Israel will make its debut on The Game Awards jury this year with a single vote. Vgames, a Hebrew-language gaming site, was announced as part of the jury that helps choose the nominees and winners of the industry's biggest awards.
Israel is one of three countries that gained representation in the 2026 edition, alongside Austria (with Gamers.at) and the Dominican Republic (with GamersRD). The survey counts it as part of Asia in its regional breakdown.
On a jury of 160 outlets, Israel's individual weight is small: 0.6% of the voting body.
The debut comes in the most international year in the awards' history. The 2026 jury is the largest ever, with 160 outlets, and the most diverse, with 41 countries. In 2014, there were 28 outlets from eight countries. With Israel, Austria and the Dominican Republic, 45 countries and territories have now taken part in the voting, as shown in the analysis of the TGA 2026 jury.
What is Vgames?
Vgames is a 27-year-old site that has changed ownership several times and announced its return as an independent site in 2013.
On its About page, Vgames describes itself as Israel's largest, most important and oldest gaming site, online since 1999. It publishes daily news, reviews, features and event coverage on PC, PlayStation, Xbox and Switch 2. In recent years, it has also started covering film and TV.
The staff page lists 12 people. The editor-in-chief is Guy Dahan, in the role since 2024; before him, Shmuel Mekonen ran the newsroom from 2017 to 2024. Since March 2017, the site's reviews have appeared on Metacritic, translated into English. Vgames says it is the only site in the country recognized by the aggregator.
Vgames is a specialist gaming site, the most common type on the jury: 129 of the 160 voters in 2026 are specialist outlets, 30 are general-interest outlets and one was not classified.
Who owns Vgames?
According to a 2009 About page, Vgames was founded by Internet Zahav in 1999 and was wholly owned by Goldmind Media in 2009. In April 2013, it announced its return under the headline “Vgames goes independent!” The announcement documents that moment, but does not confirm who the current owner is.
Milestones in Vgames' history
Ownership and history milestones for the site, from 1999 to 2026
Source: Vgames, 2009 About page; Vgames, “Vgames goes independent!” (April 15, 2013); Vgames, About, staff and terms of use pages; Bizportal (August 27, 2013) · The 2013 independence announcement does not confirm the current owner. Sources disagree on its ties to Walla that year.
Founded in 1999 by Internet Zahav, Vgames said it was owned by Goldmind Media in 2009. It announced its return as an independent site in April 2013, but a report still tied it to Walla in August. The current owner is unconfirmed.
| Year | Milestone | Ownership |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Launches within Internet Zahav, with Doron Nir as editor-in-chief | Internet Zahav |
| 2009 | An About page states the site is wholly owned by Goldmind Media | Goldmind Media |
| 2013 (Apr.) | Announces its return under the headline “Vgames goes independent!” in a post by Shlomi Amihay | Independence announced |
| 2013 (Aug.) | A Bizportal report still lists Vgames among the Walla group's sites | Tie cited in the report |
| 2017 | Reviews start appearing on Metacritic | Not confirmed in this review |
| 2018 | Forums are shut down and the site becomes purely an online magazine | Not confirmed in this review |
| 2026 | Debuts on The Game Awards jury | Current owner unconfirmed |
Source: Vgames, 2009 About page; Vgames, “Vgames goes independent!” (April 15, 2013); Vgames, About, staff and terms of use pages; Bizportal (August 27, 2013)
Note: The 2013 independence announcement does not confirm the current owner. Sources disagree on its ties to Walla that year.
Israel in the Asian bloc
Asia has been represented on The Game Awards jury since 2014, with Japanese magazine Famitsu. The bloc began to expand in 2017, when outlets from China, South Korea and Saudi Arabia arrived, along with another Japanese representative.
In 2026, Asia's 35 outlets make up 21.9% of the jury, the second-largest regional bloc, behind Europe, with 60. Latin America is having a record year: it has 34 outlets, or 21.3% of voters, and ranks third.
Asian outlets on the TGA jury by edition
Israel debuts in a bloc of 35 outlets, two fewer than in 2025
Source: The Game Awards official jury list; Internet Archive (copies of the official TGA page, 2014 to 2025) · Israel and Turkey are part of Asia; Egypt is part of Africa.
Asia had one outlet in 2014, reached 22 in 2020 and 37 in 2025. In 2026, it has 35 outlets, including newcomer Vgames, from Israel.
| Edition | Outlets (outlets) |
|---|---|
| 2014 | 1 |
| 2015 | 1 |
| 2016 | 1 |
| 2017 | 5 |
| 2018 | 8 |
| 2019 | 12 |
| 2020 | 22 |
| 2021 | 23 |
| 2022 | 27 |
| 2023 | 27 |
| 2024 | 34 |
| 2025 | 37 |
| 2026 | 35 |
Source: The Game Awards official jury list; Internet Archive (copies of the official TGA page, 2014 to 2025)
Note: Israel and Turkey are part of Asia; Egypt is part of Africa.
Besides Vgames (Israel), the Asian bloc includes Saudi Gamer (Saudi Arabia), Atarita and Oyungezer (Turkey) and True Gaming, a pan-Arab outlet with no confirmed home country. Arab Hardware, from Egypt, is part of Africa.
Vgames joined the jury in 2026, while VGA4A left. Overall, the Asian bloc lost 11 outlets and added nine, going from 37 to 35. The TGA uses the “Middle East” label for some outlets; in this survey, they are split between Asia and Africa following the criteria used in the main analysis.
Vgames is also the first Hebrew-language outlet in the jury's 13 editions. The TGA does not disclose its criteria for adding or removing outlets, so it is not possible to say why Israel joined now.