Journey takes top honors including Game of the Year at 16th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards

And the winner is… Journey! thatgamecompany’s beautiful and thought-provoking digital PS3 title has picked up 8 awards, including Game of the Year, at the 16th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards.

Halo 4, XCOM: Enemy Unknown, The Walking Dead, and Skylanders Giants also took multiple awards as well.

Read on for the full list of winners and additional info.

Downloadable games stole the spotlight at this evening?s 16^th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards, as the epic PlayStation 3 exclusive Journey, from thatgamecompany, nabbed eight awards including Game of the Year, Outstanding Innovation in Gaming, and Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction. The Walking Dead sauntered home with four awards, including Adventure Game of the Year and Downloadable Game of the Year. Since 1996, the D.I.C.E. Awards have recognized outstanding games, individuals and development teams that are pushing the boundaries of technology, creativity and artistic expression in the worldwide interactive entertainment industry.

Other multi-award winners include Halo 4, honored for visual engineering and connectivity, and XCOM: Enemy Unknown, recognized for its feats in gameplay engineering as well as Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year. The full list of winners illustrates the diversity in interactive experiences available today, including Web-Based Game of the Year SimCity Social, Family Game of the Year Skylanders Giants, Mobile Game of the Year Hero Academy, and Action Game of the Year Borderlands 2.

?For the past 16 years, the D.I.C.E. Awards have brought together the brightest and most creative minds in games to celebrate outstanding achievement in interactive entertainment. This year is no exception as the hottest players representing all facets of the industry — from downloadable to console to mobile games — took center stage,? said Martin Rae, president, Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences.  ?From our many category winners to our distinguished honorees Gabe Newell, Dave Lebling and Marc Blank, we congratulate all the talented developers and publishers whose contributions led to another exceptional year in games.?

Hosted by actor, comedian, television host and Nerdist Chris Hardwick, the D.I.C.E. Awards took place at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas during the 2013 D.I.C.E. (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit (#DICE2013), which is produced by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences in conjunction with PMC/Variety. The event streamed live on MachinimaLive.com, and is now available to view at youtube.com/machinima.

Also during the Awards ceremony, industry legend, Gabe Newell, president and co-founder of Valve Corporation, became the 17^th inductee into the AIAS Hall of Fame, and Infocom co-founders Dave Lebling and Marc Blank received the 2013 AIAS Pioneer Award.

Since 1996, the D.I.C.E. Awards have recognized outstanding games, individuals and development teams that have contributed to the advancement of the multi-billion dollar worldwide entertainment software industry. Over a hundred titles were played and evaluated by members of the Academy?s Peer Panels. The panels are comprised of the game industry?s most experienced and talented men and women. Each panel is responsible for evaluating one award category. D.I.C.E. recipients are determined by a vote of qualified Academy members. Award voting is confidential, conducted online and supervised and certified by VoteNet Solutions, Inc. The integrity of the system, coupled with a broad-based voting population of AIAS members, makes the D.I.C.E. Awards the most credible, respected and recognized awards for interactive entertainment software.

The complete list of winners, as decided by a peer-based voting system, is as follows:

 

Action Game of the Year
Borderlands 2
Publisher:  2K Games
Developer: Gearbox Software
Mobile Game of the Year
Hero Academy
Publisher: Robot Entertainment
Developer: Robot Entertainment
Handheld Game of the Year
Paper Mario Sticker Star
Publisher: Nintendo of America, Inc.
Developer: Intelligent Systems
Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition
Journey
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: thatgamecompany
Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design
Journey
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: thatgamecompany
Outstanding Achievement in Story
The Walking Dead
Publisher: Telltale Games
Developer: Telltale Games
Outstanding Character Performance
The Walking Dead: Lee Everett
Publisher: Telltale Games
Developer: Telltale Games
Downloadable Game of the Year
The Walking Dead
Publisher: Telltale Games
Developer: Telltale Games
Casual Game of the Year
Journey
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: thatgamecompany
Web Based Game of the Year
SimCity Social
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Maxis, Playfish
Family Game of the Year
Skylanders Giants
Publisher: Activision
Developer: Toys for Bob
Role-Playing/Massively Multiplayer Game of the Year
Mass Effect 3
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Bioware
Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year
XCOM: Enemy Unknown
Publisher: 2K Games
Developer: Firaxis Games
Outstanding Innovation in Gaming
Journey
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: thatgamecompany
Sports Game of the Year
FIFA Soccer 13
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: EA Canada
Racing Game of the Year
Need for Speed Most Wanted
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Criterion Games
Fighting Game of the Year
PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: SuperBot Entertainment, Inc.
Outstanding Achievement in Online Gameplay
Journey
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: thatgamecompany
Outstanding Achievement in Connectivity
Halo 4
Publisher: Microsoft Studios
Developer: 343 Industries
Outstanding Achievement in Animation
Assassin?s Creed III
Publisher: Ubisoft
Developer: Ubisoft
Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction
Journey
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: thatgamecompany
Outstanding Achievement in Visual Engineering
Halo 4
Publisher: Microsoft Studios
Developer: 343 Industries
Outstanding Achievement in Gameplay Engineering
XCOM: Enemy Unknown
Publisher: 2K Games
Developer: Firaxis Games
Adventure Game of the Year
The Walking Dead
Publisher: Telltale Games
Developer: Telltale Games
Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction
Journey
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: thatgamecompany
Game of the Year
Journey
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: thatgamecompany