The 16th annual D.I.C.E. awards were given out last night, and Journey was the stand out victor. Sweeping up an incredible eight awards in a variety of categories, including the Game of the Year award, Journey is an outstanding achievement; and hopefully a message to publishers that it’s okay to let developers create games that don’t follow the generic “Pick up a gun and shoot” mentality.
Here is the full list of winners from the event:
- Game of the Year: Journey
- Action Game of the Year: Borderlands 2
- Mobile Game of the Year: Hero Academy
- Handheld Game of the Year: Paper Mario Sticker Star
- Downloadable Game of the Year: The Walking Dead
- Casual Game of the Year: Journey
- Web Based Game of the Year: SimCity Social
- Family Game of the Year: Skylanders Giants
- Role-Playing/Massively Multiplayer Game of the Year: Mass Effect 3
- Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year: XCOM: Enemy Unknown
- Adventure Game of the Year: The Walking Dead
- Sports Game of the Year: FIFA Soccer 13
- Racing Game of the Year: Need for Speed Most Wanted
- Fighting Game of the Year: PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale
- Outstanding Innovation in Gaming: Journey
- Outstanding Achievement in Online Gameplay: Journey
- Outstanding Achievement in Connectivity: Halo 4
- Outstanding Achievement in Animation: Assassin’s Creed III
- Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction: Journey
- Outstanding Achievement in Visual Engineering: Halo 4
- Outstanding Achievement in Gameplay Engineering: XCOM: Enemy Unknown
- Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction: Journey
- Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition: Journey
- Outstanding Achievement in Story: The Walking Dead
- Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design: Journey
- Outstanding Character Performance: The Walking Dead: Lee Everett
The Walking Dead also picked up a number of rightfully-earned awards, so a special shout out to Telltale Games for their wonderful work on the Arcade hit. Journey was developed by thatgamecompany, at the cost of bankrupting the studio. Although, in a speech given at D.I.C.E. by TGC’s Jenova Chen, he admitted the game’s delay and subsequent financial troubles were all worth it for the sake of this heartwarming fan letter. Proof that games really can make a difference.
Looking at the awards given out, what’s your opinion of this year’s favorites, as chosen by the industry itself? D.I.C.E. is always an interesting time to see where developers see themselves as well as the future of the industry, and the awards they give out each year are usually very telling of the mind set the industry is in as a whole. That being said, publishers and the like aren’t always great at being in touch with the community. So sharing a list of your favorite games this year is a great way to see where common interests align. Be sure to share your thoughts in the comments below.
Update: Here is the entire presentation, hosted by Chris Hardwick, courtesy of Machinima Prime. #Montage…
