The Good Place, The Old Guard, and Hades all won Hugo Awards

Last night, at DisCon III in Washington D.C. (as part of the annual World Science Fiction Convention), the winners of the 2021 Hugo Awards were announced, and for the first time ever, one of them went to a video game: Supergiant’s Hades, a so-called “rogue-lite” game about the prince of the underworld living (and dying) through multiple attempts to escape hell. The game is excellent, featuring a story inspired by Greek mythology and gameplay that’s open-ended enough to let you (sometimes) avoid death altogether, and now Hades has officially made Hugos history.

Supergiant creative director Greg Kasavin released a statement on social media about winning the award:

The Best Video Game category was new this year, introduced as a response to ongoing requests for it to be included. Kotaku points out that the category is just a one-off thing for now, with no confirmation about whether or not it will be given out next year or at future World Science Fiction Conventions, but a generally prestigious award for sci-fi/fantasy literature going to video games is a nice nod to what is still a relatively new art form. (Though there are awards for podcasts and fanzines at the Hugos, so it’s not like video games are the only new-ish thing.)

Also at the Hugos, writer Greg Rucka and director Gina Prince-Bythewood’s The Old Guard won for Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form, and Mike Schur’s series finale of The Good Place (“Whenever You’re Ready”) won for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form. (Yes, the Good Place finale aired in 2020, even though it feels like a decade ago.) The rest of the winners are below.

Hugo Award winners 2021

Best Novel: Network Effect

Best Novella: The Empress Of Salt And Fortune

Best Novelette: Two Truths And A Lie

Best Short Story: Metal Like Blood In The Dark

Best Series: The Murderbot Diaries

Best Related Work: Beowulf: A New Translation

Best Graphic Story Or Comic: Parable Of The Sower

Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form: The Old Guard

Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form: “Whenever You’re Ready,” The Good Place

Best Editor, Short Form: Ellen Datlow

Best Editor, Long Form: Diana M. Pho

Best Professional Artist: Rovina Cai

Best Semiprozine: FIYAH Magazine Of Black Speculative Fiction

Best Fanzine: nerds of a feather, flock together

Best Fancast: The Coode Street Podcast

Best Fan Writer: Elsa Sjunneson

Best Fan Artist: Sara Felix

Best Video Game: Hades

Lodestar Award For Best Young Adult Book (not technically a Hugo): A Wizard’s Guide To Defensive Baking

Astounding Award For The Best New Writer (also not a Hugo): Emily Tesh