Thursday night the gaming industry came together to celebrate the second annual Game Awards. The Game Awards highlights those who have achieved excellence in the gaming medium. Game of the year, best soundtrack, best performance, and developer of the year are just a few of the categories that were voted on in this year’s awards.
Remembering a Friend
The evening also gave the community a chance to mourn and honor one of their own, former President of Nintendo Satoru Iwata. Mr. Iwata passed away in July at the age of 55. He has been involved in video games for over 30 years, contributing to popular series like Earthbound, Kirby, Pokémon, and Super Smash Bros.
President of Nintendo of America Reggie Fils-Aimé spoke at the awards about Mr. Iwata.
“The man was fearless,” Fils-Aimé said. “He was my boss, and he was my mentor. He was my colleague. But most of all, he was my friend. And I’m a better person for it. Nintendo at its heart is about making us feel younger than we are today.”
A Big Thank You to Developers
Greg Miller, who won the award for Trending Gamer, was enormously grateful for the men and women who have worked so hard to make the industry what it is.
“Every time I finish a game, there are hundreds of names in the credits of people I don’t know,” Miller said. “On behalf of the gamers I want to say thank you. Thank you to everyone who makes video games. We all know making a game is not a glamorous life. It’s long hours, it’s time away from your family. I’m sure it comes down every day where someone says, ‘is this worth it?’ And I want you to know, on behalf of the millions of lives you change, it is worth it. Thank you for making games. Thank you for your art, and know that we are forever in your debt.”
Hideo Kojima Was Nowhere to be Seen
The evening was not without its trouble, however. Producer Geoff Keighley spoke about one of the most iconic game developers, Hideo Kojima. Kojima was not able to attend The Game Awards, despite his latest game, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, being nominated for several awards. Kojima recently split with his development company, Konami, and the company banned him from involvement in the game ceremonies.
“Hideo Kojima is not here with us tonight,” Keighley said. “Mr. Kojima had every intention of being with us tonight, but unfortunately he was informed by a lawyer representing Konami just recently that he would not be allowed to travel to tonight’s awards ceremony to accept any awards…. It’s inconceivable to me that an artist like Hideo would not be allowed to come here and celebrate with his peers and his fellow teammates.”
This news was met by a chorus of boos from the crowd. Disappointment was apparent, but The Phantom Pain did win two awards: Best Score/Soundtrack and Best Action/Adventure Game. The full list of winners is below:
Game of the Year
The Witch 3: Wild Hunt
Developer of the Year
CD Projeckt Red
Best Independent Game
Rocket League
Best Mobile/Handheld Game
Lara Croft Go
Best Narrative
Her Story
Best Art Direction
Ori and the Blind forest
Best Score/Soundtrack
Metal Gear Sold V: The Phantom Pain
Best Performance
Viva Seifert (Her Story)
Games for Change Award
Life is Strange (DONTNOD Entertainment / Square Enix)
Best Shooter
Splatoon
Best Action/Adventure Game
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
Best Role Playing Game
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Best Fighting Game
Mortal Kombat X
Best Family Game
Super Mario Maker
Best Sports/Racing Game
Rocket League
Best Multiplayer Game
Splatoon
Most Anticipated Game
No Man’s Sky
eSports Player of the Year
Kenny “KennyS” Schrub
eSports Team of the year
Optic Gaming
eSports Game of the Year
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
Trending Gamer
Greg Miller
Best Fan Creation
Portal Stories: Mel (Prism Studios)
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Did you miss The Game Awards 2015? You can watch the entire show live here.
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