Reflecting the overall quality of great games in 2009, there were a number of titles with multiple nods, following closely are: Assassin’s Creed II (Ubisoft), ten nominations, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2(Activision), nine nominations, Batman: Arkham Asylum (Eidos/Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment), eight nominations and Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time (Sony Computer Entertainment America) and Brutal Legend (Electronic Arts), both with four nominations.
Mirroring the continued evolution of how games are played, the Academy created three new awards: Portable Game of the Year, Outstanding Achievement in Game Design and Social Networking Game of the Year, with FarmVille (Zynga) receiving three nominations.
The awards ceremony will take place during the D.I.C.E. (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit® 2010, on February 18th at the Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas, with comedian, actor and proud game enthusiast, Jay Mohr, returning for his fifth year as host.
These peer-based awards recognize the outstanding products, talented individuals and development teams that have contributed to the advancement of the multi-billion dollar worldwide entertainment software industry.
“The experiences that today’s games offer certainly explains why consumers of all ages are spending greater amounts of time in these fantastic worlds,” said Joseph Olin, president, AIAS. “This year’s crop of finalists demonstrates the craft and talent of the Academy’s members and their continued quest to create new worlds to explore.”
Following is a partial list of finalists; the complete list of Awards categories, finalists and game maker credits is available here.
Overall Game of the Year:
- Assassin's Creed II / Ubisoft / Ubisoft Montreal
- Batman: Arkham Asylum / Eidos & Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment / Rocksteady Studios
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 / Activision / InfInity Ward
- Dragon Age: OrigIns / Electronic Arts / BioWare
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Naughty Dog
Outstanding Innovation In Gaming:
- Demon's Souls / Atlus / From Software
- FarmVille / Zynga / Zynga
- Flower / Sony Computer Entertainment America / thatgamecompany
- Scribblenauts / Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment / 5th Cell Media
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Naughty Dog
Outstanding Achievement In Game Design:
- Batman: Arkham Asylum / Eidos & Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment / Rocksteady Studios
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 / Activision / InfInity Ward
- Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story / Nintendo / Alphadream
- Plants vs. Zombies / PopCap Games / PopCap Games
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Naughty Dog
Outstanding Achievement In Game Direction:
- Assassin's Creed II / Ubisoft / Ubisoft Montreal
- Batman: Arkham Asylum / Eidos & Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment / Rocksteady Studios
- Brutal Legend / Electronic Arts / Double FIne Productions
- Flower / Sony Computer Entertainment America / thatgamecompany
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Naughty Dog
Action Game of the Year:
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 / Activision / InfInity Ward
- Left 4 Dead 2 / Valve Software / Valve Software
- Prototype / Activision / Radical Entertainment
- Red Faction: Guerrilla / THQ / Volition
- Shadow Complex / Microsoft Game Studios / Chair Entertainment
Adventure Game of the Year:
- Assassin's Creed II / Ubisoft / Ubisoft Montreal
- Batman: Arkham Asylum / Eidos & Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment / Rocksteady Studios
- New Super Mario Bros. Wii / Nintendo / Nintendo
- Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack In Time / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Insomniac Games
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Naughty Dog
Role-PlayIng/Massively Multiplayer Game of the Year:
- Borderlands / 2K Games / Gearbox Software
- Champions Online / Atari / Cryptic Studios
- Demon's Souls / Atlus / From Software
- Dragon Age: OrigIns / Electronic Arts / BioWare
- Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story / Nintendo / Alphadream
Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year:
- Brutal Legend / Electronic Arts / Double FIne Productions
- Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon / Nintendo / Intelligent Systems
- Halo Wars / Microsoft Game Studios / Ensemble Studios/Robot Entertainment
- The Sims 3 / Electronic Arts / The Sims Studio
- Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War 2 / THQ / Relic Entertainment
RacIng Game of the Year:
- DiRT 2 / Codemasters / Codemasters
- Forza Motorsport 3 / Microsoft Game Studios / Turn 10 Studios
- Need for Speed SHIFT / Electronic Arts / Slightly Mad Studios
FightIng Game of the Year:
- Fight Night Round 4 / Electronic Arts / EA Canada
- Punch-Out!! / Nintendo / Nintendo
- Street Fighter IV / Capcom / Capcom
- Tekken 6 / Namco Bandai Games / Namco Bandai
- UFC 2009 Undisputed / THQ / THQ FightIng Group/Yuke's Osaka
Sports Game of the Year:
- FIFA Soccer 10 / Electronic Arts / EA Canada
- MLB 09: The Show / Sony Computer Entertainment America / SCE San Diego
- NBA 2K10 / 2K Sports / Visual Concepts
- NHL 10 / Electronic Arts / EA Canada
- Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 (Wii) / Electronic Arts / EA Tiburon
Outstanding Achievement In Online Game Play:
- Borderlands / 2K Games / Gearbox Software
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 / Activision / InfInity Ward
- FarmVille / Zynga / Zynga
- Left 4 Dead 2 / Valve Software / Valve Software
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Naughty Dog
Outstanding Achievement In Visual Engineering:
- Assassin's Creed II / Ubisoft / Ubisoft Montreal
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 / Activision / InfInity Ward
- Killzone 2 / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Guerrilla Games
- Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack In Time / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Insomniac Games
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Naughty Dog
Outstanding Achievement In Animation:
- Assassin's Creed II / Ubisoft / Ubisoft Montreal
- Batman: Arkham Asylum / Eidos & Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment / Rocksteady Studios
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 / Activision / InfInity Ward
- Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack In Time / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Insomniac Games
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Naughty Dog
Outstanding Achievement In Adapted Story:
- Batman: Arkham Asylum / Eidos & Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment / Rocksteady Studios
- Ghostbusters: The Video Game / Atari / TermInal Reality
- Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 / Activision / Vicarious Visions
Outstanding Achievement In OrigInal Story:
- Assassin's Creed II / Ubisoft / Ubisoft Montreal
- Brutal Legend / Electronic Arts / Double FIne Productions
- Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box / Nintendo / Level-5
- Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack In Time / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Insomniac Games
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Naughty Dog
Outstanding Achievement In Game Play Engineering:
- Assassin's Creed II / Ubisoft / Ubisoft Montreal
- Forza Motorsport 3 / Microsoft Game Studios / Turn 10 Studios
- Left 4 Dead 2 / Valve Software / Valve Software
- New Super Mario Bros. Wii / Nintendo / Nintendo
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Naughty Dog
Outstanding Character Performance:
- Batman: Arkham Asylum - Joker / Eidos & Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment / Rocksteady Studios
- Brutal Legend - Eddie Riggs / Electronic Arts / Double FIne Productions
- Resident Evil 5 - Sheva Alomar / Capcom / Capcom
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves - Chloe Frazier / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Naughty Dog
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves - Nathan Drake / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Naughty Dog
Outstanding Achievement In OrigInal Music Composition:
- Assassin's Creed II / Ubisoft / Ubisoft Montreal
- Batman: Arkham Asylum / Eidos & Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment / Rocksteady Studios
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 / Activision / InfInity Ward
- Flower / Sony Computer Entertainment America / thatgamecompany
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Naughty Dog
Outstanding Achievement In Soundtrack:
- Brutal Legend / Electronic Arts / Double FIne Productions
- DJ Hero / Activision / FreeStyleGames
- Skate 2 / Electronic Arts / EA Black Box
- The Beatles: Rock Band / MTV Games / Harmonix Music Systems
Outstanding Achievement In Sound Design:
- Assassin's Creed II / Ubisoft / Ubisoft Montreal
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 / Activision / InfInity Ward
- Flower / Sony Computer Entertainment America / thatgamecompany
- Skate 2 / Electronic Arts / EA Black Box
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Naughty Dog
Outstanding Achievement In Art Direction:
- Assassin's Creed II / Ubisoft / Ubisoft Montreal
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 / Activision / InfInity Ward
- MachInarium / Amanita Design / Amanita Design
- Resident Evil 5 / Capcom / Capcom
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Naughty Dog
Social NetworkIng Game of the Year:
- Bejeweled Blitz / PopCap Games / PopCap Games
- Farm Town / Codebell / Codebell
- FarmVille / Zynga / Zynga
- Restaurant City / Electronic Arts/Playfish / Playfish
Portable Game of the Year:
- LittleBigPlanet / Sony Computer Entertainment America / SCE Cambridge Studio
- Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story / Nintendo / Alphadream
- Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box / Nintendo / Level-5
- Scribblenauts / Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment / 5th Cell Media
- The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks / Nintendo / Nintendo
Family Game of the Year:
- Guitar Hero 5 / Activision / Neversoft
- LEGO Rock Band / Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment/MTV Games / TT Games/Harmonix Music Systems
- The Beatles: Rock Band / MTV Games / Harmonix Music Systems
- Wii Fit Plus / Nintendo / Nintendo
- Wii Sports Resort / Nintendo / Nintendo
Casual Game of the Year:
- Drawn: The Painted Tower / Big Fish Games / Big Fish Games
- Flower / Sony Computer Entertainment America / thatgamecompany
- Flight Control / Firemint / Firemint
- Plants vs. Zombies / PopCap Games / PopCap Games
- Scribblenauts / Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment / 5th Cell Media
Outstanding Achievement In Portable Game Design:
- Henry Hatsworth / Electronic Arts / EA Casual Studios
- LittleBigPlanet / Sony Computer Entertainment America / SCE Cambridge Studio
- LocoRoco 2 / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Sony Computer Entertainment International
- Patapon 2 / Sony Computer Entertainment America / Sony Computer Entertainment International
- Scribblenauts / Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment / 5th Cell Media