The history (and secrets) of The Game Awards
Plus: free Patreon subscription giveaway!
Before we get to this week’s episode, I have three important updates!
Post Games mailbag returns: I’m collecting listener voice notes for my final mailbag episode of 2025. I’d love questions reflecting on 2025 or looking forward to 2026. But you’re welcome to ask anything related to games! Here’s how to email me audio using a smartphone and any voice notes app.
1-Month Patreon Subscription Giveaway: Friend of the show and host of the wonderful gaming interview podcast Y-Button, Kyle Starr, along with the very generous Chad Vandewettering, purchased a batch of gift subscriptions and asked me to share them with listeners who could use a hand this holiday season. If you’re a student, out of work, overwhelmed by the colossal financial burden of life, or just rather save your cash going into a precarious 2026, shoot me a note at postgamesmailbag at gmail, and I’ll share a link to a free month of the show.
I’ll update this page when all gift subs have been claimed. Due to the way Patreon gift subs work, this offer is exclusive to first-time subscribers. A huge thank you to Kyle and Chad! And a big thank you to y’all for listening to this show!
The First Official Post Games Movie Screening: This Friday, I’ll be hosting a screening of Mortal Kombat (1995) at The Frida in Santa Ana, CA. I’ll have some rare Post Games shirts and hats on sale. I’d love to see you there, so if you come, please say hello!
Now let’s get to the episode!
Listen to this week’s episode
The Game Awards isn’t the Oscars. It’s not the Tonys. If we’re being generous, it shares the same pop cultural status as the modern MTV Music Video Awards. But even if the show is a bit embarrassing and largely serves as an advertisement for future games, it matters.
It matters to big game publishers and tiny developers alike. All nominees stand to not only get a healthy dose of public praise, but a burst of press and a spike in sales. Especially if they win.
With more games released in 2025 than in any other year, awareness is invaluable. The Game Awards claimed a 2024 audience of 154 million streams, which would mean more people watched it than the Super Bowl. Even if the audience is actually half that number, then The Game Awards remains one of the most widely seen annual broadcasts in the world.
So this week on Post Games, we take The Game Awards seriously. My guest is the only year-round Game Awards beat reporter and analyst, Polyon’s Oli Welsh.
Act 1: The history of The Game Awards
Act 2: How The Game Awards actually work
Patreon bonus: What The Game Awards got right… and very wrong
Act 3: The news of the week
On the Patreon - Only $5!!!
A brand new Patreon-exclusive episode that explains how a kid obsessed with collecting bugs and writing about video games imagined the biggest franchise on the planet: Pokémon
Bonus segment in this week’s episode: Game Awards expert Oli Welsh explains what over the years the show has gotten right… and very wrong
A video version of the episode — and of all episodes!
Early access to ad-free episodes
Five hour-long episodes of Video Game Journalism 101, including the new episode on storytelling
Free game of the week
This week in video game links
What else I’m enjoying
All of that and more for only $5 a month!
Act 1: The history of The Game Awards
How Geoff Keighley Became Gaming’s Master of Ceremonies (The Ringer)
Cybermania ’94 - The Ultimate Gamer Awards (Vincent Dawn)
The Dark History Behind The Game Awards (Burback)
Rewatching the 2004 Spike TV Video Game Awards, a true time capsule of gaming (Polygon)
Act 2: How The Game Awards actually work
The 40 best video games of 2024 (Polygon)
GotY Watch (Polygon)
Golden Joysticks voting stats signal an incoming Clair Obscur sweep at The Game Awards (Polygon)
Game of the Year: Which of the 2025 Game Awards nominees will win? (Polygon)
Mario Kart World was never gonna get Game of the Year love even if it was a masterpiece (Polygon)
Patreon bonus: What The Game Awards got right… and very wrong
Available at Patreon.com/PostGames
Act 3: News of the week
A PSA: Don’t play games out of obligation