An Interview With Geoff Keighley About The Game Awards 2021 And The Game He’d Love To See Announced

Last year’s The Game AwardsThe show attracted the largest audience ever. The audience grew by more than 84% year-over-year, to the tune an astonishing 83,000,000 livestream views. The Game Awards has become one of the video game industry’s biggest events. But we aren’t just tuning in to find out which title will be crowned Game of the Year; we are also there for the World Premieres, which shine the spotlight on new games we’ll be playing in the years ahead. For some publishers, the biggest surprise is kept for last. The Game Awards, a show that almost didn’t exist.

For a decade, Keighley was the producer and host of Spike TV’s Video Game Awards, a show that started strong in the early 2000s, but fizzled out in 2013 due to poor viewership numbers and criticism over the show’s format. For the 2014 show, Spike wasn’t going to broadcast it on TV, opting instead to stream it online. Keighley didn’t agree with Spike’s direction and dropped out of the presentation. For unknown reasons on top of Keighley’s departure, Spike canceled that year’s event in the eleventh hour. That didn’t stop Keighley from having an awards show that year. To fund the new program, he worked with publishers. The Game Awards. Given the diminishing returns of Spike’s show, he didn’t know if this new program would draw people in. That year’s livestream netted nearly two million views – a respectable number – but the true victory was the format and tone of the show. It was what people wanted. Every year after, The Game Awards’ viewership has doubled and is now one of the highest viewed programs of any entertainment medium.

Sean Murray is honoured for No Man’s Sky’s win last year as Best Ongoing Gaming.

In October, I caught up with Keighley as he was finalizing plans for this year’s show. Again, he fulfills the dual roles of host and producer. His openness about the trials and triumphs has been a hallmark of his career. The Game AwardsHe is always relaxed and happy, regardless of how near the airing date. He says he’s had too many World Premiere revelations this year and is afraid of losing publishers.

The Game AwardsIn just one year, the number of viewers grew by an incredible 45 million to 80 million. We were in shelters during the Covid-19 Pandemic. Can you tell us how that could be related to our growth?
I’m still amazed we were able to do the show last year. This happened just as the second lockdown was about to begin. In Los Angeles we were there, but in the days before the show began, it was not clear what would happen. To make sure I could broadcast from my home, we had a satellite truck outside our house. This set was something we built every day. We were anxious. [the show]If the government were to close down the city, the order would be canceled. [The pandemic]It was almost daily that it got worse as the days passed. I didn’t believe the show was happening until the day before. I was like, “I guess we’re really going to get a chance to do it.”

It was very difficult to put it all together, do the Zoom thing and then figure out how we could safely do this with our team and with all of the testing. Just getting to see the final result was what won us the victory. I was kind of depressed for months thinking that we weren’t going to be able to do it. It was amazing to see it grow so quickly. It was truly heartwarming to see it flourish.

But there are always two sides. You can succeed on either side, but you will be under more pressure this year. How can we continue growing? The audience numbers are not something we think about. We don’t sit around and plot a strategy to get another 10 million viewers. The community is our priority.

Safety concerns aside, live events continue to be disrupted by the pandemic. At the moment, your intention is to go back to an in-person setting with an audience. Do you feel it is business as usual or do you plan to get the satellite truck back in service?
Our vaccines make this an important year. It took us a whole year to learn the processes. We decided pretty early that we’re going to go back to the Microsoft Theater, and we’re going to build our set and have our orchestra there. You have to consider all the costs involved, including testing, costing, and other details. We’re planning to do a full-scale show at the theater. We will perform our largest show yet. It’s our biggest production. We’re going full tilt with the full experience, but keeping safety in mind. In case of an emergency or another variation, contingency plans are in place. Is it possible to change direction and do what we want?

We’re doing a traditional show with some capacity restrictions on the audience and some other requirements. We need to know if anyone is comfortable travelling internationally. This is something we are uncertain about. That’s everyone’s personal decision. I’m excited to be back in a venue. Many of these game companies love the idea that it’s possible to finally do something with people in real life. I’m honored that we’re sort of the first event that’s going to do something with people gathering in a safe and controlled way.

Nolan North is the recipient of the Award for Best Multiplayer 2020

Given last year’s success, I have a feeling every publisher and developer is jumping at the chance to be a part of the show.
The majority of people want to take part in the show. While some people are physically present, many want to be a part of the show’s content. The best thing about last year was that, in the midst of a pandemic epidemic, all of these developers were capable of creating amazing trailers, and giving us material to add to the show. There are more things this year that will be revealed at the show than ever. We’re in a nice position that people want to be a part of the show. And you know, it’s an award show, but increasingly, I think more we want to use it as a vehicle to kind of share news on games. So that’s this sort of internal balance that we’re striking.

The other thing that is in the background is there’s a lot of these streaming shows and movies based on games. We’re trying to figure out how to navigate some of that, like The Witcher and the Cuphead shows, as well as the Uncharted movie. This is the first year we’re trying to navigate how to include some of that stuff. The games are the basis of them, but not games.

Your reveals are greater than ever. How can they be expected to deliver?
We try to balance new games with updates for games people care about. Live-service games can also drop content on the night of the event. We have lots of exciting stuff this year that we are able to announce for the first-time at the show. I feel like next generation has started but it hasn’t really in a way. And I don’t mean that to disparage any existing games, but there’s [new stuff]The pipe will eventually be opened by third-party and first-party vendors. It is limited by how much content can come out of current consoles. It is believed that the jets will turn on fully in 2022. We’ll have a couple things in our show that I think are going to be truly next-gen. These are experiences that I believe will inspire people to think about the future of games and what it holds. And I’m not just saying just first-party games. There are technical showpieces that I’m excited about. We also balance big developers with smaller franchises, while small teams do really cool things. It’s a constantly moving target. I’ve said this before, but some things drop out the week before the show, and there are also new things that show up on my doorstep a week before the show.

The story of In the Valley of the Gods is always a part of my life. I am currently in Campo Santo with Valve. I was notified by them two weeks in advance of the event. I’m like, “This is amazing. Where was this trailer three months ago?” People think [the show]Everything is well-planned out. It may be true at times, but sometimes things just shift. I feel pretty confident that we have a really good lineup that’s going to excite people. I’ve also learned that you have to manage expectations because everyone has a different game in their mind’s eye.

The next year promises to be an exciting one in terms of games. There’s so much content coming out.

In 2020, the show needed to accommodate for ongoing pandemic. Innersloth wins Best Multiplayer Game at a Remote Location

The big puzzle of figuring out where all the secrets go is quite difficult. Did you figure out the last and first reveal? There always seems to be at least two big one.
Good question. The last one, I believe I know. It is really awesome. The first, however, is something I believe I do know. It might change a bit. Interesting things happen when you look at the positioning of items in the show. Some companies want their show to focus on a specific location. I don’t make these calls until about one month prior to the show, when all of the information is in. It is possible that something will come up if I agree to something. It’s fluid. We definitely have a good sense of the stuff that’s early and late in the show. And then there’s a bunch of cool stuff in the middle of it as well. We want to surprise people with stuff they aren’t expecting.

Do you have any awards that are new this year
We don’t have any new awards. We will have the accessibility award back in this year. We’ve been toying with a couple categories that I think we’ll add in the future. We’re not quite there yet, though. With all the streaming movies and comic books coming out, I believe we will eventually have an award for best adaptation. I think there’s something interesting there. There’s just not enough yet. I think in the next couple of years, that’ll be something. And we’re also thinking a little bit about user-generated content being made in games like Fortnite, Core, and Roblox. Again, I don’t think we’re quite there yet, but that’s one that I think is on the radar for the future. This year, it’s pretty much the same.

Geoff Keighley was the executive producer and host for The Game Awards from its inception in 2014.

You mentioned you’re building the biggest set yet. I can’t even wrap my brain around what it could be. It already has giant statues and an orchestra. Why is this space important?
Each year we keep on adding. We have a really cool video floor that we’re doing that’s kind of a video screen. It’s really interesting. We haven’t revealed some of the musical guests, but we’ve got amazing, huge names doing that. Every year I think we’re slowly building this show into what I hope is the biggest award show in entertainment, which just happens to be about games. We’re cautious this year obviously because of Covid, but that has not stopped us. I think you’ll see it’s definitely our most ambitious set. We’re upping the scale and scope. It’s a little bit of a dangerous game to play, but yeah, we want to keep building, create more of a spectacle.

What is the limit of your capacity?
It will number in the thousands, but it’s not going to be a full house. We’re just trying to control the numbers a little bit.

In recent years, Hollywood talent has been more involved. John David Washington (Tenet), presented the Best Narrative category last year.

It is clear that many are concerned about the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. There are not enough games made specifically for them. How do you feel about next-gen gaming?
I mentioned earlier that I think next-gen has started, but we haven’t really seen a ton of showcases, right? Forza Horizon 5 would be my favorite. Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is a cool showcase, and I love the DualSense – that controller just gives people so much opportunity to think of where games are going to go. We haven’t seen a lot of new next-gen IP yet. This is most evident in Returnal.

These systems are so powerful, and there’s so much opportunity there, but this has been a difficult year for developers to make these games while working from home. There has been a lot of delay. I have games that we were going to announce last year at The Game Awards, and we’re probably going to announce this year. The games have been delayed for at least one year. Some lost years in the development process. Many delays have affected the next-gen process and their content pipeline. Although it was a great year overall, I believe next year will be even better. My impression is that many people have bought these boxes and still play the old games. You’d think they look better. It’s a better quality of life. These systems have a lower attach rate, partly because they offer Game Pass, and also allow users to use their existing games like Fortnite, Warzone, or Fortnite. Even though people are buying the systems, they don’t have those true next-gen showcase titles to play. These titles are on the horizon. They are coming. In the middle of Covid, performance capture can be very hard. It takes a lot to create all of the story games we enjoy.

Of any game that hasn’t been announced, what is one game franchise that you want to see come back? Would you want to be a World Premiere for a game?
BioShock would be a great franchise to return. I’ve missed that franchise a lot. It’s a franchise that I think about infinite. That franchise is what I missed. A new BioShock game would make me giddy. I’m also a Valve fan, so anything Valve-related would be fun to see. Crash Bandicoot 4 is one of the most enjoyable games that I have played over the last year. This was an incredible game. I wouldn’t mind seeing some of those classic franchises come back in a new way, like a new Jak & Daxter.

The Game Awards will be held on December 9, live from Los Angeles’ Microsoft theater. The broadcast will be available worldwide and accessible via various streaming platforms like YouTube or Twitch.

Original publication: Issue 341 Game Informer.