Rage leads Game Critics Awards nominees for E3 2010
With E3 2010 over and done with, and a glut of outlet-specific honors dispensed, it's time for the annual Game Critics Awards to reveal its list of nominees. Culled from the selections of "31 leading North American media outlets that cover the videogame industry" (including Joystiq!), the Game Critics Awards represent something of an industry consensus on The Big Show. This year, id Software's upcoming post-apocalyptic-'em-up Rage took home the most nominees, scoring five including Best of Show. Sharing the Best of Show nominee space are Disney's Epic Mickey, Dance Central, and Portal 2, each of which received four nominations across the boards.
We've got the entire list after the break, and check out the "Fast Facts" breakdown linked below for some flamewar-worthy stats (Xbox 360 leads the platform nominations with 46 versus PlayStation 3's 39). Notably, Electronic Arts had the most nominees for a publisher for the fourth year in a row, earning 15 nominations ... and that's not including the formerly EA Partners-signed Rage.
Best of Show
Dance Central (Harmonix/MTV Games/Microsoft for Xbox 360)
Disney's Epic Mickey (Junction Point/Disney Interactive Studios for Wii)
Nintendo 3DS (Nintendo)
Portal 2 (Valve for PC / Mac, PS3 and Xbox 360)
Rage (id Software/Bethesda for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360)
Best Original Game
Bulletstorm (People Can Fly/Epic Games/Electronic Arts for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360)
Child of Eden (Q Entertainment/Ubisoft for PS3, Xbox 360)
Dance Central (Harmonix/MTV Games/Microsoft for Xbox 360)
Disney's Epic Mickey (Junction Point/Disney Interactive Studios for Wii)
Rage (id Software/Bethesda for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360)
Best Console Game
Disney's Epic Mickey (Junction Point/Disney Interactive Studios for Wii)
InFamous 2 (Sucker Punch/Sony Computer Entertainment for PS3)
Kirby's Epic Yarn (Good-Feel/Nintendo for Wii)
Portal 2 (Valve for PC / Mac, PS3, and Xbox 360)
Rage (id Software/Bethesda for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360)
Best Handheld Game
Ghost Trick (Capcom for Nintendo DS)
God of War: Ghost of Sparta (Ready at Dawn/Sony Santa Monica for PSP)
Okamiden (Capcom for Nintendo DS)
Super Scribblenauts (5TH Cell/WBIE for Nintendo DS)
Valkyria Chronicles 2 (Sega for PSP)
Best PC Game
Civilization V (Firaxis/2K Games)
Crysis 2 (CryTek/Electronic Arts)
Portal 2 (Valve)
Rage (id Software/Bethesda)
Star Wars: The Old Republic (BioWare Austin/LucasArts/EA)
Best Hardware
Kinect (Microsoft for Xbox 360)
Move (Sony for PlayStation 3)
Nintendo 3DS (Nintendo)
Rock Band 3 Pro Guitars (Harmonix/MTV Games/Mad Catz)
Rock Band 3 Keyboard (Harmonix/MTV Games/Mad Catz)
Best Action Game
Bulletstorm (People Can Fly/Epic Games/Electronic Arts for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360)
Call of Duty: Black Ops (TreyArch/Activision for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
Gears of War 3 (Epic Game/Microsoft Game Studios for Xbox 360)
Halo: Reach (Bungie/Microsoft Game Studios for Xbox 360)
Rage (id Software/Bethesda for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360)
Best Action/Adventure Game
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
Dead Space 2 (Visceral Games/Electronic Arts for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
Disney's Epic Mickey (Junction Point/Disney Interactive Studios for Wii)
Portal 2 (Valve for PC / Mac, PS3, and Xbox 360)
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Nintendo EAD/Nintendo for Wii)
Best Role Playing Game
Deus Ex: Human Revolution (Eidos Montreal/Square-Enix for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
Fable III (Lionhead/Microsoft Game Studios for PC and Xbox 360)
Fallout: New Vegas (Obsidian/Bethesda for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
Star Wars: The Old Republic (BioWare Austin/LucasArts/EA for PC)
The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings (CD Projekt RED STUDIO/Atari for PC)
Best Racing Game
Gran Turismo 5 (Polyphony Digital/Sony Computer Entertainment for PS3)
MotorStorm: Apolcalypse (Evolution Studios/Sony Computer Entertainment for PS3)
Need for Speed Hot Pursuit (Criterion Games/Electronic Arts for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
Test Drive Unlimited 2 (Eden Games/Atari for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
Best Fighting Game
Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds (Capcom for PS3 and Xbox 360)
Mortal Kombat (NetherRealm/WBIE for PS3 and Xbox 360)
WWE All Stars (THQ San Diego/THQ for PS3 and Xbox 360)
Best Sports Game
EA Sports MMA (EA Tiburon/EA Sports for PS3, Xbox 360)
Madden NFL 11 (EA Tiburon/EA Sports for PS3, Xbox 360)
NBA Jam (EA Canada/EA Sports for Wii)
NCAA Football 11 (EA Tiburon/EA Sports for PS3, Xbox 360)
NHL 11 (EA Canada/EA Sports for PS3, Xbox 360)
Best Strategy Game
Civilization V (Firaxis/2K Games for PC)
Company of Heroes Online (Relic/THQ for PC)
End of Nations (Petroglyph/Trion Worlds for PC)
Shogun 2: Total War (The Creative Assembly/Sega for PC)
Best Social/Casual Game
Dance Central (Harmonix/MTV Games/Microsoft for Xbox 360)
DJ Hero 2 (FreeStyle Games/Activision for PS3, Xbox 360, Wii)
Kinect Adventures (Good Science Studio/Microsoft Game Studios for Xbox 360)
Rock Band 3 (Harmonix/MTV Games/Electronic Arts for PS3, Xbox 360, Wii)
Best Motion Simulation Game
Child of Eden (Q Entertainment/Ubisoft for PS3 and Xbox 360)
Dance Central (Harmonix/MTV Games/Microsoft for Xbox 360)
Socom 4 (Zipper/Sony Computer Entertainment for PS3)
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Nintendo EAD/Nintendo for Wii)
Your Shape: Fitness Evolved (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft for Xbox 360)
Best Online Multiplayer Game
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
Gears of War 3 (Epic Games/Microsoft Game Studios for Xbox 360 )
Halo Reach (Bungie/Microsoft Game Studios for Xbox 360)
Medal of Honor (EALA/DICE/EA for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
Star Wars: The Old Republic (BioWare Austin/LucasArts/EA for PC)