The Golden Joystick Awards return this Wednesday—here's how to watch them
Friends, it's once again time to set sail on the stormy seas of democracy and answer a vital question: which are the best games of 2026 according to a set of 22 distinct categories? Also there are three other categories, but they're chosen by judges and not the public, so it's less the stormy seas of democracy and more the technocratic autobahn of experience-based decision-making. It's time for the Golden Joystick…
The Golden Joystick Awards return this Wednesday—here's how to watch them
A golden joystick would be pretty heavy, I bet.
Friends, it's once again time to set sail on the stormy seas of democracy and answer a vital question: which are the best games of 2026 according to a set of 22 distinct categories? Also there are three other categories, but they're chosen by judges and not the public, so it's less the stormy seas of democracy and more the technocratic autobahn of experience-based decision-making.
It's time for the Golden Joystick Awards 2026, is what I'm saying, and you (yes, you) are invited to watch when the big show airs at 10 am PT / 1 pm ET / 6 pm GMT / 7 pm CEST on Wednesday, November 11, 2026.
This year's host is Alix Wilton Regan, most recently the voice of Lara Croft in Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis, but most notably for me the voice of Alt Cunningham in Cyberpunk 2077, Specialist Traynor in Mass Effect 3, and Loghain's lieutenant Cauthrien in Dragon Age: Origins. Real heads know.
The show goes out on every streaming platform you've heard of and perhaps a few you haven't. You can watch the ceremony live via YouTube, Twitch, Steam, TikTok and X as well as Future Games Show, PC Gamer, WhatCulture Gaming, IGN, Ginx TV, eClutch, Niconico, Kuaishou and Bilibili.
There are a whole bunch of games in the running for the GJAs numerous gongs, and I genuinely don't know which of them will come out ahead. We've got 007 First Light, Big Walk, Crimson Desert, Control Resonant, Dispatch, Forza Horizon 6, Meccha Chamelon, Mewgenics, Resident Evil Requiem, and plenty more. It's a gamut of games—a game-ut—and you'll have to tune in to see which ones go home with their arms heaving with trophies.
2026 games: All the upcoming games
Best PC games: Our all-time favorites
Free PC games: Freebie fest
Best FPS games: Finest gunplay
Best RPGs: Grand adventures
Best co-op games: Better together
Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team.
One of Josh's first memories is of playing Quake 2 on the family computer when he was much too young to be doing that, and he's been irreparably game-brained ever since. His writing has been featured in Vice, Fanbyte, and the Financial Times. He'll play pretty much anything, and has written far too much on everything from visual novels to Assassin's Creed. His most profound loves are for CRPGs, immersive sims, and any game whose ambition outstrips its budget. He thinks you're all far too mean about Deus Ex: Invisible War.
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