With 5 nominations from The Game Awards 2021, Hazelight Studios’ It Takes Two has the potential to take home some serious hardware. From Game of the Year to Best Family Game, there are several categories that It Takes Two seems poised to win, but one that could be the biggest is Best Direction.
Obviously, Game of the Year is the most prestigious award of the night, but Best Direction has a particular significance when it comes to The Game Awards' history. And for It Takes Two director Josef Fares – if he were to win the category – it would be a particularly sweet moment for him, the show, and host Geoff Keighley.
Josef Fares and The Game Awards
Most will know Josef Fares as the “F--- the Oscars” guy from The Game Awards 2017. Making an appearance to promote his upcoming co-op title A Way Out, Fares wanted to highlight his passion for the industry and celebrate The Game Awards fans while also throwing some shade at the Academy Awards. Admittedly, Fares proclaimed that he was a step above “crazy,” but in a good way. He then flipped off the camera and those three little words have come to be a part of Fares' legacy.
Since then, Geoff Keighley has tried to incorporate Fares in The Game Awards as much as he can. When it comes to creators and The Game Awards, Fares is second only to Hideo Kojima, who Keighley has been a staunch supporter of since his split from Konami back in 2015. Kojima appearances at The Game Awards (and Keighley’s other awards shows prior) were a major event, and the director usually saved something special for the fans tuning in. It was evident that Keighley and Kojima were good friends and the two would try to do whatever possible to help the other.
Then, in 2019, Hideo Kojima took home the Best Direction award for his work on Death Stranding, a title that had made several appearances at The Game Awards over the years. It was validation of his skills as an independent creator and a special moment for him to show his gratitude for the support he had received from fans over the last few years. It was just the cherry on top that he also received a standing ovation upon his name being called.
Will It Takes Two Win Best Direction?
With It Takes Two among the games nominated for Best Direction, it’s very possible that Josef Fares could have his Kojima moment at The Game Awards 2021. There may not be a standing ovation or anything like that, but for Fares it would be recognition of his hard work and an opportunity to give love back to the show that has supported him since its existence. Fares could have easily become meme fodder for The Game Awards, but instead, the show embraced his passion for games and let him highlight that passion through new projects, specifically It Takes Two.
And as it turns out It Takes Two is actually pretty great. The title is earning a lot of Game of the Year recognition and has the aforementioned five nominations from The Game Awards. The game could conceivably win in any of the categories it is nominated in, but we have our eye on Direction just because of the history between Fares and the show. It would certainly be something to see the “F--- the Oscars” guy become a TGA award recipient.