Videogames will be honored in a special category during next year’s Hugo Awards. This will mark the medium’s first formal inclusion in the science fiction and fantasy awarding body.
Announced on Twitter by DisCon III, the hosting convention for Worldcon 2021, the convention where the Hugos take place, next year’s awards will recognise one game in the Best Videogame category. Under the rules of the World Science Fiction Society, the Worldcon committee of any given year can introduce one award for that year. These awards aren’t recurring, and this rule is designed for “special circumstances”.
“Since early 2020, many of us have spent more time gaming than we ever expected,” Collette Fozard, co-chair for Discon III, said in a statement. “This award will offer fans an opportunity to celebrate the games that have been meaningful, joyful, and exceptional over this past year.” The event specifies this is a one-time deal, but the Hugo Study Committee is looking into a Best Game or Interactive Experience category that could become a permanent fixture. The awards primarily tend to deal in the world of print, like books, magazines, comics, and their associated media such as audiobooks, so although gaming draws heavily from literature, this is something of a new precedent.
DisCon III will play host to the 79th Worldcon next year from August 25 to August 29 in Washington DC, at the Marriott Wardman Mark Hotel. You can find more information here.
In 2021, there’s going to be a Hugo Award For Best Video Game.
The DisCon III committee has chosen to create this special category for 2021 only, as provided for by the rules of the World Science Fiction Society.#HugoAwards
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— DisCon III – The 79th Worldcon (@worldcon2021) November 23, 2020
Not surprising the team felt it necessary to highlight gaming in some way this year, videogames have surged amid the ongoing lockdowns. Everyday basically became the weekend as far as Steam’s concerned, and survival games and football games were big hits around April or so. Between strategy games like Crusader Kings 3, action-adventure games like Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, breakout indie games like Hades, and beyond, this will be a hotly contested award. In addition to the established favourites, here’s all the upcoming games you should keep an eye on, so you’re totally up to speed when the Hugo Awards 2021 roll around.
