MGS4, Mario Kart Wii honored at Japan Game Awards

The Consumer Electronic Supplier's Association-run Tokyo Game Show wrapped up on Sunday, and with the dust settling, it has become apparent that the event saw significant contraction from last year. As announced earlier today, attendance fell from 194,000 in 2008 to 185,000 this year. Exhibitor count was also off last year's mark as just 180 companies showed off 758 games, down from a respective 209 and 879 in 2008.

However, the show also played home to the CESA's Japan Game Awards, which includes honors for last year's top titles, as well as nods to upcoming games with the most potential. In the Game of the Year division, which applies to those titles that saw release between April 1, 2008, and March 31, 2009, the CESA handed out its Grand Award to Nintendo's Mario Kart Wii and Konami's Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots as the top two titles of the period.

Mario Kart Wii and MGS4 joined nine other games as winners of the Award of Excellence, though the CESA wasn't entirely clear on how these games were judged. Other winners within the Game of the Year division included Pokemon Platinum Version, which took home the Best Sales Award with 2.4 million units domestically and 5.6 million globally. Wii Fit and Grand Theft Auto IV took home honors for Global Award Japanese Product and Foreign Product, respectively.

As reported by Japanese gaming news site Andria Sang, the Future awards, which are limited to upcoming releases, were determined after polling TGS attendees between September 24 and September 26--or, the first two media-only days, as well as one open-to-the-public day.

In all, 12 winners were determined, with Japanese companies, such as Square Enix, Sega, and Capcom, receiving the most nods. The games range from global prominence, such as Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed II and Square Enix's Final Fantasy XIII, to lesser-known, relatively niche games, including Level 5's Ni no Kuni and Namco Bandai's Tales of Graces. The full list of winners for the Future awards can be found below.

Grand Award
Mario Kart Wii - Wii - Nintendo
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots - PS3 - Konami

Award of Excellence
Dissidia Final Fantasy - PSP - Square Enix
Demon's Souls - PS3 - Sony Computer Entertainment
BioHazard 5 - PS3/360 - Capcom
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4 - PS2 - Atlus Pokemon Platinum Version - DS - Nintendo
Mario Kart Wii - Wii - Nintendo
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots - PS3 - Konami
428: In the blocked city, Shibuya - Wii - Sega
Rhythm Heaven - DS - Nintendo
Yakuza 3 - PS3 - Sega
Professor Layton and the Last Time Travel - DS - Level 5

Special Award
Monster Hunter Freedom Unite - PSP - Capcom
Style Savvy - DS - Nintendo

Best Sales Award
Pokemon Platinum Version - DS - Nintendo

Global Award: Japanese Product
Wii Fit - Wii - Nintendo

Global Award: Foreign Product
Grand Theft Auto IV - PS3/Xbox 360 - Rockstar Games

Japan Game Awards - Future Winners
Assassin's Creed II (Ubisoft)
Bayonetta (Sega)
Dragon Quest VI (Square Enix)
Final Fantasy XIII (Square Enix)
Ghost Trick (Capcom)
Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep (Square Enix)
Lost Planet 2 (Capcom)
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker (Konami)
Ni no Kuni (Level 5)
Professor Layton and the Demon's Flute (Level 5)
Tales of Graces (Namco Bandai)
Yakuza 4 (Sega)