The Game Awards is back with its 2022 edition to celebrate the best in video games, in an all-around extravaganza with the promise of new announcements. Games industry titan Geoff Keighley is returning to host the show live, backed by its musical orchestra and an in-person audience, at the Microsoft Theatre in Los Angeles. A total of 108 titles, individuals, and teams will compete across 31 nominations to earn their respective prizes, forever cementing their names in video game history. Winners have been picked by a global jury of over 100 media publications that include Gadgets 360.

Keighley also addressed concerns over fatigue, arising from The Game Awards’ length, by claiming that this year’s edition will be “significantly shorter” than the past few years. “Yeah, the show is going to be shorter this year. We don’t know the full time until we finish our rehearsals, but I think it’s probably gonna be about a two-and-a-half-hour show,” he said on a Twitch stream.

That said, Keighley notes that the runtime might stretch a little bit depending on how long the winners’ speeches are. This is good news, as last year’s show was a nearly four-hour-long ordeal, including the pre-show, which maintains the same 30-minute-long runtime.

The Game Awards 2022: Date and time

The digital presentation of The Game Awards 2022 is scheduled for Thursday, December 8 at 4:30pm PT/ 7:30pm ET. For India, this translates to Friday, December 9, at 6am IST. The first thirty minutes will feature a pre-show, hosted by Sydney Goodman, and promises new video game announcements.

The Game Awards 2022: How to watch?

Those who cannot attend the in-person event in Los Angeles can watch a live stream from the comfort of their home. The Game Awards 2022 will be available to watch for free on all major platforms, including its official YouTube and Twitch channels, in addition to feeds on Facebook Live, Twitter, TikTok Live, and Instagram Live. You could also watch it through other Twitch streamers’ channels, who might have registered to co-stream the event.

You can also watch the livestream via the player embedded below:

The Amazon-owned streaming platform also offers some exclusive rewards, as long as your gaming accounts (for example: Steam, Ubisoft Connect) — are linked with it. Tuning into The Game Awards 2022 on Twitch for 60 minutes grants viewers six reward codes, which can be used to unlock an unannounced Fall Guys skin, an Epic Games voucher code for the roguelike title Rogue Legacy, and the returning Geoff Keighley’s Among Us mask.

Other rewards include a deluxe edition upgrade code for the high-octane martial arts game Sifu, the Lucra Syandana cosmetic for use in Warframe, and three new follower forms in Cult of the Lamb.

Viewers in India can also stream the event live on MX Player, Voot, JioTV, and Loco.

What to expect from The Game Awards 2022?

The Game Awards 2022 confirmed announcements

Like past editions, The Game Awards 2022 is expected to feature new game trailers, celebrity presenters, and a live musical orchestra on stage. Earlier this week, publisher EA confirmed its appearance at the show with some gameplay footage for the hotly anticipated galaxy-spawning sequel to Cal Kestis’ adventure, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. Set five years after the events of Fallen Order, the follow-up sees him as a powerful Jedi Knight, and is rumoured to be released on March 15, 2023.

While Riot Games’ Project L might take a while to finish development, the fighting game community can keep themselves occupied with Tekken 8, which is confirmed to be present at The Game Awards 2022. Twitch streamer Aris (avoidingthepuddle) first leaked the news on Twitter with a special package he had received from publisher Bandai Namco.

Baldur’s Gate 3 is getting a new update as well, as revealed in a teaser featuring an erect statue of Minsc, holding his miniature hamster companion Boo. When a bolt of magic strikes the structure, his eyes start glowing blue, indicating their return to the franchise. The characters appeared in the first two Baldur’s Gate games, followed by its subsequent expansions.

Elsewhere, developer Koei Tecmo Games prepares to unveil a new beast for its upcoming monster-hunting game, Wild Hearts. The game is scheduled to drop February 17, 2023, across PC, PS5, and Xbox Series S/X.

There also seems to be a surprise from the Crash Bandicoot team, as well as a live presentation from Naoki Yoshida, the producer of the much-delayed Final Fantasy XVI.

The Game Awards 2022 presenters

While Keighley plays host for The Game Awards 2022, he has also called upon several personalities from across the film and gaming industry to present awards to respective winners. Key appearances include ex-Nintendo head Reggie Fils-Aimé, 2021 Game of the Year winner Josef Fares, and crew from the upcoming Netflix film Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery — director Rian Johnson, and stars Daniel Craig and Jessica Henwick.

The cast from the upcoming HBO adaptation, The Last of Us series, is also set to appear as presenters for The Game Awards 2022. Leads Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey will be joined by their video game version voice actors Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson, respectively.

Then there’s Keegan-Michael Key, who voices Toad in much-awaited The Super Mario Bros. Movie, slated for release in April 2023.

The Game Awards 2022 nominees

As for the awards themselves, there are a total of 31 categories, from which Santa Monica Studio’s God of War Ragnarök bagged 10 nominations, including the prestigious Game of the Year trophy. Other nods for the coveted category go to the critically acclaimed Elden Ring, Horizon Forbidden West, Stray, A Plague Tale: Requiem, and Xenoblade Chronicles 3.

This year, the show has added a new ‘Best Adaptation’ category that recognises work that “authentically adapts” video game property to other forms of media such as movies, TV series, anime, podcasts, or even books. “With so many game-inspired projects across entertainment, the time is right to honour excellence in adapting video game worlds to other mediums,” Keighley said in a prepared statement, back in August.

The five nominees in this segment include Arcane: League of Legends, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, The Cuphead Show!, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, and the Uncharted movie.