The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt came out on top at The Game Awards yesterday, winning several categories - including the coveted Game of the Year award. The massive RPG faced stiff competition from the likes of Fallout 4, Metal Gear Solid 5, and Bloodborne, but judges decided that CD Projekt Red's game was worthy of the top prize.

The Witcher 3 also beat Fallout 4 and the excellent Pillars of Eternity to claim the Best RPG award. The success of the game, both critically and commercially, also helped its Polish creators win Developer of the Year. CD Projekt Red co-founder Marcin Iwinski said that he made the trek "all the way from Poland, where sex on unicorns is a common thing," referring to one of the game's famous sequences.

Metal Gear Solid 5 may not have received Game of the Year, but it did win the Best Action-Adventure Game category and Best Score or Soundtrack. Other winners from the night included Splatoon for best shooter, Her Story for best narrative, Rocket League for best independent game, and Mortal Kombat X for best fighting game.

The other big news from the The Game Awards was the absence of Metal Gear Solid mastermind Hideo Kojima. He was expected to appear at the LA show, but according to the night's host, Geoff Keighley, Kojima was prevented from attending by Metal Gear Solid publisher Konami.

"Mr. Kojima had every intention of being with us tonight," Keighley said. "But unfortunately, he was informed by a lawyer representing Konami just recently that he would not be allowed to travel to tonight's awards ceremony to accept any awards. He's still under an employment contract, it's disappointing, and it's inconceivable to me that an artist like Hideo would not be allowed to come here and celebrate with his peers and his fellow teammates."

It's been a turbulent year for Konami and Kojima, which began with the company removing his name and logo from MGSV promotional material. It does look like the designer is now finished with Konami, even though the studio still claims he's just on vacation.

Earlier this week, a Konami PR representative accepted trophies for Metal Gear Solid 5 in Kojima's place at the PlayStation Awards. At yesterday's Game Awards event, it was Kiefer Sutherland - who voiced the main character in the game - that accepted MGSV's prize for Best Action-Adventure.

Here's a full list of winners from the show:

Jury Voted

  • Game of the Year - The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
  • Developer of the Year - CD Projekt Red
  • Best Independent Game - Rocket League
  • Best Mobile/Handheld Game - Lara Croft Go
  • Best Narrative - Her Story
  • Best Score/Best Soundtrack - Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain
  • Best Performance - Viva Seifert (Her Story)
  • Games for Impact - Life is Strange
  • Best Shooter - Splatoon
  • Best Action Adventure - Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain
  • Best Role Playing Game - The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
  • Best Fighting Game - Mortal Kombat X
  • Best Family Game - Super Mario Maker
  • Best Sports/Racing Game - Rocket League
  • Best Multiplayer - Splatoon
  • Best Art Direction - Ori and the Blind Forest

Fan Voted

  • Esports Game of the Year - Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
  • Best Fan Creation - Portal Stories: Mel
  • Trending Gamer - Greg Miller
  • Esports Team of the Year - Optic Gaming
  • Esports Player of the Year - Kenny "kennyS" Schrub
  • Most Anticipated Game - No Man's Sky