Celebrating its 20th year of honoring the industry’s top games, The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS), the non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement and recognition of the interactive arts representing its 33,000+ membership base, is pleased to announce the recipients of the D.I.C.E. Awards for the best games from 2016. Earning Game of the Year was Overwatch by Blizzard Entertainment, which challenges players to join the ranks of a legendary force of soldiers, scientists, adventurers and oddities, and clash on the battlefields of a near-future Earth. The awards were unveiled at the annual D.I.C.E. Awards ceremony, held at The Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas earlier this evening.
The AIAS membership honored games in 24 award categories, including Overwatch and Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, which received four awards each. INSIDE won three awards, including the D.I.C.E. Sprite Award, which recognizes a game with limited resources for development and exposure (as compared to AAA titles). Other top honorees were Pokémon GO for Mobile Game of the Year, Steep for Sports Game of the Year, Street Fighter V for Fighting Game of the Year and Dark Souls III for RPG/MMO Game of the Year. Winners for newly added awards that recognized achievement and innovation in virtual reality and augmented reality games, included SUPERHOT VR for Immersive Reality Game of the Year and Eagle Flight for Immersive Reality Technical Achievement.
In addition to the awards for the industry’s best games and creators from the previous year, the D.I.C.E. Awards also honored Todd Howard, Executive Producer and Game Director at Bethesda Game Studios, as the 22nd inductee into the AIAS Hall of Fame, which honors individuals who have been instrumental in the development of highly influential games. Howard was recognized for having created some of the industry’s most successful games by pioneering open-world gameplay, and played a key role in the creative direction and growth of highly-regarded franchises, including The Elder Scrolls and Fallout. Both are known for their experiential approach to world-building and storytelling, and have earning multiple D.I.C.E. Awards throughout the years.
The 20th annual D.I.C.E. Awards ceremony, which was co-hosted by Jessica Chobot of Nerdist News and Kinda Funny co-founder Greg Miller, was the culmination of the annual three-day D.I.C.E. (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit (#DICE2017), which is known for drawing many of the interactive entertainment industry’s most respected and influential leaders, decision makers and visionaries.
Click here to view the nominees and winners.
Click here to watch the full broadcast.
Game of the Year
Overwatch
Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction
INSIDE
Outstanding Achievement in Game Design
Overwatch
Immersive Reality Technical Achievement
Eagle Flight
Immersive Reality Game of the Year
SUPERHOT VR
Mobile Game of the Year
Pokémon GO
Handheld Game of the Year
Pokémon Sun and Moon
D.I.C.E. Sprite Award
INSIDE
Outstanding Achievement in Online Gameplay
Overwatch
Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year
Sid Meier’s Civilization VI
Sports Game of the Year
Steep
Role-Playing/Massively Multiplayer Game of the Year
Dark Souls III
Racing Game of the Year
Forza Horizon 3
Fighting Game of the Year
Street Fighter V
Family Game of the Year
Ratchet & Clank
Adventure Game of the Year
Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
Action Game of the Year
Overwatch
Outstanding Technical Achievement
Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
Outstanding Achievement in Story
Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design
Battlefield 1
Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition
DOOM
Outstanding Achievement in Character
The Last Guardian - Trico
Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction
INSIDE
Outstanding Achievement in Animation
Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
Click here for the full press release.