game has been overshadowed by controversy surrounding its reported use of AI large language models in its development cycle. According to Polygon, the developer confirmed the use of AI this week, after the Nov 5 cut-off date for voting, when voters were unaware of the controversy.

“While the studio says that under 0.1 per cent of the game’s code had anything to do with generative AI tools, this will likely be a hardline for many that puts the critical darling out of contention,” the outlet reported.

“Big Walk winning awards may put a bad taste in some people’s mouths that may be reflected in fewer accolades later this year.”

Last year, French indie Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 dominated the awards circuit, sweeping accolades from a record nine categories at The Game Awards.