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Spike TV takes game awards live: Snoop Dogg to MC

GTA: San Andreas, Halo 2, and Half-Life 2 lead pack with five nominations each; Snoop Dogg, SUM 41, and Ludacris to perform live.

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Spike TV today announced the nominees, categories, and live performances for its upcoming 2nd annual Video Game Awards. The awards will take place in Los Angeles and will be broadcast live on December 14.

Leading the way with five nominations apiece are Microsoft's Halo 2, Vivendi Universal's Half-Life 2, and Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Those games cross paths in the Game of the Year category. Other GOTY nominees include Konami's Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater and Electronic Arts' Burnout 3: Takedown.

The categories have been streamlined this year, down to a maximum of five nominees each. Last year there were as many as 10 nominees per category. New this year are the categories Designer of the Year, Technology of the Year, and Hottest Video Vixen. Last year's Best Performance by a Human is now split into both male and female categories.

Performing at the ceremony this year will be SUM 41, Ludacris, and host Snoop Dogg playing "Riders on the Storm" with the surviving members of The Doors, the exclusive track from EA's Need for Speed Underground 2.

Nominees and winners are decided by the Video Game Awards Advisory Board, a collective of several experts from the gaming industry. Viewers and consumers will have a say in three categories: Most Addictive Game, Best Gaming Publication, and Best Gaming Web site. Gamers wishing to make their voices heard can begin voting today at Spike TV's Web site, or through mobile phones on the Virgin Mobile Network (Virgin subscribers should check the Extras menu).

And the nominees are:

GAME OF THE YEAR
Burnout 3: Takedown (Electronic Arts)
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (Rockstar Games)
Half-Life 2 (Vivendi Universal Games)
Halo 2 (Microsoft Game Studios)
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (Konami)

BEST GAME BASED ON A MOVIE
The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay (Vivendi Universal Games)
GoldenEye: Rogue Agent (Electronic Arts)
Spider-Man 2 (Activision)
Star Wars: Battlefront (LucasArts)

BEST PERFORMANCE BY A HUMAN--FEMALE
Brooke Burke - Need for Speed Underground 2 (Electronic Arts)
Judi Dench - GoldenEye: Rogue Agent (Electronic Arts)
Carmen Electra - Def Jam: Fight for NY (Electronic Arts)
Jennifer Garner - Alias (Acclaim)
Heidi Klum - James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing (Electronic Arts)

BEST PERFORMANCE BY A HUMAN--MALE
Vin Diesel - The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay (Vivendi Universal Games)
Hugh Jackman - Van Helsing (Vivendi Universal Games)
Samuel L. Jackson - Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (Rockstar Games)
Christopher Lee - GoldenEye: Rogue Agent (Electronic Arts)
Tobey McGuire - Spider-Man 2 (Activision)

HOTTEST VIDEO VIXENS
Tina Armstong - Dead or Alive Ultimate (Tecmo)
Carmen Electra - Def Jam: Fight for NY (Electronic Arts)
BloodRayne - BloodRayne 2 (Majesco Games)
Luba Licious - Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude (Vivendi Universal Games)
Rachel Teller (played by Brooke Burke) - Need for Speed Underground 2 (Electronic Arts)

GTO PONTIAC BEST DRIVING GAME
Burnout 3: Takedown (Electronic Arts)
NASCAR 2005: Chase for the Cup (Electronic Arts)
Need For Speed Underground 2 (Electronic Arts)

BEST SPORTS GAME
ESPN NFL 2K5 (Sega)
Madden NFL 2005 (Electronic Arts)
NBA Ballers (Midway)
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005 (Electronic Arts)
Tony Hawk's Underground 2 (Activision)

BEST FIGHTING GAME
Def Jam: Fight for NY (Electronic Arts)
Dead or Alive Ultimate (Tecmo)
Fight Night 2004 (Electronic Arts)
Mortal Kombat: Deception (Midway)
WWE: SmackDown! vs. Raw (THQ)

BEST ACTION GAME
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (Rockstar Games)
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (Konami)
Ninja Gaiden (Tecmo)

BEST FIRST-PERSON ACTION
Doom 3 (Activision)
Far Cry (Ubisoft)
Halo 2 (Microsoft Game Studios)
Half-Life 2 (Vivendi Universal Games)
Unreal Tournament 2004 (Atari)

BEST SONG IN A VIDEO GAME
Chingy - "I Do" Need for Speed Underground 2 (Electronic Arts)
Green Day - "American Idiot" Madden NFL 2005 (Electronic Arts)
Jimmy Eat World - "Pain" Tony Hawk's Underground 2 (Activision)
Terror Squad -"Lean Back" Need for Speed Underground 2 (Electronic Arts)
Will I Am -"GO" NBA Live 2005 (Electronic Arts)

BEST SOUNDTRACK
GoldenEye: Rogue Agent (Electronic Arts)
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (Rockstar Games)
Halo 2 (Microsoft Game Studios)
Katamari Damacy (Namco)
Madden NFL 2005 (Electronic Arts)

DESIGNER OF THE YEAR
Sam Houser and Rockstar North, for Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (Rockstar Games/Rockstar North)
Tomonobu Itagaki and Team Ninja, for Ninja Gaiden (Tecmo/Team Ninja)
Jason Jones and Bungie Studios, for Halo 2 (Microsoft Game Studios/Bungie Software)
Hideo Kojima for Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (Konami/KCEJ)
Alex Ward and Criterion, for Burnout 3: Takedown (Electronic Arts/Criterion)

MOST ADDICTIVE GAME--VIEWER'S CHOICE
Burnout 3: Takedown (Electronic Arts)
City of Heroes (NCsoft)
Donkey Konga (Nintendo)
Katamari Damacy (Namco)
The Sims 2 (Electronic Arts)

BEST GAMING PUBLICATION--FAN FAVORITE
Electronic Gaming Monthly
Game Informer
Official PlayStation Magazine
Official Xbox Magazine
GMR

BEST GAMING WEB SITE--FAN FAVORITE
GameSpot
Gamespy
IGN
Shacknews
1up

BEST MILITARY GAME
Call of Duty: Finest Hour (Activision)
Conflict: Vietnam (Global Star Software)
Full Spectrum Warrior (THQ)
Rome: Total War (Activision)
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War (THQ)

BEST PC GAME
Doom 3 (Activision)
Half-Life 2 (Vivendi Universal Games)
Rome: Total War (Activision)
The Sims 2 (Electronic Arts)

BEST WIRELESS GAME
CBS Sportsline Baseball 2004 (Mforma)
Jamdat Sports NFL 2005 (Jamdat Mobile)
Might and Magic (Ubisoft/Gameloft)
National Treasure (Starwave)

BEST GRAPHICS
Doom 3 (Activision)
Half-Life 2 (Vivendi Universal Games)
Halo 2 (Microsoft Game Studios)
Ninja Gaiden (Tecmo)

BEST NEW TECHNOLOGY
Half-Life 2 engine (Vivendi Universal Games/Valve)
Nintendo DS (Nintendo)
NVIDIA GeForce 6800 (Nvidia)
Spherex XBOX 5.1 Surround Sound System (Spherex)

BEST HANDHELD
Astro Boy: Omega Factor (Sega)
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour (Nintendo)
Metroid: Zero Mission (Nintendo)
Pokemon FireRed Version (Nintendo)

BEST MASS MULTIPLAYER GAME
City of Heroes (NCsoft)
Everquest II (Sony Online Entertainment)
Final Fantasy XI (Square Enix)

BEST RPG
The Bard's Tale (InXile Entertainment)
Fable (Microsoft Game Studios)
Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne (Atlus)
X-Men Legends (Activision)

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