Monthly Archives: October 2020

Train2Game News Golden Joystick Awards Now Open

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Voting goes live today in the 38th Golden Joystick Awards, the world’s biggest public-voted games awards.

Every year millions of fans show their support by voting for the games, developers, publishers and personalities who have entertained and thrilled them the most over the last 12 months.
 

Now in its 38th year, the Golden Joystick Awards show has been confirmed for this November with a new all-digital format and global focus.
 

Daniel Dawkins, Content Director, Games and Film explains more:
 

“Last year the Golden Joystick Awards were held in central London with awards being handed out to developers who had flown in from all around the globe. This year the event will be a truly global, all-digital, affair with a variety of exciting guest hosts, exclusive game trailers and editorialised video features. We strongly believe this will allow us to reach millions more fans, with the Golden Joystick Awards 2020 being hosted on gamesradar.com, currently enjoying a year of record traffic. Our revamped digital show will be produced by the team behind the recently-launched Future Games Show, which attracted 23 million views for its E3 and Gamescom shows. We can’t wait to celebrate the best games of the last 12 months and look forward to the next generation of consoles and creators.”
 

The Golden Joystick Awards are brought to you by GamesRadar+, the world’s fastest-growing major games website. GamesRadar+ recorded its all-time audience record of 35.5m global users in April 2020, and has seen phenomenal growth over the year with a 92% rise in users across the globe*.
 

Voting starts today across 18 categories, including PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo, Mobile, eSports and PC Game of the Year, as well as Best Family Game (NEW for 2020), Best Multiplayer Game, Best Indie Game, Best Gaming Hardware, Best Game Expansion, Best Game Community (NEW for 2020), Best Studio and more.
 

Fans can also cast a vote for online games that they can’t give up playing in the ‘Still Playing’ award, as well as the game they are most looking forward to in the hotly-contested ‘Most Wanted’ award category which was won by Cyberpunk 2077 in 2019.
 

Daniel Dawkins said:
 

“Our judging panel has worked hard to narrow down the shortlist to just eight games in each category**. Some games are so good they have made it into more than one category, with multiple nominations for Animal Crossing: New Horizons, The Last of Us Part II, Fall Guys and more. We have also added in two new categories – ‘Best Family Game’, which reflects the fantastic family games that have been released this year, and ‘Best Gaming Community’ a nod to the increased role games have played in keeping us connected to our friends and fellow players in 2020.”
 

Voting opens today and closes on November 2nd 2020.

For more information visit www.goldenjoysticks.com or follow The Golden Joysticks Awards on Twitter and Facebook

Train2Game News 5th One Special Day

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This Friday, the gamers’ charity SpecialEffect will celebrate their fifth One Special Day fundraiser.

In a new record for the event, over 75 games industry partners have now pledged their support, ranging from mobile and PC developers, through to media and trade bodies.

With demand for the charity’s services increasing and other fundraising events being cancelled or postponed due to COVID-19, this year’s One Special Day has taken on an extra significance, as SpecialEffect’s Founder and CEO Mick Donegan explains: 

“Despite the challenges of recent months, SpecialEffect has been continuing its work to bring the joy of video games and technology to some of the most disabled people on the planet. Our staff have worked tirelessly to respond to an increasing number of enquiries from all over the world, carrying out remote assessments and providing specialist equipment and advice. Meanwhile, the R&D team have been working hard to finish some exciting new accessible gaming projects, such as Eye Gaze Games, which have the potential to open-up the world of gaming to 10,000s more people world-wide. Securing the future of these services is vitally important for the people we support, which is why One Special Day 2020 is more important than ever.”

Since its inception in 2016, One Special Day has raised over $1,000,000 towards the work of SpecialEffect to help people with disabilities in the United Kingdom and all over the world. The companies supporting the event raise money by donating revenue, holding events and contributing to special Humble Bundles. This year, many will also be staging virtual fundraising challenges, including Zoom quizzes, socially-distanced physical challenges and livestreams.

Some campaign highlights to look out for include: 

  • One Special Bundle, which is available now on the Humble Bundle website and features titles from nine partners. 
  • One Special Night, which takes place on Thursday 1st October from 8pm and sees SpecialEffect hosting eight of the games industry’s leading lights, including Double Fine’s Tim Schafer, for an evening of exclusive online talks. 
  • One Special Game, a competition where fan-artists have been given the opportunity to create their own poster for iconic games such as Mass Effect, Stardew Valley, Monument Valley and Need for Speed, with the winners announced on Friday 2nd October.

The range of events and activities, coupled with the number of games industry companies rallying to the call, makes this the biggest One Special Day yet. And that’s very good news for disabled gamers all over the world!


If you’d like to get your company involved in One Special Day, there’s still time. Go to www.onespecialday.org.uk to donate or, for more information, contact Nick Streeter at nick@specialeffect.org.uk