Highlights of the 2015 Game Awards

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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