The best game we got to play thanks to our PC Game Pass subscription.
This award category makes its debut this year, in favour of Best Remake/Remaster. 2022 is the year when Xbox finally expands its offering of PC Game Pass to more countries in Southeast Asia, more than just Singapore.
The arrival of Game Pass made such a large impact on us here that games on Game Pass made up a large portion of our shortlisted Top 30 Games Of 2022: 11 games. In past years, we bulk the list with games we didn’t play, but that category has shrunken down into only 1 game, meaning we have played all but 1 game in the Top 30. Game Pass allowed us to explore games we would have hesitate paying money for, and it shows.
Past Winners: none (new category)
Best Game On Game Pass Nominees
- Citizen Sleeper
- Hardspace Shipbreaker
- Signalis
- Tunic
- You Suck At Parking
How The Winner Is Decided (Deliberations Summary)
Link to the full podcast episode featuring the deliberations will be added soon
Being the first category on the deliberations, this is expectedly a slow process, made even slower as we have to filter down from the eligible 11 games into the arbitrary top 5 before picking a winner.
How we interpret this category this year is how Game Pass helped us discover gems. It has the spirit of an older now-retired category (Most Surprising Game) in that way, but the top 5 should highlight the breadth of games being offered on the monthly game subscription service. Games that are “out there” and are in a class of their own with regards to themeing/gameplay are favoured.
As for the winner, it was decided that it should be the best game to recommend someone to who’s already have Game Pass, and the best game to get them get Game Pass for.
Best Game On Game Pass Winner
Congratulations to Tunic for winning Best Game On Game Pass!
Its easy-on-the-eyes presentation, simple-but-deep gameplay and charm makes it the best game to have come out on Game Pass this year. The sense of wonder it evokes for playing the game without any prior knowledge of what to expect is similar to what the spirit of this award is supposed to be: uncovering the best gems available on Game Pass this year.
Check out the GM GOTY Awards 2022 hub for the rest of the categories and winners. The page will be updated as we announce the winners everyday until December 31.