oh hai awards. Maybe I should do predictions. Maybe I should do awards myself, but considering one of my GotY contenders in January stabbed me in the kidneys in October and ran off laughing about how it was glad I was suffering, I think for now I'm just gonna say "Romancing SaGa 3 is still a SaGa game and Bloodstained is good but flawed, Later Alligator is adorable".

Rita the Cat's Reward For Biggest Hairball: Gonna go with Changed or Shovel Knight, here; those are the two that had the added onus of "I REALLY WANT TO BEAT THIS YOU GUYS", not because of how long they'd sat or how hard they were, but how much you wanted to belong, if that makes sense. Of those two, I'd wager Sword guess: Changed

Bulbasaurs Are Like Onions, They're Shrek: The Way is absolutely the one that actually made you Feel Things in a tangible "oh no i'm having emotions help" way; while Adventures In Anxiety and Arcade Spirits were relatable as hell, it never started raining indoors for you as far as I can tell. Sword guess: The Way Remastered

Professor Layton Award For Holographic Large Dog: Chocolate Castle is the most Layton-esque of these because why do people fetishize Klotski so much. That said, I get the feeling that the biggest puzzle is a metapuzzle and even referencing ZZT will be enough to get you nostalgic about Flimsy. Sword guess: Farnham Fables E4

Chimaera Wing Award for Thing Celine Will Most Hate To See Remade: There's no contest here. Even before you officially cleared it, there was this aura of "this is literally my entire childhood" around it that was damn near impermeable. Sword guess: Family Dog

Padded Bra Award for Fluffy Bosoms: The Little Cup isn't so much about length for you, it's what the developer does with the tiny amount they use. Things that pack a LOT in their tiny bites. I almost gave this to Anxiety but I feel like you'd be more likely to lean into the other. Sword guess: The Raccoon Who Lost Their Shape

Pizza Heart, the Most Awkward Holiday Product Tie-In: On one hand, we have all these games made with love and dedication that gave you warm fuzzies, on the other hand we have a literal (albeit dysfunctional) family keeping a decades old MMO afloat with the power of stubbornness, coding, and dragon dicks. And you've been taken into that thong. Err, throng. Sword guess: Istaria

Did I Mention I Am Furry Today: You want to fuck Puro the most. Sword guess: Changed

Lemonade Turkey is an Inspired Yet Horrifying Flavor Combination: I'm still not sure if you go for visual quality or overall aesthetic mouthfeel here. If it's the former, Moss wins by a landslide. Otherwise, it's Changed. Sword guess: coinflip between Moss and Changed

Thanks, Satan Award For Game Most Likely To Show Up In Wreck-It Ralph: Family Dog has no replay value. You'll go back to it like I go back to Return of the Obra Dinn or Super Mario World: to play it for an afternoon, go "man, that was nice, I love that game", and then summarily move on with the rest of life. Farnham Fables E4 made even you go "umm", which is a huge red flag for going back to it. I feel like the most obvious option is the right one, here: Sword guess: Arcade Spirits

1-Ups Are Not The Best Euphemism For Impregnation, Mario Fandom: No question. If you ever get a VR setup, you will immediately be gunning for Sword guess: Moss

Will The Real Stan Stanman Please Stan Up: While Arcade Spirits applies incredibly heavily to us in clan, its message dilutes slowly but steadily the further away you get from The Woodling Emotional Core. Adventures With Anxiety, on the other hand, may not hit the epicenter quite as hard, but its ripples can be felt much, much farther. Sword guess: Adventures With Anxiety

X to the Y to the ZZT wait no I fucked up: If you want Xyzzy to pick her favorite game for this year, City of Heroes. But this isn't about Xyzzy, this is about what Xyzzy wants to pick for your best game of the year, so. Sword guess: Istaria

Help I've Got Morning Woodlings: You want to fuck Puro the most. Sword guess: Changed