FF16's Ben Starr will host the 42nd Golden Joystick Awards this November

Since the dawn of time, mankind has asked itself the question: What are the year's best videogames according to a wide-ranging yet sober and precise array of categories? We're finally going to get our answer.

Actually, we're going to get it for the 42nd time, because the Golden Joysticks will be back this November 21, live from London. What's more, the show has revealed its host. None other than Ben Starr (FF16's Clive, dater of summons) will be on stage to guide us through proceedings at this year's event, which also makes it a great opportunity to generate exciting new memes of his face.

If you somehow missed voting for the awards opening at the start of this month, then good news: You can still make your voice heard. You can still get your votes in until Friday, November 1. If you want to put down a selection for the Ultimate Game of the Year—probably the most important vote you'll cast in 2024—then you'll be able to do that between November 4 and November 8. 8.4 million have already been cast, after all. You'd better get in there and fight for what's right if you haven't already.

This one's gonna be a banger. Alongside Ben Starr, the event will have guest presenters like Alex McKenna (Sadie from RDR2), Alix Wilton Regan (Joanna Dark from Perfect Dark), Neil Newbon (your beloved Baldur's Gate 3 vampire boy, Astarion) and Patricia Summersett (Princess Zelda from, uh, Zelda). Plus, Monika Janowska from CDPR and actor, game developer and producer Abubakar Salim will pop their heads in (AC: Origins' Bayek and bona fide House of the Dragon telly star).

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.