There’s a corruption contention rocking The Game Awards, and it’s about...Genshin Impact? Apparently, determination are a batch of Sonic Frontiers fans and TGA fans who deliberation the gacha game’s ascent successful the Players’ Voice grant class has been suspicious, and they’re loud astir their displeasure. Things got truthful heated that TGA big Geoff Keighley addressed bribery and botting accusations successful today’s Reddit AMA.

Genshin Impact has a premium currency called primogems, which is utilized to rotation for constricted clip gacha characters. Primogems are distributed sparingly compared to different gacha games, truthful the assemblage likes to gag that Genshin players volition bash thing for them.

You astir apt spot wherever I’m going with this. Rather than integrated popularity and interest, there’s been speculation that Genshin players are alternatively motivated by primogems. Last year, Genshin Impact won the “Best Mobile Game” grant astatine TGA. After the show, HoYoverse gave 10 gacha rolls to each of its players. Kotaku reached retired to HoYoverse to inquire whether oregon not it plans to administer escaped primogems aft TGA this twelvemonth but did not person a effect by the clip of publication.

One redditor went connected Keighley’s Reddit AMA to inquire what helium was going to bash astir “bribery” and “botting” successful the player’s prime awards.

“I deliberation it’s instrumentality bases activating to enactment a game, oregon a crippled promoting its information to its instrumentality base,” Keighley wrote. “This is portion of the crushed we don’t person 100 percent instrumentality voting successful the main categories.” However, helium promised that TGA would beryllium “looking into this now.”

It’s been absorbing to spot which games players judge should triumph implicit Genshin. Some were upset that it mightiness triumph implicit God of War Ragnarök oregon Sonic Frontiers. God of War, I understand. The blockbuster action-adventure crippled was beloved by critics crossed the board. On the different hand, critics panned Sonic for being tedious. Maybe it’s much close to accidental that some Sonic and Genshin are benefitting from having a precocious illustration IP. Except 1 bid is considered much institutionally morganatic than the other.

To those who are genuinely upset astir the anticipation of HoYoverse utilizing its fanbase to propulsion Genshin to the top: You cognize that The Game Awards is simply a selling engine, right? I committedness you that this is not a corruption ungraded connected par with the Panama Papers oregon Watergate. Personally, I similar to trust connected friends oregon certain video crippled bloggers to archer maine what games are good.

As of writing, Sonic Frontiers is astatine the apical of the Players’ Voice class with 17 percent of the vote.