The nominees for the 2025 Spiel des Jahres, the German "Game of the Year," were announced, along with the nominations for the Kennerspiel des Jahres and Kinderspiel des Jahres awards, on May 20, 2025. 

The nominees for Spiel des Jahres were as follows:

  • Bomb Busters by Hisashi Hayashi and Cocktail Games.
  • Flip 7 by Eric Olsen and The Op Games (see "New Game Versions from The Op").
  • Krakel Orakel by Die 7 Bazis and frechverlag.

The jury “recommended” game list included Agent Avenue, Castle Combo, Cities, Foxy, Perfect Words, and The Animals of Baker Street.

The Kennerspiel des Jahres (Enthusiasts Game of the Year) nominations included the following:

  • Endeavor: Deep Sea by Carl de Visser, Jarratt Gray, Burnt Island Games, and Grand Gamers Guild (see "'Endeavor' into the 'Deep Sea' ").
  • Faraway by Johannes Goupy, Corentin Lebrat, and Catch Up Games.
  • Looot  by Charles Chevallier, Laurent Escoffier, and Gigamic (see "'Looot'").

The “recommended” games in this category were The Gang, Kauri, Medical Mysteries: NYC Emergency Room, and Zenith.

The Kinderspiel des Jahres (Children’s Game of the Year) featured the following nominees:

  • Cascadia Junior by Fertessa Allyse, Randy Flynn, and Flatout Games (see "'Cascadia Junior'").
  • Le Clan des Souris by Christophe Lauras and Debacle Jeux.
  • Topp die Torte by Wolfgang Warsch and Schmidt Spiele. 

The three games “recommended” for this category were HiLo: Dein Konigreich, Kapt'n Kuck, and Syllabus.  Winners for these awards will be announced on July 13, 2025.