The Game Awards will stream live from LA, London and Tokyo in December

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With a new award for innovation in accessibility.

(Image credit: The Game Awards)

The Game Awards is returning this year in a slightly different format, with the show being streamed live from three different locations around the world. LA, London and Tokyo will host the awards in empty studios, which will air on 45 different platforms. 

Geoff Keighley, who spent the summer trying to become a human E3, told Variety that he was always going to do Game Awards this year, even if it meant he had to present it in his home. That proved to be unnecessary, and this year's event is a large-scale affair.

Apparently he's taken inspiration from Death Stranding and his bud Hideo Kojima. The Game Awards is mostly a vehicle for trailers and announcements, but like Sam Bridges' journey across America, Keighley reckons it could reconnect people, but on a global scale. They'll have to be some pretty amazing trailers. 

Interestingly, Keighley also discussed his desire for the show to highlight the challenges facing the industry. The coronavirus has obviously had a big impact, but so have the revelations about the inappropriate and abusive behaviour of many members of the industry.

“How do you be aware of that and reflect that in the show in the right way? I feel as a show, we have an obligation," he said. "We have so many people watching the show. It’s like, what’s the voice of the show, and how do we sort of represent the industry accurately and do some good?”

Last year, The Game Awards peaked at 7.5 million concurrent viewers, so it's a great platform to shine a spotlight on issues with the culture and topics beyond the games themselves.

The show will take place on December 10, so there will still be a while before we start getting clues about what's going to be featured. As always, there will be reveals, world premieres, musical performances and, of course, the awards themselves. This year will also see the addition of a new award for innovation in accessibility, recognising the work that's been done to help more people get into gaming through new features and technology. 

Fraser Brown
Fraser Brown
Online Editor

Fraser is the UK online editor and has actually met The Internet in person. With over a decade of experience, he's been around the block a few times, serving as a freelancer, news editor and prolific reviewer. Strategy games have been a 30-year-long obsession, from tiny RTSs to sprawling political sims, and he never turns down the chance to rave about Total War or Crusader Kings. He's also been known to set up shop in the latest MMO and likes to wind down with an endlessly deep, systemic RPG. These days, when he's not editing, he can usually be found writing features that are 1,000 words too long or talking about his dog.