Call of Duty: Modern Warfare takes the Golden Joystick Award for Best Esport Game

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
(Image credit: Activision)

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare has taken home the Best Esports Game trophy at this year's Golden Joystick Awards. 

Infinity Ward's return to the franchise that changed online gaming back in 2007 has been a hugely successful one, with players getting the chance to pit its multiplayer skills in fast-paced 2v2 mode Gunfight, as well as the usual fan favourites such as Domination or Headquarters. In a strong category, which also included Rainbow Six Siege and Fortnite, COD managed to get the dub. The full list of nominees are: 

  • Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege
  • League Of Legends
  • Valorant
  • Fortnite
  • NTT IndyCar Series iRacing
  • Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
  • FIFA 20
  • Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (winner)

Not only did the esport side of Call of Duty flourish this year, but Infinity Ward also introduced the battle royale mode Call of Duty: Warzone, which has seen tens of millions try out the free-to-play mode.  

In his Call of Duty: Modern Warfare multiplayer review, Ford James writes: "On the other end of the scale is Gunfight, a 2v2 one-life-per-round mode with tiny maps and nowhere to camp. This is Modern Warfare at its best; you spawn with the exact same loadout as your enemies, which switches every two rounds, and it's a race to win six rounds. Fast-paced, frantic fun in which you're fairly matched and with a co-operative teammate, callouts become essential. You don't heal during a round either, which means balancing aggression with cautious play is key." It's not hard to see how this mode struck a chord with the community. 

Be sure to check out the rest of the award show by visiting our how to watch the Golden Joystick Awards page. 

Ben Tyrer
Contributor

Ben Tyrer is a freelance games journalist with over ten years experience of writing about games. After graduating from Bournemouth University with a degree in multimedia journalism he's worked for Official PlayStation Magazine as a staff writer and games editor, as well as 12DOVE (hey, that's this website!) as a news editor. He's also contributed to Official Xbox Magazine, Edge, PC Gamer, GamesMaster, PC Games N, and more. His game of the year - no matter the year - is Rocket League.