Alright I got the GOTY, I'll tell you what the GOTY is. It's
Alex Kierkegaard's Ultimate Edition. Hear me out.
In 2020 it was
Alex Kierkegaard's Battlegrounds because that's when my world/mega-campaign was launched. Ultimate Edition was launched alongside it, but none of its revolutionary mechanics were in yet. None of them saw play in 2020 or 2021, because they were still under development. Not even alpha, it was pre-alpha, I was still figuring things out, and frequently replacing or even entirely ditching mechanics.
And then earlier this year a key component of the system, the seduction mechanics, were added and used to great effect:
dndbattlegrounds.net Omnia Sandpoint Concert
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNSADfcMkHYNow shock therapy has a girlfriend, and eventually potentially a wife and kids to establish and continue his lineage in the Battlegrounds.
Moreover, before the end of the year we will have run multiple Pathfinder Scenarios with the new
Ultimate Organized Play mechanics that will allow all players in the world to come to the aid of (or hinder) all others, finally bringing true multiparty mechanics to D&D.
And yeah, I think that's a development more worthy of celebration than rolling on the floor for 30 hours, call me weird, but that's just me. Your mileage may vary.
And finally, if you think a rule system shouldn't be celebrated as a "game", the entire TTRPG community will vehemently disagree with that, and their community has twice the IQ of yours (that's why you roll on the floor for 30 hours and they don't), so. I consider the matter settled.
My game is 2022 Game of the Year.
Congratulations to me! I deserved it! I'd like to thank my parents for raising me, my girlfriend for believing in me, and my penis for being so big and making me so ambitious.
Hooray for Alex Kierkegaard's Ultimate Edition!
P.S. I and my Cult Games studio are in the running for next year too with
Alex Kierkegaard's West Marches, launching mid-January. Latest teaser can be seen here:
Third Teaser | Alex Kierkegaard's West Marches (2023)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_9rZIzZs28