Gayming Awards 2026 Reveal Nominees and Hosts Erika Ishii and Dawn

The official nominees for the upcoming Gayming Awards 2026 have been revealed. The queer-centric event will be hosted by award-winning voice actor Erika Ishii and drag artist Dawn (RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 16). Public voting is now open!

The upcoming event will recognize gaming content across 14 categories. Take note that the award ceremony will be broadcast worldwide exclusively on World of Wonder’s WOW Present Plus on Monday, June 8, 2026.

Erika Ishii (they/them) won the LGBTQ+ Voice Actor of the Year trophy during last year’s award show. “Winning LGBTQ+ Voice Actor of the Year last year was such an honor, and this year I’m grateful to return to celebrate our Gaymer community as a host alongside the brilliantly talented Dawn,” shared Ishii.

Ishii’s work includes Ghost of Yōtei, Apex Legends, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Critical Role, and Dropout’s Game Changer and Dimension 20.

As RuPaul’s Drag Race season 16 alum Dawn (she/her), the talented drag queen describes herself as a “self-professed nerd” who incorporates woodland-creature fantasy elements into her looks.

“I have spent my entire life obsessed with gaming and high fantasy, so getting to host this show is a massive full-circle moment for me. I’m just excited to bring some Brooklyn chaos to the stage and see what kind of trouble Erika and I can get into!” said Dawn.

A new category for the Gayming Awards this year is the Creator Honors (sponsored by Logitech G), looking to “celebrate and uplift LGBTQ+ gaming content creators of all levels and feature over 20 nominees across the categories.”

Public voting is open for 10 of the 14 categories. You can visit gaymingawards.com to have your say. Do remember that voting will close at midnight (EST) on April 3rd, 2026.

Most categories will have a panel of judges, leading to a shared voting control of 50%-50% between the judges and the public.

Here’s a list of some of the nominees for the Gayming Awards 2026!

Game of the Year

• Ball x Pit – Kenny Sun / Devolver Digital
• Blue Prince – Dogubomb / Raw Fury
• Ghost of Yōtei – Sucker Punch Productions / Sony Interactive Entertainment
• Hades II – Supergiant Games
• Hollow Knight: Silksong – Team Cherry
• South of Midnight – Compulsion Games / Xbox Game Studios

Gayming Magazine Fan Favorite Award

• Date Everything! – Sassy Chap Games / Team17
• Dead by Daylight: Steady Pulse – Behaviour Interactive
• Hades II – Supergiant Games
• Hollow Knight: Silksong – Team Cherry
• Kingdom Come: Deliverance II – Warhorse Studios / Deep Silver
• Lost Records: Bloom & Rage – DON’T NOD

Best LGBTQ+ Character Award

• Sir Hans Capon, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
• Eddie & Volt, Date Everything!
• Kat Mikaelsen, Lost Record Bloom & Rage
• Melinoë, Hades II
• Orela Rose, Dead by Daylight
• Samar, Spirit Swap

Best LGBTQ+ Indie Game Award – sponsored by Dead by Daylight

• Date Everything! – Sassy Chap Games / Team17
• Monster Prom 4: Monster Con – Beautiful Glitch
• Quantum Witch – NikkiJay
• Spirit Swap – Soft Not Weak LLC
• Tales of Seikyu – ACE Entertainment / Fireshine Games
• The Beekeepers Picnic – Wonder Room Games

Community Impact Award

• Boston Gaymers
• Gaymers iNC
• Gaymer Nights
• NYC Gaymers
• Qweerty Gamers
• SlayStation

LGBTQ+ Voice Actor of the Year Award

• Allegra Clark
• Jay Taylor
• Jennifer English
• Michael Lorz
• Robyn Holdaway
• Tobias Weatherburn

Queer Geek Entertainment of the Year Award – sponsored by Q Care Plus

• Dimension 20: Dungeons & Drag Queens, Season 2 – Dropout
• Harley Quinn: Season 5 – DC
• Hazbin Hotel: Season 2 – Amazon
• Stranger Things: Season 5 – Netflix
• The Mighty Nein – Amazon MGM Studios, Critical Role & Titmouse
• The Last of Us: Season 2 – HBO

LGBTQ+ Content Creator of the Year Award

• ArtemirGaming
• Blizz
• BoyeFran
• GhCoffee
• Hyjules
• KoiJay
• Phaun
• Ravynia

LGBTQ+ Breakout Creator of the Year Award

• Devoglaer
• HaiMoonX
• KyaColosseum
• OllieDreamer
• PhilipCroft
• Retrowolve
• TheFunkoBeard
• WillJinkies

Which games and content creators are you most excited about to win at the Gayming Awards 2026?

Let us know.

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(via Press Release)

Author: Farid-ul-Haq

Farid has a Double Masters in Psychology and Biotechnology as well as an M.Phil in Molecular Genetics. He is the author of numerous books including Missing in Somerville, and The Game Master of Somerville. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime/manga, video games, and movies.

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