Slime Rancher takes home the first Best Early Access Launch award at the Golden Joystick Awards 2022

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Monoki Park's sequel has impressed its devoted fanbase

Slime Rancher 2 has won the very first Golden Joystick Award for the Best Early Access Launch of the year. 

This is a brand new award for the show, and has been brought in to recognise how many excellent games have initially launched into Early Access in recent years. A studio's ability to craft a game using player feedback in Early Access can be invaluable, especially when it's handled correctly. 

Monomi Park has accomplished just that with its sequel Slime Rancher 2, which launched into Early Access in September this year. In just a few days, the game had sold over 300,000 copies and gained many positive early reviews - including our own Slime Rancher 2 review-in-progress. 

Monomi Park has also been very upfront about what it intends to add over the course of Slime Rancher 2's Early Access period, taking learnings from the Early Access launch of its original Slime Rancher game too no doubt.

  • Disney Dreamlight Valley
  • Slime Rancher 2 (Winner)
  • Dune: Spice Wars 
  • Core Keeper 
  • Vampire Survivors 
  • Gloomwood

Slime Rancher 2 continues the adventure of Beatrix LeBeau from the first game, but this time we find her on a mysterious new land called Rainbow Island. And oh boy, does it live up to its name - it's a beautiful area to explore, and it's very much a visual upgrade from the original. Plus, there are new Slimes to discover, including Cotton and Flutter Slimes. 

Discover the best games of 2022 at the best prices by checking out the Golden Joystick Awards Steam sale page

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.