This is something I decided to write for fun, not made to be taken too seriously. Enjoy.

Shadow sat slumped over, absentmindedly sipping on his black roast. Which cup of coffee this was, he lost count. All he desired was solitude, a solitude that was quickly ruined when a familiar blue blur made himself known across the table.

"Oh, great. You," Shadow droned.

"Shadow, you've been cooped up in the cafe since December," Sonic said, "You're not usually this gloomy, so something's clearly bothering you."

"I don't have to explain myself to the likes of you."

"Okay, but what about the likes of all of us?"

That was when Shadow, much to his chagrin, noticed that Sonic brought along Tails, Knuckles, and Amy, who all seated themselves at Shadow's table.

"None of you are leaving unless I tell you, correct?" Shadow guessed.

"Yeah, pretty much," Amy answered, along with murmurs of confirmation from Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles.

Shadow sighed in annoyance. Seeing no way out of this conversation, Shadow let them know what was wrong, "The Game Awards."

"The Game Awards?" Tails repeated, "Didn't that happen weeks ago?"

"Why are the Game Awards of all things making you an even bigger sourpuss?" Sonic jokingly inquired.

"If you must know, it's specifically because Sonic X Shadow Generations got snubbed at the Game Awards," Shadow explained.

Sonic chuckled in response, "That's whats got you down? You gotta learn to forget about that stuff. I mean, I don't get recognition from the Game Awards and I never let that bother me."

"That's because you're used to having your games fail," Shadow responded.

Sonic grimaced and looked away from Shadow with his arms crossed, "Okay, that was just uncalled for."

"I don't get it," Shadow continued, "Shadow Generations received widespread acclaim, even from IGN of all things, and the game wasn't even nominated for any category."

"Wasn't it in the player's voice?" Amy asked.

"It lost in the first round," Shadow replied, "Turns out, 20 million copies sold secures you that title."

"C'mon, I think Black Myth: Wukong deserved that award," Knuckles said.

"Yet another game copying From Software?" Shadow retorted sarcastically, "Sure, that's worthy of recognition."

"I don't think that's fair," Tails chimed in, "The developers clearly put alot of passion into the game with a rich world inspired by Journey to the West and an engaging combat system."

"While we're on the subject, you guys think Shadow of the Erdtree should have been nominated at all?" Sonic said.

"Absolutely not," Knuckles immediately responded, "Elden Ring was already game of the year in 2022. It didn't need another chance."

"To be fair, Shadow of the Erdtree had enough content to be considered its own game," Amy said, before adding, "Don't get me wrong, though. They really shouldn't have nominated a DLC in the first place."

"They could have easily removed that nomination," Shadow said, "Maybe then Sonic X Shadow Generations could have been nominated for Game of the Year."

"Uhhh, I don't know," Sonic doubted, "I feel like another game would have been nominated, like Dragon Ball Sparking Zero."

"Seriously?" Knuckles interjected, "I think Tekken 8 had a better chance of being nominated."

"If it were up to me, I personally would have gone with Space Marine 2," Amy added.

Tails then said, "Lets be real, if Shadow of the Erdtree wasn't nominated, the next likely candidate would have been Helldivers 2."

Sonic, Amy, and Knuckles all voiced their agreement at that statement.

"I swear, they nominated a DLC just so they could spark controversy," Shadow complained.

"Hey, c'mon. The nominations weren't all that bad," Sonic reasoned, "An indie game got to be a nominee."

"What was that game again? Balatro?" Knuckles asked, "I didn't play that one."

Amy looked at Knuckles in shock, "You haven't?! It's sooo good!"

Shadow said, "I mean, sure… Balatro has engaging and addicting gameplay that always finds a way to keep itself interest—okay, that nomination was pretty well deserved actually."

Tails thought for a minute before saying, "Getting back on topic, do you think the reason Sonic X Shadow Generations wasn't nominated for anything was because it was essentially a rerelease of Sonic Generations?"

"If that's the case, then why was Final Fantasy VII Rebirth nominated?" Shadow questioned, "It's not even its own original story."

Knuckles got defensive, "Hey, Rebirth was an incredible and fresh take on the original Final Fantasy VII that offered much needed improvements compared to VII Remake!"

"Thank you," said a blonde, spiky haired young man who walked by the group.

"Some of the nominees for Game of the Year always feel like filler anyway," Shadow continued, "It's like they randomly pick whatever flavor of RPG was released that year."

"You have to admit though, Metaphor: ReFantazio was a masterpiece," Sonic said, "So many complex themes that makes you think about the world around us."

"Complex themes? Have you even met me? I bring to attention government cover ups and the notion that you are more than the toxic influence of your ancestry," Shadow ranted.

"Geez, calm down, Shadow," Sonic held his hands up in defense.

"This is all just a sign of a bigger problem with video game award shows," Shadow sneered.

"What do you mean?" Knuckles asked.

"It's the games media. They have no respect for platformers. There's no way 3D platforming game would ever be considered for Game of the Year," It didn't take long for Shadow to notice the other four were looking at him in bewilderment, "What?"

"Shadow, did you actually watch the Game Awards?" Amy questioned.

"No, I didn't. Why would I?"

"Well, the thing is—" before Amy could continue, a small robot with blue LED eyes entered the cafe, leading to uproarious applause from everyone inside, besides Shadow.

"Congratulations, Astro!" Sonic called out, "You really deserved that award!"

"He won game of the year?" Shadow questioned in shock, "Both of our titles focused on fan service and nostalgia. What does he have that I don't?"

Sonic immediately answered, "Let's see here: irresistible charm, a friendly attitude, and a non-threatening voice?"

"Don't make me hurt you, Sonic," Shadow coldly threatened.

"Have you ever considered changing up your gameplay style," Amy suggested, "Isn't that how Kratos won game of the year back in 2018?"

"I already did that back in 2005," Shadow then sarcastically remarked, "Sure, Ratchet and Jak can shoot people down with guns, but God forbid if I try that."

Shadow was unaware of the lombax and elf-like human that overheard him from a nearby table, who both looked at each other in confusion.

"You really shouldn't put that much stock in the Game Awards, Shadow," Tails suggested, "I mean, remember when they called Last of Us Part II game of the year?"

"2020 was truly a dark time," Sonic chimed in.

Shadow sighed and rubbed his temples, "I'm never to get recognized on the big stage."

"Hey, don't worry," Sonic consoled, "We still have a chance for Sonic the Hedgehog 3 to get nominated for an Oscar."

"Yeah, keep telling yourself that."

Yeah, I'm probably late for this considering the Game Awards happened a month ago, but I literally thought of this idea yesterday and it was too funny not to put into words. Alot of this was inspired by How it Should Have Ended's Villain Pub, specifically the episode "Best Picture Summary (Oscars 2019)" with how the characters discuss the nominations.

Also, Astro Bot absolutely deserved Game of the Year. I was on cloud nine when that award was announced.