And the Interactive Achievement Award Winner is...

Section: 

This press release from The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences announces the winners from the February 27th Interactive Achievement Awards ceremony. It looks like they were able to spread the accolades around a little. Personally, I'm pleased to see Animal Crossing showing up a few times in the list. And apparently The Academy had a better time trying to get Battlefield 1942 to work than I.

Take a look inside for the press release and winners.

THE VIDEO GAMES INDUSTRY NAMES THE BEST OF THE BEST:

ACADEMY OF INTERACTIVE ARTS AND SCIENCES' SIXTH ANNUAL INTERACTIVE ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS PRESENTED IN LAS VEGAS

LAS VEGAS, NV - FEBRUARY 28, 2003 - The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences presented Interactive Achievement Awards in 30 craft, console, and online categories, at a star-studded event last night at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. Electronic Arts was the big winner with a record 13 awards.

Battlefield 1942, published by Electronic Arts and developed by Digital Illusions, took home the most awards, a total of four, including Game of the Year, Computer Game of the Year, Innovation in Computer Gaming, and Online Gameplay of the Year. Animal Crossing, published by Nintendo of America and developed by Nintendo Co. Ltd., received the next highest number of awards, a total of three, including Innovation in Console Gaming, Console Role-Playing Game of the Year, and Outstanding Achievement in Game Design. Overall, Nintendo received a very impressive seven awards.

"These awards are important because they represent the industry's picks of the top video games from an amazing field of innovation and creativity," said Paul Provenzano, President of the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. "This year's winners represent a bold and diverse group of games that illustrate how our industry continues to be a pre-eminent force in entertainment."

SEGA®'s Yu Suzuki, known as a forefather of console video gaming, won the Academy's coveted Hall of Fame Award.

The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences Interactive Achievement Award winners include (in alphabetical order):

Computer Action Game of the Year - 2002
Grand Theft Auto III
* Publisher: Rockstar Games
* Developer: Rockstar North

Computer First Person Action Game of the Year - 2002
Medal of Honor: Allied Assault
* Publisher: Electronic Arts
* Developer: 2015 Inc.

Computer Game of the Year - 2002
Battlefield 1942
* Publisher: Electronic Arts
* Developer: Digital Illusions

Computer Role Playing Game of the Year - 2002
Neverwinter Nights
* Publisher: Infogrames
* Developer: Bioware

Computer Simulation Game of the Year - 2002
The Sims Unleashed
* Publisher: Electronic Arts
* Developer: EA Maxis

Computer Sports Game of the Year - 2002
Madden NFL 2003
* Publisher: Electronic Arts
* Developer: EA Tiburon

Computer Strategy Game of the Year - 2002
Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos
* Publisher: Blizzard Entertainment
* Developer: Blizzard Entertainment

Console Action Adventure Game of the Year - 2002
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
* Publisher: Rockstar Games
* Developer: Rockstar North

Console Fighting Game of the Year - 2002
Tekken 4
* Publisher: Namco
* Developer: Namco

Console First Person Action Game of the Year - 2002
Metroid Prime
* Publisher: Nintendo of America
* Developer: Retro Studios

Console Game of the Year - 2002
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell
* Publisher: Ubi Soft
* Developer: Ubi Soft Montreal

Console Platform Action Adventure Game of the Year - 2002
Ratchet & Clank
* Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
* Developer: Insomniac Games

Console Racing Game of the Year - 2002
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2
* Publisher: Electronic Arts
* Developer: EA Black Box

Console Role Playing Game of the Year - 2002
Animal Crossing
* Publisher: Nintendo of America
* Developer: Nintendo Co. Ltd.

Console Sports Game of the Year - 2002
Madden NFL 2003
* Publisher: Electronic Arts
* Developer: EA Tiburon

Family Game of the Year - 2002
Mario Party 4
* Publisher: Nintendo of America
* Developer: Hudson Soft Co. Ltd.

Game of the Year - 2002
Battlefield 1942
* Publisher: Electronic Arts
* Developer: Digital Illusions

Hall of Fame Award
Yu Suzuki, SEGA

Handheld Game of the Year - 2002
Metroid Fusion
* Publisher: Nintendo of America
* Developer: Nintendo Co. Ltd.

Innovation in Computer Gaming - 2002
Battlefield 1942
* Publisher: Electronic Arts
* Developer: Digital Illusions

Innovation in Console Gaming - 2002
Animal Crossing
* Publisher: Nintendo of America
* Developer: Nintendo Co. Ltd.

Massively Multiplayer / Persistent World Game of the Year - 2002
The Sims Online
* Publisher: Electronic Arts
* Developer: EA MAXIS

Online Gameplay Game of the Year - 2002
Battlefield 1942
* Publisher: Electronic Arts
* Developer: Digital Illusions

Outstanding Achievement in Animation - 2002
Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus
* Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
* Developer: Sucker Punch

Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction - 2002
Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus
* Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
* Developer: Sucker Punch

Outstanding Achievement in Character or Story - 2002
Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem
* Publisher: Nintendo of America
* Developer: Silicon Knights

Outstanding Achievement in Game Design - 2002
Animal Crossing
* Publisher: Nintendo of America
* Developer: Nintendo Co. Ltd.

Outstanding Achievement in Gameplay Engineering - 2002
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell
* Publisher: Ubi Soft
* Developer: Ubi Soft Montreal

Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition - 2002
Medal of Honor: Frontline
* Publisher: Electronic Arts
* Developer: EALA

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design - 2002
Medal of Honor: Frontline
* Publisher: Electronic Arts
* Developer: EALA

Outstanding Achievement in Visual Engineering - 2002
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
* Publisher: Electronic Arts
* Developer: Stormfront Studios

The Interactive Achievement Awards, which were held during the annual D.I.C.E. Summit (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain), were hosted by comedian and actor Dave Foley, best known as the star of the long-running NBC comedy series, News Radio. Among the awards presenters were extreme sports personality Tony Hawk; multi-sensory performance troupe Blue Man Group; actress Kelly Hu, star of the upcoming X2, the sequel to the blockbuster film X-Men; Kristen Dalton, star of USA's hit Sci-Fi The Dead Zone; Kristina Anapau, star of the VH-1 Original movie, They Shoot Divas, Don't They?; and Mike Metzger, the undisputed pioneer of freestyle motocross. The show also featured a special musical performance by the recording act, Unwritten Law.

G4, the TV network all about video games, will air a one-hour special on the Interactive Achievement Awards.

About the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences

Located in Los Angeles, CA, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) is an official professional academy of the $7+billion interactive entertainment software industry. AIAS is supported by the industry's leading companies and counts among its board of directors representatives from Activision, Bioware Entertainment, Electronic Arts, Ensemble Studios, Infogrames, Insomniac Games, Interactive Digital Software Association, Microsoft, Nintendo of America, Oddworld Inhabitants, Sony Computer Entertainment America, Sierra Entertainment, and Carnegie Mellon University.

For more information about AIAS, the DICE Summit, or the Interactive Achievement Awards, visit www.interactive.org, or www.dicesummit.com.

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Comments

Please explain to me how The Sims Online wins Massively Multiplayer / Persistent World Game of the Year - 2002.  It's a total train wreck, from what I've read. 

Good doesn't always mean popular.  It may not have sold as much as EA would have liked, but that doesn't mean it's a bad game.  Compared to other MMOG that came out last year it was pretty innovative.

The award for most predictable gaming award show goes to...these guys!

I disagree Krieg.  It's a good idea poorly implemented.  I played several weeks of the beta, willing to give it the benefit of the doubt, and there's nothing there to get excited about.  It lacks both innovation and content.  By comparison a game like Asheron's Call 2 is significantly better in almost every respect, and I'm not even that big a fan of AC2. 

What problems did you have with Battlefield sway? It worked out of the box for me, and I bought it when it came out in September. Occasional sound glitch sometimes but thats all.