E3 2011: BioShock Infinite, Uncharted 3 lead Game Critics Awards nominations

In addition to GameSpot's own Best of E3 Awards, each year the Game Critics Awards honors the top games from the annual Electronic Entertainment Expo. This year was no exception, with the press organization today announcing its nominees from the 2011 trade show in Los Angeles, which took place earlier this month.

Two titles--BioShock Infinite and Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception--each garnered four nominations, making them the most-honored by the panel. Seven titles--Batman: Arkham City, Battlefield 3, From Dust, Sound Shapes, Star Wars: The Old Republic, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, and Tomb Raider--garnered three nods each. Meanwhile, nine games--Bastion, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Dance Central 2, End of Nations, Gears of War 3, Journey, Mass Effect 3, Mario Kart (3DS), and Rocksmith--scored two nominations a pop.

By publisher, Electronic Arts and Sony Computer Entertainment each landed 14 nominations, followed by Microsoft with 11. Ubisoft received seven nods, with Nintendo and Warner Bros. each getting six. Bethesda and 2K Games pulled five nominations each, followed by Namco Bandai and Square Enix with three nominations a pop. Activision, Capcom, 2K Games, and THQ each landed two.

Of the major gaming platforms, the Game Critics Awards gave the Xbox 360 the most nominations--55 in total. Behind it was the PlayStation 3 with 48 nods, then the PC with 42. Though not released yet, the PlayStation Vita got seven nominations, followed by the recently launched 3DS with three. The Wii received just two nods, one more than its successor, the Wii U, which was unveiled at E3.

The Game Critics Awards Best of E3 2011 nominees are determined by a panel of judges from 35 different publications. These include GameSpot, the Associated Press, Game Informer, the Hollywood Reporter, Joystiq, and USA Today. A full list of the nominees is below.

Best of Show
- Batman: Arkham City (Rocksteady/WB Games for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- BioShock Infinite (Irrational Games/2K Games for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Tomb Raider (Crystal Dynamics/Square Enix for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (Naughty Dog/SCEA for PlayStation 3)

Best Original Game
- Bastion (Supergiant Games/WB Games for PC, Xbox 360)
- BioShock Infinite (Irrational Games/2K Games for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- From Dust (Ubisoft Montpellier/Ubisoft for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Journey (Thatgamecompany/SCEA for PlayStation 3)
- Sound Shapes (Queasy Games/SCEA for PS Vita)

Best Console Game
- Batman: Arkham City (Rocksteady/WB Games for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Mass Effect 3 (BioWare/EA Games for PS3, Xbox 360)
- The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Tomb Raider (Crystal Dynamics/Square Enix for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (Naughty Dog/SCEA for PlayStation 3)

Best Handheld/Mobile Game
- Contre Jour (Mokus/Chillingo/EA for iPad, iPhone)
- Mario Kart (Nintendo/Nintendo for 3DS)
- Sound Shapes (Queasy Games/SCEA for PS Vita)
- Super Mario (Nintendo EAD Tokyo/Nintendo for 3DS)
- Uncharted: Golden Abyss (SCE Bend Studio/Naughty Dog/SCEA for PS Vita)

Best PC Game
- Battlefield 3 (DICE/EA Games for PC)
- BioShock Infinite (Irrational Games/2K Games for PC)
- End of Nations (Petroglyph Games/Trion Worlds for PC)
- Star Wars: The Old Republic (BioWare Austin/EA Games for PC)
- Torchlight 2 (Runic Games/Perfect World for PC)

Best Hardware
- PlayStation Vita (Sony Computer Entertainment)
- Rocksmith (Ubisoft San Francisco/Ubisoft for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Sony 3D Display (Sony Computer Entertainment)
- Wii U (Nintendo)
- Zoom for Kinect (Nyko)

Best Action Game
- Battlefield 3 (DICE/EA Games for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (Infinity Ward/Sledgehammer/ATVI for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Gears of War 3 (Epic Games/Microsoft Studios for Xbox 360)
- Prey 2 (Human Head Studios/Bethesda for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
- Rage (id Software/Bethesda for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360)

Best Action/Adventure Game
- Assassin's Creed: Revelations (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
- Batman: Arkham City (Rocksteady/WB Games for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- BioShock infinite (Irrational Games/2K Games for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Tomb Raider (Crystal Dynamics/Square Enix for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (Naughty Dog/SCEA for PlayStation 3)

Best Role-Playing Game
- Dark Souls (From Software/Namco Bandai Games for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning (Big Huge Games/38 Studios/EAP for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
- Mass Effect 3 (BioWare/EA Games for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Star Wars: The Old Republic (BioWare Austin/EA for PC)
- The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)

Best Racing Game
- Driver: San Francisco (Ubisoft Reflections/Ubisoft for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Forza 4 (Turn 10 Studios/Microsoft Studios for Xbox 360)
- Mario Kart (Nintendo/Nintendo for 3DS)
- Need for Speed: The Run (EA Black Box/EA Games for PC, PS3, Xbox 360, Wii)
- Wipeout 2048 (Studio Liverpool/SCEE for PS Vita)

Best Fighting Game
- Skullgirls (Reverge Labs/Autumn Games for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Online Edition (Iron Galaxy Studios/Capcom for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Street Fighter X Tekken (Capcom/Capcom for PS3, Xbox 360, PS Vita)
- Soul Calibur V (Namco/Namco Bandai for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Tekken Tag Tournament 2 (Namco Bandai Games for Arcade)
- WWE 12 (Yuke's/THQ for PS3, Xbox 360, Wii)

Best Sports Game
- FIFA Soccer 12 (EA Canada/EA Sports for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Madden NFL 12 (EA Tiburon/EA Sports for PS3, Xbox 360)
- NBA 2K12 (Visual Concepts/2K Sports for PS3, Xbox 360)
- SSX (EA Canada/EA Sports for PS3, Xbox 360)
- UFC Undisputed 3 (Yuke's/THQ for PS3, Xbox 360)

Best Strategy Game
- Age of Empires Online (Gas Powered Games/Microsoft Studios for PC)
- End of Nations (Petroglyph/Trion Worlds for PC)
- From Dust (Ubisoft Montpellier/Ubisoft for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Skulls of the Shogun (Haunted Temple Studios for PC, Xbox 360)
- Trenched (Double Fine/Microsoft Studios for Xbox 360)

Best Social/Casual Game
- Dance Central 2 (Harmonix/Microsoft Studios for Xbox 360)
- Disneyland Adventures (Frontier Developments/Microsoft Studios for Xbox 360)
- Rocksmith (Ubisoft San Francisco/Ubisoft for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Rhythm Heaven (TNX/Nintendo for Wii)
- Sound Shapes (Queasy Games/SCEA for PS Vita)

Best Motion Simulation Game
- Dance Central 2 (Harmonix/Microsoft Studios for Xbox 360)
- Fruit Ninja Kinect (Halfbrick/Microsoft Studios for Xbox 360)
- Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster (Double Fine Productions/WB Games for Xbox 360)
- The Gunstringer (Twisted Pixel Games/Microsoft Studios for Xbox 360)
- The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Nintendo EAD/Nintendo for Wii)

Best Online Multiplayer Game
- Battlefield 3 (DICE/EA for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (Infinity Ward/Sledgehammer/ATVI for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Gears of War 3 (Epic Games/Microsoft Studios for Xbox 360)
- Star Wars: The Old Republic (BioWare Austin/EA for PC)
- Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (Naughty Dog/SCEA for PlayStation 3)

Best Downloadable Game
- Bastion (Supergiant Games/WB Games for PC, Xbox 360)
- From Dust (Ubisoft Montpellier/Ubisoft for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
- Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet (Fuelcell Games/Microsoft Studios for Xbox 360)
- Journey (Thatgamecompany/SCEA for PlayStation 3)
- Papo & Yo (Minority/SCEA for PlayStation 3)