IGDA award nominees announced

God of War, Shadow of the Colossus lead the pack in peer-chosen award program with six and five nods, respectively.

The 2006 Game Developers Choice Awards are just around the corner, and the group today announced the slate of would-be winners for its March 22 presentation ceremony.

Hosted by the Game Developers Conference and presented by the International Game Developers Association (IGDA), the nominees are chosen and voted on solely by developers, providing a look at what industry professionals think are praiseworthy games.

"Every year, thousands of nominations are submitted by developers from around the world," said IGDA executive director Jason Della Rocca in a statement. "Voting on the final recipients will be extremely competitive, and who can spot excellence and creative achievement better than the creators themselves?"

To make sure games were not overlooked and that the end slate of titles were representative of developers worldwide, all IGDA members were given the chance to nominate games free of charge. Five finalists in each category were then selected by a 20-person advisory board, and the IGDA membership then votes on the winner of each category.

This year, God of War leads all games with six nominations, followed closely by a quintet of nods for Shadow of the Colossus. Project Gotham Racing 3, Guitar Hero, and Psychonauts each received three nominations. GameSpot's game of the year for 2005, Resident Evil 4, only garnered a single nomination, that one in the Visual Arts category.

The 2006 Game Developers Choice Awards ceremony will take place Wednesday, March 22 at 6:30 p.m. at the San Jose Civic Auditorium. In addition to the voted award categories, Lifetime Achievement, First Penguin, Community Contribution, Maverick, and Innovation awards will also be handed out. A complete list of announced nominees follows:

Best Game

Animal Crossing: Wild World (Nintendo EAD/Nintendo)
- Katsuya Eguchi, Hisashi Nogami, Takashi Tezuka, Kazumi Totaka

God of War (Sony Computer Entertainment America)
- David Jaffe, Shannon Studstill

Guitar Hero (Harmonix Music Systems/RedOctane)
- Rob Kay, Greg LoPiccolo, Alex Rigopulos

Shadow of the Colossus (Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.)
- Kenji Kaido, Yasuhide Kobayashi, Fumito Ueda

The Movies (Lionhead Studios/Activision)
- Gary Carr, Peter Molyneux, Mark Webley

Audio

Call of Duty 2 (Infinity Ward/Activision)
- Mark Ganus

Electroplankton (Nintendo)
- Toshio Iwai, Koichi Kyuma, Yuichi Ozaki

God of War (Sony Computer Entertainment America)
- Dave Murrant

Guitar Hero (Harmonix Music Systems/RedOctane)
- Eric Brosius, Kasson Crooker

Project Gotham Racing 3 (Bizarre Creations/Microsoft Game Studios)
- Nick Bygrave, Guy Whitmore, Nick Wiswell

Character Design

City of Villains (Cryptic Studios/NCsoft Corporation)
- Ocala Bellows Kulig, Ryan Butts, Jay Doherty, Jeremy Mattson

God of War (Sony Computer Entertainment America)
- David Jaffe, Terry Smith, Charlie Wen

Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath (Oddworld Inhabitants/Electronic Arts)
- Lorne Lanning, Rich McKain, Iain Morton, Raymond Swanland

Psychonauts (Double Fine Productions/Majesco Entertainment Company)
- Scott Campbell

Shadow of the Colossus (Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.)
- Atsuko Fukuyama, Hitoshi Niwa, Shunpei Suzuki, Fumito Ueda

Game Design

Animal Crossing: Wild World (Nintendo EAD/Nintendo)
- Katsuya Eguchi, Hisashi Nogami, Takashi Tezuka, Kazumi Totaka

God of War (Sony Computer Entertainment America)
- David Jaffe

Nintendogs (Nintendo EAD/Nintendo)
- Tsutomu Kaneshige, Hideki Konno, Shigeru Miyamoto, Kiyoshi Mizuki

Psychonauts (Double Fine Productions/Majesco Entertainment Company)
- Erik Robson, Tim Schafer

Shadow of the Colossus (Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.)
- Junichi Hosono, Fumito Ueda

Technology

Battlefield 2: Modern Combat (Digital Illusions/Electronic Arts)
- Fred Gill, Måns Vestin

Guitar Hero (Harmonix Music Systems/RedOctane)
- Eran Egozy, Eric Malafeew, Phil Winston

Nintendogs (Nintendo EAD/Nintendo)
- Tsutomu Kaneshige

Project Gotham Racing 3 (Bizarre Creations/Microsoft Game Studios)
- Edmund Clay, Roger Perkins, Phil Teschner, Ian Wilson

Shadow of the Colossus (Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.)
- Jinji Horagai, Takuya Seki, Hajime Sugiyama, Masanobu Tanaka

Visual Arts

God of War (Sony Computer Entertainment America)
- Steve Caterson, Terry Smith, Charlie Wen

Project Gotham Racing 3 (Bizarre Creations/Microsoft Game Studios)
- Gren Atherton, Julie McGurren, Peter Roe, Kiki Wolfkill

Resident Evil 4 (Capcom Production Studio 4/Capcom Entertainment)
- Yusuke Hashimoto, Yoshiaki Hirabayashi, Yusuke Kan, Masaki Yamanaka

Shadow of the Colossus (Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.)
- Koji Hasegawa, Hironobu Nakano, Masanori Kajita, Fumito Ueda

We Love Katamari (Namco Limited/Namco Hometek)
- Keita Takahashi, Takeshi Ugajin

Writing

Freedom Force vs. The 3rd Reich (Irrational Games/Vivendi Universal Games)
- Ken Levine

God of War (Sony Computer Entertainment America)
- David Jaffe, Marianne Krawcyzk, Alex Stein

Indigo Prophecy (Quantic Dream/Atari)
- David Cage

Jade Empire (BioWare Corp./Microsoft Game Studios)
- Drew Karpyshyn, Brian Kindregan, Luke Kristjanson, Mike Laidlaw, Peter Thomas, Mac Walters

Psychonauts (Double Fine Productions/Majesco Entertainment Company)
- Tim Schafer, Erik Wolpaw

New Studio

ArenaNet (Guild Wars)
- Mike O'Brien, Jeff Strain, Patrick Wyatt

Double Fine Productions (Psychonauts)
- Caroline Esmurdoc, Tim Schafer

New Crayon Games (Bonnie's Bookstore)
- Phil Steinmeyer

TellTale Games (Bone: Out From Boneville)
- David Bogan, Kevin Bruner, Dan Connors, Troy Molander

Wideload Games (Stubbs the Zombie in Rebel Without a Pulse)
- Alexander Seropian

47 Comments

  • carlspoonster

    Posted Mar 4, 2006 5:24 pm PT

    Shadow of the Colossus should get definitely win the art award, and character design. The graphics were definitely the best Ive seen on current gen games. Also it was so unique, its so different from any other game out there. I'm awaiting with much exitement for the sequel on PS3.

    PS. SotC is a prequel to ICO, for those that didnt know. (Look at the horns)

  • GunslingerMan

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 2:38 pm PT

    PS : Shadow of the colossus for GOTY !

  • GunslingerMan

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 2:37 pm PT

    Every RE fan is bashing this award show now This is the best video game award show there is with out a doubt im glad that shadow is nominated as many times at it is . RE4 is good, but ive got to agree with them, but comon Animal Crossing Wild World GOTY nominee ?

  • tuff_gong92

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 10:05 am PT

    viva la GOD OF WAR!

  • raaas3

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 10:02 am PT

    i think gow deserve all these awards and more
    i think re4 is repetitive and boring after 2 hours or less
    in a few words
    and please DONT COMPARE GOW WITH THE FUKING DMC SERIES
    BECAUSE IT LACKS LOTS OF THINGS TO REACH THE QUALITY OF GOW
    in a few words ;
    ALL OF THE GAMES IN THE WORLD SUCKS EXCEPT GOW

  • Paul_TheGreat

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 8:26 am PT

    RE4 should had more, but good news for SotC and GoW.

  • Yagami-Iori

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 8:15 am PT

    RE4 is only in one category? We have another joke award show, ladies & gents!

  • soulessjay

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 7:58 am PT

    GOW is a great game.

  • spartan202

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 7:40 am PT

    WaY To Go GOW

  • aboghannam

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 7:16 am PT

    Where is F.E.A.R.? Where is Battlefield 2? Where is Jade Empire? Where is Half-Life 2 (Xbox)? and above all, where is RE4?

  • ryustruck

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 7:07 am PT

    bout time RE4 wasnt nominated, Shadow of the Collosus was Awe inspiring, it had better ****ing win

  • SavoyPrime

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 6:41 am PT

    God of War is a BEAST!

  • MetaMods

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 5:25 am PT

    If you keep saying RE4 deserve in Best Game award? then u must be compoare RE4 to rest of RE series but not the other games. It's wasnt even the best game of the year at all, the graphic was average and the gameplay was average but the camera make this game a little hard to see. So finally a REAL award here, not like rest of magazine and site saying game of the year: RE4.........ya I bet Capcom pays them for that little awards.

  • chrisdojo

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 5:20 am PT

    how many of these stinkin things are there? (best game, sound, etc.)

  • Fatality4u

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 5:05 am PT

    The Movies for best game!!! Dear lord we are all in trouble.

  • s0l0123

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 4:58 am PT

    yay God of War... great game...

  • galerian86

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 4:08 am PT

    for me....re4 is just a much better improvement to the re series...it revolutionized the series, i agree......but it didnt do nothing much to the whole game industry i guess....so many third-person game does the aiming better than re4 did... the lack of side stepping frustrated me the most.....

  • Orasion_Seiz

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 3:23 am PT

    as always,God of War is nominated.

  • tienchiha

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 1:44 am PT

    Not one PSP title........hmmmm

  • ewjim

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 12:51 am PT

    God of War almost in all nominations! That's good!

  • Reetesh

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 12:16 am PT

    Most porbably there is some kind of ANTI marketing going on I think because RE4 got a lot of POstivie review and people are nhappy that other games are being overshadowed by it:p But even then Al the noinees seem Fair. I mean Animal crossing and Movies deserve to be there as they really did something Unique and unlike others and something that is VERY difficult to do.

  • KiLLer_ba

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 12:16 am PT

    Im surprised that Re4 wasnt in the best game list (since it got game of the year) But my second fav game of 2k5, God of War has a lot of nominations

  • Baroque-Legacy

    Posted Feb 28, 2006 12:01 am PT

    Looks like a great list! Hope to see both Psychonauts and Shadow of the Colossus get some love!

  • iamleon

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 9:50 pm PT

    My Kratos！！！

  • mrimkeit

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 9:28 pm PT

    OdinDragoonX
    GoW is just a DMC clone, and it gets so damn repetative. Come on people, hype up GoW some more, cause it really falls flat on its face compared to the hype it has recieved.----------- You obviously now sqaut about good game design. Obviously you think you know more about good game design than the people who freaking make the very games you and I play. You know that is who chose this list, right? I am going to college for Game Design and Art and I tell you that GoW is so much more than DMC. it has better controls, a better camera, better story, better characters, better everything pretty much. I like DMC a lot, but GoW is near perfection in terms of good game design. --- I repeat to everyone here, this NOT about how kool you thought the game was or how awesome it was. It is about GAME DESIGN. It is an art and a science and if anyone here thinks it is easy stuff then you are fools. The people who compiled this list have studied Game Design for decades. They now more than me, you or anyone who works here at even Gamespot. If anyone here knew as much as them, then you would have a job making 100K+ a year plus benefits and a 401K plan. You can have your opinions, put these people are professinals. And if you think you DO know as much as them, go to college, join their ranks and make games. I am.

  • Fallout_red

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 7:23 pm PT

    Im with you Onizuka36.
    I have RE4 and its hype was even more than GOW's. RE4 is a great sequel and a good and standard game that does its best to do everything right. Good story, graphics, sound and acceptable gameplay but nothing new or special let alone innovative and groundbreaking. its writing is nothing compared to Psychonauts, GOW or Indigo (infact story of Capcom's Devil May Cry 3 DA was way better than RE4). Graphics? ok they could be here. I agree that Animal Crossing isnt fit but RE4 is not the replacement.
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    --== Real GAMES that had to be there: 1)F.E.A.R. 2)Civilization IV 3)GT4 4)KOTORII: Sith Lords 5)Devil May Cry 3A ==--

    --== Games that had to have more nods: 1)Psychonauts 2)Indigo Prophecy 3)The Movies ==--

    --== Games that should not be there: 1)AC:WW 2)City of Villains (Hey were is Killer 7?) ==--

    --== Games that deserve not being there: 1)Tekken 5 (=Tekken 3 +2) 2)Ninja Gaiden Black ==--

  • Attunnel

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 7:03 pm PT

    Thats crazy! I played Animal Crossing and it is fun, just not game of the year. How can Resident Evil 4 receive only one nomination?

  • NintendoDSShugo

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 6:28 pm PT

    AC:WW for best game? WTF were they smoking?

  • BigC43

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 6:27 pm PT

    HMMM... I have played... none of the Game of the Year nominees. I will try RE4 and The Movies pretty soon, so I'll have a clearer picture as far as the others soon.

  • MattLee_basic

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 6:01 pm PT

    I may be confusing News I've read here in the past, but I thought that it was b/c Capcom didn't want to join that group or whatever, thus their game (RE4) was not nominated...am I wrong? I can't remember.

  • nemes1s3000

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 5:59 pm PT

    Animal Crossing actually got first spot for best game? Weird.

  • godoftheds

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 5:54 pm PT

    wtf... how did re4 only get one nomination...I know for a fact it is FAR better then animal crossing ds i have them both. these people are on crack...

  • DIS_AMERICA

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 5:47 pm PT

    I think Psychonauts should win the best writing award, since it had an awesome story line with well written and humorous dialogue.

  • emanziboy

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 5:38 pm PT

    I personally believe that God of War is the best game of the year, but you have to be INSANE not to nominate Resident Evil 4 for game of the year. Animal Crossing is NOTHING compared to RE4. Animal Crossing wasn't even that good.

  • Onizuka36

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 5:26 pm PT

    God of War will probably take GOTY but it is hard to tell with devs. Guitar Hero SHOULD take the audio award. I would personally give several of the awards to SOTC, but I am not quite sure how the devs feel about it. We'll just have to wait and see.
    I'm actually not surprised about RE4 not getting nominated for GOTY. It was a POPULAR game but not neccessarily the BEST game when it comes to how it was developed. I'm sure the devs are looking for a good game that is innovative and pushes the boundaries. I have not actually played RE4 so for all I know it may have all these things, but I am sure there is a good reason they didn't nominate it for more than one award.

  • j14rk1n

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 5:16 pm PT

    Damn, that's awesome. Good for Jaffe and his team- they deserve to be nominated after working as hard as they did.

  • HuhJustaBox

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 5:00 pm PT

    Best game of the year... God of War, Guitar Hero, Shadow of the Colossus... its good to have a PS2!

  • rbarahona

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 4:49 pm PT

    It's a shame that Resident Evil wasn't nominated for game of the year. It was a great game overall and I think that it's really sad that this game didn't got nominated.

  • Karsha2

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 4:49 pm PT

    SOTC will win without any doubt

  • OdinDragoonX

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 4:34 pm PT

    GoW is just a DMC clone, and it gets so damn repetative. Come on people, hype up GoW some more, cause it really falls flat on its face compared to the hype it has recieved.

  • Mit_Man

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 4:32 pm PT

    RE4 with one nomination and no game of the year? HELLOOO??? They're supposed to know their stuff. I like how they can appreciate the lesser known games for their good aspects like Shadow of the Colossus and Psychonauts and Indigo Prophecy, but no RE4 game of the year or other awards? THE GAME IS AMAZING. It's innovative, new, and has great EVERYTHING. People these days...

  • Pradmetro

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 4:26 pm PT

    who wanna wager $5 bucks that GoW will take most of the awards?

  • magus704

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 4:24 pm PT

    RE4 with only one nomination? Who would've thought that the developers would think so lowly of, clearly, one of the best games of 2005.

  • jamil2nice

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 4:23 pm PT

    Resident Evil 4? FEAR? is this award show worse than SpikeTV?

  • fore_runner

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 4:22 pm PT

    CoD will always get best sound

  • DrCFLY

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 4:21 pm PT

    god of war is amazing

  • colinjennison

    Posted Feb 27, 2006 4:20 pm PT

    Nice. 1st.

    Pretty obvious with the nominees in the first category that God of War is going to win... Not that PGR3 wasn't a great game, it was. But "the Movies"? And what is that animal crossing game? A DS title? Woulda thought they'd go with that Nintendogs game they talk so much about rather than a game I haven't even heard of... I heard of the original but never heard of that one... I would pick RE4 as GOTY over any of the nominated titles.

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