Remedy’s Sam Lake set to receive New York awards show’s top honour

Remedy creative director Sam Lake has been named the recipient of the 2025 New York Videogame Critics Circle Andrew Yoon Legend Award.

The New York Videogame Critics Circle presents the Andrew Yoon Legend Award to “recognize people and organizations that exhibited a significant, sustained body of work that shows exceptional artistic achievement and innovation.”

The award is named for Andrew Yoon, a founding member of the New York Videogame Critics Circle. Past award recipients include Neil Druckmann, Reggie Fils-Aimé, Phil Spencer, Tim Schafer, Jerry Lawson, Jade Raymond, Hideo Kojima, and other industry veterans.

Lake is best known for his over two-decade career at Remedy Entertainment, where he served as creative director on the Control and Alan Wake franchises.

“What an honor it is to celebrate someone of Sam Lake’s caliber during the 14th annual New York Game Awards,” said Harold Goldberg, president and co-founder, NYVGCC.

“You know a Remedy game when you see it, largely due to Sam Lake’s impact on the worlds he creates. It’s really cool to see how his 20-year career at Remedy has touched so many of our members and interns at the Circle, and we are thrilled to have him join the roster of esteemed game changers previously recognized with the Andrew Yoon Legend Award.”

The 2025 New York Game Awards will take place on January 21 at the SVA Theatre in Manhattan, New York.

Ryan O’Callaghan, executive director, NYVGCC said, “It’s not often that you see a video game studio deliver a superb sequel to a title a decade later, but it’s even rarer to see how it resonates with fans and spawns a whole connected universe comprised of its past franchises.

“I don’t think anyone expects anything less from someone like Sam Lake. He spoke with some of our students and interns a few weeks ago, and it was insightful to see where he draws his inspiration and the care that goes into crafting a video game. This will be a year to remember at the New York Game Awards.”