Batman: Arkham Asylum scores Best Game, Gameplay BAFTAs

The British Academy Video Game Awards celebrated the past 12 months in gaming again this year with a lavish central London awards ceremony. The British Academy of Film and Television Arts, which has recently placed an emphasis on games, now holds interactive entertainment as its third arm alongside the more traditional film and television departments.

Batman: Arkham Asylum, which was developed by London-based studio Rocksteady, picked up major awards for Best Game and Gameplay. Rocksteady, which Warner Bros. recently acquired a majority stake in, is coming off a big win at the Game Developers Choice Awards last week, where it upset Uncharted 2: Drake's Fortune in the Best Game Design category.

Speaking of Uncharted 2, Naughty Dog's top-rated action adventure celebrated the biggest haul of the night with four awards. The PlayStation 3 exclusive won the Action, Original Score, Story, and Use of Audio awards. Other top honorees at the event included Mario inventor Shigeru Miyamoto, who won the Fellowship Award. Miyamoto joins Atari founder Nolan Bushnell and Sim City creator Will Wright as an honorary member of the BAFTA fellowship.

Notably, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 picked up a win for the publicly voted Game Award of 2009, but it was an Activision UK representative--and not an Infinity Ward developer--that collected the award. The absence follows on from significant turmoil within Infinity Ward, following the unexpected termination of studio heads Jason West and Vince Zampella. The two are now suing Activision for $36 million in damages.

Tonight's awards were presented by comedian Dara O'Briain for the second time and were again held at London's Hilton Metropole Hotel. Each category was voted on by a panel of eight to nine video game professionals, except The Game Award of 2009, which was voted for by the public.

The full list of nominees is below, with winners highlighted in bold.

Action
WINNER: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Assassin's Creed II
Batman: Arkham Asylum
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Infamous
Left 4 Dead 2

Artistic Achievement
WINNER: Flower
Assassin's Creed II
Batman: Arkham Asylum
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Streetfighter IV
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Best Game
WINNER: Batman: Arkham Asylum
Assassin's Creed II
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
FIFA 10
Left 4 Dead 2
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Family & Social
WINNER: Wii Sports Resort
The Beatles: Rock Band
Buzz! Quiz World
EyePet
Guitar Hero 5
New Super Mario Bros Wii

Gameplay
WINNER: Batman: Arkham Asylum
Assassin's Creed II
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
New Super Mario Bros Wii
PixelJunk Shooter
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Handheld
WINNER: Little Big Planet (PSP)
Gran Turismo
LocoRoco Midnight Carnival
Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story
Professor Layton and Pandora's Box
Scribblenauts

Multiplayer
WINNER: Left 4 Dead 2
Battlefield 1943
The Beatles: Rock Band
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Halo 3 ODST
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Original Score
WINNER: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Assassin's Creed II
Batman: Arkham Asylum
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
PixelJunk Shooter

Sports
WINNER: FIFA 10
Colin McRae: DiRT 2
Football Manager 2010
Forza Motorsport 3
Wii Fit Plus
Wii Sports Resort

Story
WINNER: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Assassin's Creed II
Batman: Arkham Asylum
Broken Sword – Shadow of the Templars: The Director's Cut
Brutal Legend
Dragon Age: Origins

Strategy
WINNER: Empire: Total War
Command and Conquer 3: Uprising
FIFA Manager 10
Football Manager 2010
Halo Wars
Plants vs. Zombies

Use of Audio
WINNER: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Batman: Arkham Asylum
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
DJ Hero
Flower
Left 4 Dead 2

Use of Online
WINNER: FIFA 10
Battlefield 1943
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Little Big Planet (PSP)
Singstar TakeThat
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

GAME Award
WINNER: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Assassin's Creed II
Batman Arkham Asylum
The Beatles: Rockband
FIFA 10
GTA China Town Wars
Legend of Zelda Spirit Tracks
Street Fighter IV
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Wii Sports Resort

The Fellowship Award
Shigeru Miyamoto