Golden Lance Best Audio Design
Immersion comes in many forms. These days, it is all too common to have Discord or group chat, or even a podcast playing in the background while gaming. However, some games demand you give them your full attention, not just with your hands or your eyes, but with your ears.
They call for you to cast aside the distractions and obligations of the world and become fully immersed in the experience of the game. Great sound design is everything, from the footsteps to the trigger pulls and everything in between. With that said, here are the winners of Lords of Gaming’s 2025 Golden Lance Award for Best Sound Design.
South of Midnight – Best Audio Design
What a year for Compulsion. Obviously, they won some awards. They didn’t win Best Soundtrack, but they got it for Best Impact. This is a story that touched on some darker issues in the Deep South. You needed a soundtrack and phenomenal sound design to recreate that southern melancholy.
If it wasn’t for Expedition 33, it would have been my number one choice for best Audio Design, or at least up there with BF 6 and Arc Raiders.
Every time Hazel jumps in the game, you hear that slight Hazel voice whisper; the environmental audio is on another level. Everything about South of Midnight screams music, art, and culture. And they put a lot of nuance in the sound and the elephant in the room, one of the greatest soundtracks in gaming. Olivier Deriviere takes audio design to another level.
He takes audio design and makes it into a character in the game. The songs speak for themselves, with a highlight being Two Toe Tom’s theme. The soundtrack is composed of several musical genres, ranging from folk, southern blues, and more.
Shout out to Altama Ha’s track of a mother looking for her child in the spiritual sense. Power and riveting sound design. Christopher Fox and his team made a true tale of the South by nailing its sound.
Runner-Up – Donkey Kong Bananza
Donkey Kong Bananza‘s audio design elevates every punch, kick, and smash into a symphony of satisfying destruction that never gets old. Nintendo EPD’s meticulous attention to detail shines through in how different terrain types—whether running across sandy beaches, climbing up thick vines, or pummeling through hard stone—each produce distinct, carefully crafted sound effects that demonstrate the care poured into every inch of the experience.
From the bassy boom of an exploding rock to the satisfying crack of breaking Banandium Gems to the delightful jingles that accompany item pickups and Pauline’s soaring vocal performances echoing through caverns, the game creates a cohesive soundscape that leaves you grinning from ear to ear with every moment of interaction. For crafting an audio experience that makes destruction feel fun, varied, and endlessly satisfying, Donkey Kong Bananza earns its place as runner-up for the Golden Lance Award for Best Audio Design of the Year.
