The five finalists for this year's award are all unique and come from diverse backgrounds. The committee nominated Linda Codega, a journalist that covers tabletop gaming for various media outlets, and game designer Cole Wehrle who is also the creative director at Leder Games and co-founder of Wehrlegig Games. They also nominated two RPGS: Coyote & Crow (created by Connor Alexander; published by Coyote & Crow) and Rosenstrasse (created by Moyra Turkington and Jessica Hammer; published by Unruly Designs).

The D&D sourcebook, Journeys through the Radiant Citadel, was nominated as well (see "Anthology"). The co-author and lead designer of this book, Ajit George, won the award last year for his activism in advocating for a more representative and diverse hobby games industry (see "Ajit George Wins The Diana Jones Award").

The Diana Jones Award for Excellence is Gaming is awarded to "...a game system or supplement, a magazine, a company, a designer, an event or convention, or any other entity that shows gaing at its absolute zenith."  The winner of this year's award, the 23rd, will be revealed at Gen Con on Wednesday August 2, 2023.