Golden Joystick Awards 2026: Resident Evil Requiem Wins Top Prize
Resident Evil Requiem won Ultimate Game of the Year with 17% of the vote, 1 point ahead of Phantom Blade Zero, while a two-person indie hit matched its 4 wins.
Hakkı ALKANPublished 4 min read
Resident Evil Requiem won Ultimate Game of the Year at the Golden Joystick Awards 2026 in London on Nov. 11, taking 17% of the public vote. Capcom's survival horror game finished just one point ahead of Phantom Blade Zero, and a two-person indie hit called Meccha Chameleon matched its total of four awards.
The 44th edition of the show, run by GamesRadar+ and hosted by Alix Wilton Regan, is the first big stop of the game awards season. Most categories are decided by public vote, while Streamers' Choice, Developers' Choice and Critics' Choice go to juries.
How Close Was the Golden Joystick Awards 2026 Top Prize?
Very close. Requiem's 17% beat Phantom Blade Zero's 16% and Crimson Desert's 15%, with Control Resonant fourth and The Blood of Dawnwalker fifth, according to the live vote breakdown published by indy100. The category had 12 nominees, including 007 First Light, Forza Horizon 6, Pragmata and Pokemon Pokopia.
Requiem also won Console Game of the Year with 27% of the vote, ahead of Capcom's own Pragmata at 19%. It added Best Game Trailer for "Evil Has Always Had A Name" and Best Lead Performer for Angela Sant'Albano, who plays Grace Ashcroft. For a game that already set sales records for the series, it was a clean night.
Capcom then took Studio of the Year, a win GamesRadar+ credits to Requiem, Pragmata and Onimusha: Way of the Sword together.
Why Did Meccha Chameleon Steal the Show?
Meccha Chameleon is a "friendslop" game, a cheap and chaotic online title built to be played with friends. Players paint themselves to blend into the map and hide in plain sight. Two developers in Japan built it in a couple of months, yet it won Best Multiplayer Game, Best Indie Game Self-Published, Streamers' Choice and Developers' Choice.
That is the real story of the night. A tiny team matched a AAA franchise on award count, and two of those wins came from industry juries rather than fan voting.
Golden Joystick Awards 2026 Winners: Full List
| Category | Winner |
|---|---|
| Ultimate Game of the Year | Resident Evil Requiem |
| Console Game of the Year | Resident Evil Requiem |
| PC Game of the Year | Crimson Desert |
| Studio of the Year | Capcom |
| Most Wanted Game | The Witcher 4 |
| Critics' Choice | Big Walk |
| Developers' Choice | Meccha Chameleon |
| Streamers' Choice | Meccha Chameleon |
| Best Multiplayer Game | Meccha Chameleon |
| Best Indie Game (Self-Published) | Meccha Chameleon |
| Best Indie Game | Valheim |
| Best Storytelling | Dispatch |
| Best Soundtrack | Dispatch |
| Best Audio Design | Onimusha: Way of the Sword |
| Best Visual Design | Control Resonant |
| Best Game Trailer | Resident Evil Requiem |
| Best Lead Performer | Angela Sant'Albano (Grace Ashcroft, Resident Evil Requiem) |
| Best Supporting Performer | Grace Saif (Diana, Pragmata) |
| Best Game Expansion | Doom: The Dark Ages |
| Best Remake / Remaster | The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Remastered |
| Best Early Access Game | Subnautica 2 |
| Best Game Adaptation | Iron Lung |
| Best Gaming Hardware | Steam Controller |
| Still Playing (Mobile) | Balatro |
| Still Playing (PC and Console) | Minecraft |
Where Was GTA 6?
Grand Theft Auto VI fell outside this year's eligibility window, GamesBeat reports, so it could not compete. It won Most Wanted in 2025 and should be a heavy favorite at the 2027 show, once its launch lands inside the voting period. Most Wanted went to The Witcher 4 this time, even though CD Projekt Red has set its release for 2028.
The show also opened on a somber note. Wilton Regan, who voiced characters in Dragon Age: Inquisition and Mass Effect 3, paid tribute to the closed BioWare studio: "So many of us watching tonight stand on their extraordinary shoulders."
What Does This Mean for Awards Season?
Last year Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 swept the night with seven awards. This year the prizes spread across far more games, which suggests no single title owns 2026 yet. Our take: Requiem now looks like the safe pick for the bigger shows ahead, but Meccha Chameleon's jury wins show that voters inside the industry are rewarding small, fresh ideas over budget.
Quick checklist if you want to catch up on the winners:
- Play Resident Evil Requiem if you want the year's most decorated big-budget game.
- Try Meccha Chameleon with friends for the night's biggest surprise.
- Pick Crimson Desert if you play mainly on PC.
- Check out Dispatch for the best-rated story and soundtrack.
Relative test: if a friend asked which 2026 game to buy first, the vote count says Requiem, but the gap was one point. Phantom Blade Zero and Crimson Desert are just as safe a recommendation.