Metroid Dread is your Nintendo Game of the Year at the Golden Joystick Awards

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A return to form for our old pal Samus

You've crowned Metroid Dread as this year's winner of the Nintendo Game of Year at the Golden Joystick Awards.

Nintendo has had an interesting year of releases, with end of year conversations dominated by the return to form of Animal Crossing: New Horizons. However, for your Nintendo Game of the Year, there was a clear winner in Samus' latest adventure - Metroid Dread. Samus won out over the likes of New Pokemon Snap and Monster Hunter Rise to take the gong this year.  

The full list of nominees was: 

Released in October this year, Metroid Dread is Samus' first original 2D side-scrolling adventure in 19 years, wrapping up a tale that's been some 35 years in the making. 

For game series that caused the birth of the entire Metroidvania genre, it was so wonderful to see the masters return. While it might have stiff competition from the likes of Hollow Knight and Ori and the Blind Forest, the classic Metroid series hasn't suffered from its leave of absence, with excellent - and tough - boss fights, brilliant platforming, and a slew of new abilities to unlock. And that's without highlighting the terrifying E.M.M.I. robot sections that require stealth and fast reactions in equal measure to embody the titular dread.

In our review, we highlighted how "Dread captures a sense of uncertainty through its world structure and sound design that can easily enrapture your attention for hours on end. The series' ever-distinctive game flow easily willing you further into a world that will frequently feel both insurmountable and irresistible."

Metroid Dread is available now exclusively on Nintendo Switch.

Sam Loveridge
Sam Loveridge
Brand Director, GamesRadar+

Sam Loveridge is the Brand Director and former Global Editor-in-Chief of GamesRadar. She joined the team in August 2017. Sam came to GamesRadar after working at TrustedReviews, Digital Spy, and Fandom, following the completion of an MA in Journalism. In her time, she's also had appearances on The Guardian, BBC, and more. Her experience has seen her cover console and PC games, along with gaming hardware, for a decade, and for GamesRadar, she's in charge of the site's overall direction, managing the team, and making sure it's the best it can be. Her gaming passions lie with weird simulation games, big open-world RPGs, and beautifully crafted indies. She plays across all platforms, and specializes in titles like Pokemon, Assassin's Creed, The Sims, and more. Basically, she loves all games that aren't sports or fighting titles! In her spare time, Sam likes to live like Stardew Valley by cooking and baking, growing vegetables, and enjoying life in the countryside.