Slime Rancher 2 has won the very first Golden Joystick Award for the Best Early Access Launch of the year.
This is a brand new award for the show, and has been brought in to recognise how many excellent games have initially launched into Early Access in recent years. A studio's ability to craft a game using player feedback in Early Access can be invaluable, especially when it's handled correctly.
Monomi Park has accomplished just that with its sequel Slime Rancher 2, which launched into Early Access in September this year. In just a few days, the game had sold over 300,000 copies and gained many positive early reviews - including our own Slime Rancher 2 review-in-progress.
Monomi Park has also been very upfront about what it intends to add over the course of Slime Rancher 2's Early Access period, taking learnings from the Early Access launch of its original Slime Rancher game too no doubt.
The full list of nominees for the Best Early Access Launch award was as follows:
- Disney Dreamlight Valley
- Slime Rancher 2 (Winner)
- Dune: Spice Wars
- Core Keeper
- Vampire Survivors
- Gloomwood
Slime Rancher 2 continues the adventure of Beatrix LeBeau from the first game, but this time we find her on a mysterious new land called Rainbow Island. And oh boy, does it live up to its name - it's a beautiful area to explore, and it's very much a visual upgrade from the original. Plus, there are new Slimes to discover, including Cotton and Flutter Slimes.
Discover the best games of 2022 at the best prices by checking out the Golden Joystick Awards Steam sale page
