This past Thursday was the tenth anniversary of The Game Awards, an Geoff Keighley did not disappoint with an absolutely incredible show. Right from the get go until the very end, the show was jam packed with massive announcements. We saw major announcements ranging from new IPs from top tier studios to new entries in in some of the most beloved franchises. Thus, let’s look at what we think the Top 10 announcements from the 2024 edition of The Game Awards were.

10. Virtua Fighter

Starting our list is the return of of Sega’s beloved fighting game series as a new entry in the Virtua Fighter series was announced. This is the first new entry in the series since Virtua Fighter 5 released all the way back in 2006 in arcades and 2007 on home consoles. The biggest surprise aside from just the series returning is that development is being helmed by the Like a Dragon/Yakuza developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio. While their games have always had a brawling and beat ’em style, this will be a completely new type of game for the studio to delve into designing. We saw a smidge of gameplay, and it looks competent. With how easily they transitioned their main franchise into a a turn based RPG, fans shouldn’t be too worried that the studio will be able to handle this beloved fighting game series.

9. Split Fiction

Josef Fares returned to The Game Awards stage this year to announce Hazelight Studios’ next co-op adventure in Split Fiction. We got to see a ton of this game and it looks like it’ll fit great alongside Hazelight’s other games. Split Fiction sees players play as two writer (who happen to be named after Fares’ daughters) as they get sucked into their own stories thanks to a shady corporation intent on stealing their ideas. The game is another co-op only adventure that and there looks to be a wide variety of levels and ideas in the game thanks to each character having their preferred writing style being fantasy or sci-fi. We got to see the characters getting dragons at their sides, having to escape from some robots, and become some unfortunate pigs. The best thing about the reveal is that Split Fiction isn’t too far away as the game is set to release in a few short months on March 6, 2025.

8. Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound

While not on the main show, The Game Awards held its Opening Act (pre show) prior to its start. The Opening Act started hot with the first world premier of the night being the return of Ninja Gaiden. This new entry, titled Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound, sees the series return to it 2D side scrolling roots thanks to Dotemu and developer The Game Kitchen. The game also has a gorgeous 2D pixel art style which we rarely see nowadays. As for what we know about the game, the game runs concurrently to the original NES game in the series timeline as players control a new protagonist Kenji Mozu as he must protect Hayabusa Village as it is torn between the human and demon worlds. The game is said to be welcoming to newcomers, but the series is known for having a steep difficulty curve. We won’t have to wait too long to see how difficult this new entry will be as Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound is set to release next summer.

7. Project Century

You thought Ryu Ga Gotoku and Sega were done after they announced the return of Virtua Fighter? Well, immediately after that announcement the studio announced a brand new game that they are working on currently known as Project Century. What’s interesting about the game is that it takes place in Japan at the turn of the century in 1915, and from what we saw feels exactly like we know that era is thematically. This game fits more in line with what the studio is known for as it features the studio’s classic melee and brawling based combat from the Like a Dragon/Yakuza series. However, we are currently unaware as to if Project Century is part of that series or if it will be a brand new IP.  If it’s the latter, it’ll be the first new IP for the studio since 2018. One thing we know for sure though, with how much Ryu Ga Gotoku is currently working on, the studio is one of Sega’s best and has one of the best outputs of strong titles in the industry.

6. Elden Ring: Nightreign

FromSoftware is back again after a brief rest at a bonfire. This time with a new Elden Ring game that’s not a DLC nor a sequel. Elden Ring Nightreign is a new standalone game that takes place in an alternate reality of The Lands Between. Unlike the original, this game is a Roguelike game that can be tackled alone or with up to three players. The game features a three day cycle that has players choosing different classes with different abilities with the goal to upgrade as much as possible before taking on a boss at the end of the cycle. We saw a plethora of different things in the trailer such as a eerily similar boss to one from Dark Souls 3 and we heard what sounds like the Sekiro parry mechanic noise when a character deflected a blow from an enemy. This is something completely different from what FromSoftware is known for doing to their games, but we won’t have to wait long to find out exactly how the game will play and if it’ll be another Game of the Year contender. Elden Ring: Nightreign is set to release some time in 2025.

5. Okami Sequel

What was teased as the final announcement of the show, and one that made Keighley almost tear up, was the return of Capcom’s 2006 ciritcal darling The Legend of Zelda inspired game Okami getting a full on sequel. This was a massive surprise as the original is almost a cult classic and Capcom hasn’t done anything with the IP since the 2010 spiritual successor on Nintendo DS. The best part of the announcement was the original game’s director Hideki Kamiya is returning to direct the sequel, and his new studio is named Clovers ( a successor to his original studio Clover).  We know nothing about what kind of game this will be as the game is just starting development. Thus, only time will tell how things will turn out, but this will go down as one of the most unexpected announcements that no one could’ve predicted.

4. Onimusha: Way of the Sword

Okami wasn’t the only old Capcom IP to be revived at The Game Awards this year. Earlier in the show, Capcom announced a new mainline entry in the Onimusha franchise. Onimusha: Way of the Sword is the first new entry in the series in twenty years, with the last releasing on PlayStation 2, and looks to be evolving the series into a modern action game. The setting returns players to Kyoto during the Edo Period of Japan’s history and obviously the game is still full of supernatural baddies to take on. We saw a a small bit of game and it looked heavily action focused. Will this be Capcom’s throwing their hat into the ring and entering the Soulslike genre or will it be more solely action? We do have to wait a bit to find out as Onimusha: Way of the Sword is set to release in 2026.

3. The Witcher IV

While we talked about the game that was the first one revealed during The Game Awards Opening Act, now, let’s talk about the first game revealed during the main show. That would be CD Project Red unveiling the next game in The Witcher series with The Witcher IV. We knew the game had just recently entered into full production, but didn’t know they would be showing it here. We have no clue how far out the game currently is, as the trailer mentioned unannounced graphic cards at the very beginning. However, what we saw looked incredible. The game looks to be taking place years after The Witcher III as this game follows an older Ciri. We see Ciri at a small village sending a woman to be sacrificed to a monster to protect their town, however, Ciri stops her and goes on to slay the beast in a cinematic clash. We will just have to eait until we finally get our hands on The Witcher IV.

2. Project Robot

Geoff Keighley started this reveal by saying it would capture our imaginations. He wasn’t wrong in that regard. While the game is currently untitled, Project Robot is the next game from genDesign and Fumito Ueda the creator of beloved games Ico, Shadow of the Colossus, and The Last Guardian. the about minute long trailer we saw will keep our minds running for years to come. We saw a character jump up and climb a dilapidated mech very similarly to how you climb in Shadow of the Colossus as a warning countdown is happening. As the character reaches the top, they stare out as a massive shockwave is heading their way, and the music Ueda’s games are known for kicks in. The character tries to fly off using the mech’s head, but still gets caught up in the blast. While we are craving to see more, especially since it’s been nearly a decade since genDesign’s last game, we know how long Ueda’s games can take to develop. We will just have to hold our breathes in hope that it doesn’t take as long as the last one to finally be in our hands,

1. Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet

To officially end the show, the one more thing announcement at The Game Awards this year was Naughty Dog revealing their first new IP in eleven years with Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet. This is a new sci-fi game from the studio and the first time they are leaving the planet behind since the Jak and Daxter series. You could just feel the budget and Naughty Dog style from the moment the trailer starts. You can see the Cowboy Bebop and Akira influence all over the trailer since you play as space bounty hunter Jordan A. Mun. Mun is portrayed by Tati Gabrielle and she isn’t the only mainstream actor appearing in the game as we see a quick glimpse of Kumail Nanjiani as another character in the game. The game has a retro future aesthetic with 1986 being a important year and you can see loads of tech calling back to the era such as CDs, Sony’s audio systems, light up Adidas, and Mun’s Porsche spaceship. What will capture the most intrigue from the trailer is this looks to be a heavily melee focus game as it ends with Mun engaging in combat with a robot enemy using a laser like sword. This will definitely be another strong Naughty Dog outing.