Microsoft's Xbox Game Pass subscription service was riding high going in to the latest Game Awards ceremony. In total, a whopping 17 Xbox Game Pass games were nominated for awards at The Game Awards 2022, with 16 of them playable right now and another, 2023's Starfield, up for the Most Anticipated Game award. But while 17 different Xbox Game Pass games were nominated for awards at The Game Awards this year, only one managed to take home a prize.
That's not a knock on Xbox Game Pass or the games that were nominated. The fact that these games were nominated in the first place underlines their quality and proves the value of Xbox Game Pass. Anyone with a PC or modern Xbox console handy could sign up for Game Pass and check out these games for themselves, and they may even find a title or two that they feel was robbed of an award at the event.
Out of all 17 Xbox Game Pass games that were nominated for awards at The Game Awards 2022, the only one to win was As Dusk Falls. As Dusk Falls won the Games for Impact award, earning it because of its diverse cast of characters and willingness to tackle serious issues. As Dusk Falls was a day one Xbox Game Pass game when it first launched, and it is still readily available to play for anyone interested in checking it out through their subscription.
Xbox Game Pass Games Nominated for Awards at The Game Awards
- A Memoir Blue - 1 nomination
- A Plague Tale: Requiem - 5 nominations
- As Dusk Falls - 2 nominations - Winner of Games for Impact award
- Citizen Sleeper - 1 nomination
- Dune: Spice Wars - 1 nomination
- Immortality - 3 nominations
- Metal: Hellsinger - 1 nomination
- No Man's Sky - 1 nomination
- Norco - 1 nomination
- Return to Monkey Island - 1 nomination
- Scorn - 1 nomination
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge - 2 nominations
- Total War: Warhammer 3 - 1 nomination
- Tunic - 1 nomination
- Two Point Campus - 1 nomination
- Vampire Survivors - 1 nomination
- Starfield - Most Anticipated
As Dusk Falls earned mixed reviews from critics at the time of its release, with some unable to get beyond the game's art style and others criticizing the narrative for pacing issues in the second-half. Even so, those who enjoy interactive narratives where player choice drives the story may still find As Dusk Falls to be a worthwhile experience, and they should certainly give it a look through Xbox Game Pass.
The two Xbox Game Pass games with the most nominations were A Plague Tale: Requiem and Immortality. A Plague Tale: Requiem was even up for the coveted Game of the Year prize, though that ultimately went to Elden Ring. But even though most of the Xbox Game Pass games nominated for awards this year fell short, mainly because God of War Ragnarok and Elden Ring swept most of the categories, there should still be plenty of memorable experiences for fans to enjoy with their subscription.