While we already revealed which games earned the most nominations, we’d also like to share Balatro and Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II came in second with five nominations each, and 1000xResist, Animal Well, and Batman: Arkham Shadow came in third with four nominations each.

You can check out the full list of D.I.C.E. Awards 2025 nominees below, and you can also see how they compare to our IGN Awards from 2024 and how these nominees and winners are picked.

Outstanding Achievement in Animation

• Astro Bot
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
• FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH
• Neva
• Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2

Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction

• Black Myth: Wukong
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
• LEGO Horizon Adventures
• The Plucky Squire
• Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II

Outstanding Achievement in Character

• 1000xRESIST – Watcher
• FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH – Yuffie Kisaragi
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle – Dr. Henry “Indiana” Jones
• INDIKA – Indika
• Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II – Senua

Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition

• Astro Bot
• Helldivers 2
• Monument Valley 3
• Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
• Star Wars Outlaws

Outstanding Achievement in Audio Design

• Frostpunk 2
• Helldivers 2
• Monument Valley 3
• Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
• Still Wakes the Deep

Outstanding Achievement in Story

• 1000xRESIST
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
• Metaphor: ReFantazio
• Still Wakes the Deep
• Thank Goodness You’re Here!

Outstanding Technical Achievement

• Astro Bot
• Batman: Arkham Shadow
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
• Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
• Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2

Action Game of the Year

• Batman: Arkham Shadow
• Black Myth: Wukong
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
• Helldivers 2
• Stellar Blade

Adventure Game of the Year

• 1000xRESIST
• ANIMAL WELL
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
• The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
• Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown

Family Game of the Year

• Astro Bot
• Cat Quest III
• Little Kitty, Big City
• The Plucky Squire
• Super Mario Party Jamboree

Fighting Game of the Year

• Blazing Strike
• DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO
• Mortal Kombat 1: Khaos Reigns
• TEKKEN 8
• UNDERDOGS

Racing Game of the Year

• F1® 24
• MotoGP™24
• NIGHT-RUNNERS™ PROLOGUE

Role-Playing Game of the Year

• FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH
• Dragon Age: The Veilguard
• ELDEN RING: Shadow of the Erdtree
• Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
• Metaphor: ReFantazio

Sports Game of the Year

• EA SPORTS College Football 25
• EA SPORTS FC 25
• MLB The Show 24
• NBA 2K25

Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year

• Balatro
• Caves of Qud
• Frostpunk 2
• Tactical Breach Wizards
• Satisfactory

Immersive Reality Technical Achievement

• Alien: Rogue Incursion
• Batman: Arkham Shadow
• Skydance’s BEHEMOTH
• Starship Home
• UNDERDOGS

Immersive Reality Game of the Year

• Alien: Rogue Incursion
• Batman: Arkham Shadow
• Escaping Wonderland
• Skydance’s BEHEMOTH
• UNDERDOGS

Outstanding Achievement for an Independent Game

• ANIMAL WELL
• Balatro
• Grunn
• INDIKA
• Mouthwashing

Mobile Game of the Year

• Balatro
• Halls of Torment
• Monument Valley 3
• Paper Trail
• Wuthering Waves

Online Game of the Year

• Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
• Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred
• Helldivers 2
• Marvel Rivals
• Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2

Outstanding Achievement in Game Design

• ANIMAL WELL
• Astro Bot
• Balatro
• Helldivers 2
• UFO 50

Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction

• 1000xRESIST
• ANIMAL WELL
• Lorelei and the Laser Eyes
• Riven
• Thank Goodness You’re Here!

Game of the Year

• Astro Bot
• Balatro
• Black Myth: Wukong
• Helldivers 2
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

IGN is proud to be the official media partner of the D.I.C.E. Awards and we will be exclusively streaming the ceremony, which will be co-hosted by Greg Miller and Stella Chung.

If you want to know more about how these nominees were picked and how the winners are chosen, the AIAS has shared the following;

“The Academy’s 30K+ members, comprised of the interactive publishing and development communities, recognize excellence in 23 different interactive game categories in one of the highest forms of recognition in the industry, the AIAS wore, “Titles were played and evaluated by members of the Academy’s peer panels to determine final nominees. These panels, one for each award category, are comprised of the game industry’s most experienced and talented experts in their chosen fields. Winners are determined as part of a confidential voting process and will be revealed on the evening of the show. A list of all the peer panelists can be found here.”

Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

Adam Bankhurst is a writer for IGN. You can follow him on X/Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on TikTok.