The Vooks Awards 2024 – The Best of Switch, Indies, the big news, and surprises of the year

The end of another year is upon us, and that means it’s time to once again look back at what we’ve played in this very different year and award the best of the best. Like our awards last year, we’ve got the standard awards you all expect; you even voted in them, but also some awards that the team discussed and decided to award, instead of just voting blindly.

All in one article, not spread across weeks or interspersed with celebrity cameos, are winners, runners-up, and readers’ choice awards.

And our choice for Game of The Year is…

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom (Nintendo)

We know what you’re thinking: of course, they were going to pick The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom—it’s a Nintendo game. However, our team is actually quite small, and Echoes of Wisdom won by just a single vote. The runners-up ended in a three-way tie, all narrowly behind Zelda. This year’s voting showcased a remarkably diverse range of choices, which highlights what a strong year the Switch had, even this far into its lifespan.

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom wasn’t just notable for making Zelda the main protagonist for the first time in the series; it did something truly unique with her character. Instead of wielding a sword, Zelda relies on an impressively long list of items to traverse Hyrule, battle enemies, and—for once—rescue Link. 

In our review Ollie said “The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is the Zelda game I’ve always wanted, putting Hyrule’s princess into the thick of it for the first time and coming up with incredible results. The gameplay loop is phenomenal, the story is lovely, and with any luck this will be the first of many adventures for the Zelda series’ leading lady.”

Runners up: Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, Super Mario Party Jamboree, and Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective.
Reader’s Choice: The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom

Indie Game of the Year – Balatro

If you haven’t played Balatro yet, you might just be in the minority. Even if you haven’t played it, you’ve probably at least heard about it. No one can stop talking about it—and for good reason. It’s incredibly addictive, hitting all the right notes in your brain to keep you hooked, like those mobile games with in-app purchases—but without any of the nonsense. The gameplay loop is both fun and engaging, and there’s a reason it’s been the talk of the gaming world this year: it’s simply the best.

It was a tough category this year, while our voting has Balatro on top by a wide margin, the runners up were all different other games all split evenly.

Runners up: Steamworld Heist, Thank Goodness You’re Here, Darkest Dungeon II, Pepper Grinder
Reader’s Choice: Balatro

Aussie Indie of the Year – The Plucky Squire

As the person who reviewed this one, I wouldn’t have guessed a couple of weeks ago that it would come close to winning. When The Plucky Squire first launched and was reviewed, it felt a bit overbearing. However, a recent patch has significantly toned things down and greatly improved the overall experience. On top of that, the game’s visuals have been absolutely stunning all the way through, thanks to James Turner’s terrific art style.

The voting was fiercely competitive, with everything else splitting the votes evenly. Truly a quality year for games made in Australia, whether they’re on the Switch or not.

Runners up: Arco, The Godfeather: A Mafia Pigeon Saga
Reader’s Choice: Wild Bastards, 8-Bit Adventures 2

Non-Nintendo Game of the Year – Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle defied a lot of people’s expectations, but we always thought those expectations were set a little low – it is a game by MachineGames, then again it is in first-person so how will you know you’re Indy? Oh, the terrific performance from Troy Baker, of course. Problems solve, then some.

We didn’t review the game because it’s not on the Switch, obviously, but Luke did for his own website, Maxi-Geek, and said “Going into Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, I knew I would have a good time with the game, as someone who has played every Indiana Jones game release, not counting weird DVD games, I would have liked it regardless. But not only did this exceed the expectations I had, it did so in a way that proves the pedigree of the developer and their love of the source material.” Give it a read.

We can’t wait to play this one again when it drops on the Nintendo Switch successor – we don’t actually know if it will come to that, but by writing it down, we can put it in our dream journal.

Runners up: Dragons Dogma 2
Reader’s Choice: Astrobot

Most anticipated for 2025 – The Switch 2

Was it ever going to be anything else? The successor to the Nintendo Switch is on its way, and we’ll know more about it very soon—or at least before March 30, 2025. While that might not feel “soon” to us, Nintendo is probably already sweating bullets over it.

It’s not just about releasing something new, though. We’re all eager for the next generation of games from Nintendo and to see what they’ll do with a system that reportedly has significantly more power—and likely some kind of new gimmick.

This year saw an incredible lineup of games, but we’re already noticing Nintendo missing out on newly announced third-party titles. Without a new console, we might never see those games on their platform. Additionally, 2024 was heavy on remakes and remasters. We’re excited to find out what Nintendo’s A-teams have been working on behind the scenes and truly for something new. Not long now.

Biggest Surprise of the Year – Alarmo

New Nintendo hardware in 2024? Yep, there was—though it wasn’t what anyone was expecting. While Nintendo fans were eagerly refreshing for news about the Switch successor, Nintendo dropped Nintendo Sound Clock: Alarmo. Sometimes we forget that Nintendo has a history of creating quirky, unexpected items like this. Interestingly, this particular product also harks back to the past.

Remember when, ten years ago, then-Nintendo president Satoru Iwata announced during an investor presentation that the company would focus on “quality of life through entertainment” products for the next decade?

For years, nothing came of it—until earlier this. Enter the interactive Alarmo clock. With its unique purchasing process and playful design, it delivers everything we’ve come to expect from a Nintendo product: charm, innovation, and just a bit of “huh”.

Biggest News Moment of the Year – Emio

This year brought plenty of groundbreaking news in the gaming industry—much of it sad and disappointing.

While Nintendo made headlines with a few key announcements—such as the March 2025 deadline and confirmation of backward compatibility for the Switch successor—there wasn’t much groundbreaking news on the new console front.

However, Nintendo did something different this year. Instead of revealing major news in a traditional Nintendo Direct, they surprised everyone with a social media post hinting at something entirely unexpected. Enter the #WhoIsEmio marketing campaign for Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective.

Although the mystery didn’t last long, it marked a notable change in Nintendo’s approach to marketing. This campaign revived a game series that hadn’t seen a new installment in 36 years. Yoshio Sakamoto finally had the chance to create a mature-rated Famicom Detective game. In a year when the industry was fixated on the “next big thing,” Nintendo reminded us of their unique ability to surprise, taking a risk on a project that likely wouldn’t have been greenlit if the Switch weren’t nearing the end of its lifecycle.

Thanks to everyone who voted this year, 2025 is gonna be massive.