Role-playing hit "Baldur's Gate 3," based on the world of Dungeons and Dragons, was named video game of the year at a ceremony in Los Angeles.
Set in a fantasy realm of wizards, elves, barbarians, and other heroes, the game is the latest installment in the titular franchise created by Larian Studios.
"The Larian team has dedicated their hearts and souls to this game for six years, sometimes under very difficult circumstances," studio founder and head Sven Vincke said while accepting the award, AFP reported.
"That was our Covid game; we lost quite a few people along the way."
Vinke was dressed in armor, in unison with a character from the game, which has won millions of fans since its release in early August.
Among the other contenders for the title at the Game Awards 2023 was the survival horror game "Alan Wake 2", which took the main awards for direction and story.
The game, developed by Remedy Entertainment and published by Epic Games, is about a bestselling author who tries to escape from an alternate dimension.
"When more than 100 people believe in the same vision and build something out of it, we can do wonders, we can create art, and we can be more than the sum of our parts," said game director Sam Lake while accepting the award.
"Our world today could use a little more of that."
The ceremony featured appearances by celebrities including Matthew McConaughey and Timothée Chalamet, as well as a number of trailers for new titles in development.
Japanese video game icon Hideo Kojima has looked at the "OD" game he is making in collaboration with actor and director Jordan Peele.
Kojima said on stage that he's working with Microsoft's Xbox game studios and the company's cloud computing team to make "OD" something uniquely immersive.
"It's a game, don't get me wrong, but it's also a movie; a new form of media," Kojima said through a translator.
According to Kojima Productions, "OD" explores the concept of testing the threshold of fear while blurring the lines between game and film.
Peele, who directed "Nope," "Us" and "Get Out," describes what Kojima creates as completely absorbing and completely horrifying.
"I grew up watching movies and I'm a game creator, and Jordan grew up playing games and now he's a movie director," Kojima said.
"This collaboration is going to be really great." /BGNES
