NEWS

November 3, 2011 --- The National Academy of Video Game Testers and Reviewers (NAVGTR) Corp. has announced the results from its first ever Best of the Decade awards program, the culmination of 10 years of annual awards races. 

NOMINATION PROCESS

Following four months of elimination rounds conducted by superdelegates in the Academy, the final nominations in all but one category were announced on March 28, 2011. 

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves received the most nominations (8), followed closely by ICO with seven.  Other leaders were Batman: Arkham Asylum (6), Bioshock (6), Little Big Planet (5), and Shadow of the Colossus (5). 

Additional high totals went to Gears of War (4), God of War (4), Mass Effect (4), Final Fantasy X (3), Guitar Hero (3), Kingdom Hearts (3), Okami (3), Psychonauts (3), and Resident Evil 4 (3). 

Final nominees for Game of the Decade were announced on October 16, 2011.  Of the final ten, Shadow of the Colossus won three (3) awards and was the only Game of the Decade nominee to win multiple awards.  Only four other Game of the Decade nominees won awards:  Arkham Asylum, Bioshock, God of War, and Rock Band 2. 

AWARD WINNERS

Overall, the leader in nominations for all categories was also the leader in total wins, as Uncharted 2 won 5 awards.  Shadow of the Colossus won 3 awards, as did Kingdom Hearts.  Dead Space won 2 awards, as did Okami. 

The winners in all categories were determined by superdelegates (weighted at 40%) and public votes (weighted at 60%). 

In the top category of Game of the Decade, the actual winner contrasted sharply with the Academy’s own prediction polls, where 48% predicted Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 would be the winner. 

GAME OF THE DECADE

The Game of the Decade category was decided using a caucus voting style, where participants were able to change their votes if their initial choices were not among the top contenders. 

The initial round of voting had Shadow of the Colossus in first place with 17%, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 was a close second with 16%. 

Without weighting, Shadow of the Colossus would have been in first place with 17.5%.  If the weights were reversed (60% superdelegates, 40% public), Shadow of the Colossus and World of Warcraft would have tied for first place with 18%. 

In the final round of voting, ICO was able to consolidate its votes with an astonishing 46.15% of superdelegate support (up from 20%). 

Among public votes, Resident Evil 4 garnered the most support, moving from 20% to 38.46% in the final round. 

Despite these movements, Shadow of the Colossus held the lead with 24.616% of overall votes, with Resident Evil 4 securing 23.076%. 

Without weighting, the race would have been even closer, with Shadow of the Colossus at 23.0775% and ICO at 23.075%. 

In conclusion, the only scenario involving all voting groups in which Shadow of the Colossus would have lost would have been with reverse weighting (60% superdelegates, 40% public), which would have yielded ICO the winner with 27.69%. 

Among ten hypothetical scenarios with “binary” adjustments to voting groups, voting power, and rounds of voting, ICO could have reached the highest percentage overall (27.69%), but Shadow of the Colossus still wins in half the scenarios, perhaps making it the “beast which can’t be killed.”

INTERESTING RACES

Some categories were won with strong support from one voting group.  Most astonishing is Mark Hamill’s victory, propelled by 100% support among superdelegates.  Equally impressive is Psychonauts’ win for Writing in a Comedy with 80% of superdelegate support. 

For Adventure Game Sequel of the Decade, Uncharted 2 won 77.8% of superdelegate votes, despite competing against Metal Gear Solid 2, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, Resident Evil 4, and Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.  Uncharted 2 was the youngest franchise in that race. 

In conclusion, Batman: Arkham Asylum, Psychonauts, Uncharted 2, and Dead Space (75% in Sound Effects) achieved the highest levels of superdelegate support in individual races. 

By comparison, Pikmin (70% in Control Design), Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga (66.7% in Original Children/Family Game), Kingdom Hearts (70% in Original Role Playing Game), Super Smash Bros. Brawl (66.7% in Fighting Game Sequel), and Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (70% in Racing Game Sequel), achieved the most public support in individual races. 

The tightest races were Control Precision (Guitar Hero II won by 0.28%) and Original Musical Score (Kingdom Hearts beat Mass Effect by 0.20%). 

ABOUT SUPERDELEGATES

Superdelegates are contributors from varied outlets such as 1up, About.com, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Austin American-Statesman, Chicago Sun-Times, CNN, Contra Costa Times, Detroit Free Press, Digital Journal, EclipseMagazine.com, FHM, Gannett News Service, LA Weekly, Los Angeles Times, National Post, National Public Radio, NBC, New York Times, The Ottawa Citizen, PC Gamer, Philadelphia Inquirer, Play Magazine, Public Radio International, The Regina Leader-Post, Salon, San Jose Mercury-News, USA Today, The Vancouver Sun, Wired News, Wizard Magazine, WOW Weekly, Ziff-Davis Media, and others.

ANNUAL PROGRAM

Each year, 640 qualified voters determine the recipients of the NAVGTR AWARDS, recognizing interactive entertainment industry achievements in the fields of art, technology, and production.

The decade program represents the first time that the public was able to participate.  For a full list of nominees, please visit http://navgtr.org

The awards are presented by the National Academy of Video Game Testers and Reviewers Corp.™. 

More than any other professional group in the industry, testers spend the most time playing games and are therefore most apt to evaluate them on a technical level with intense detail or analysis. 

Reviewers in the media also spend a great deal of time analyzing and writing about games from a creative perspective to aid consumers in their evaluations.  The best reviewers sometimes parlay their reputation into industry jobs as producers or testers. 

For these reasons, the recommendation of testers and reviewers serves as a special mark of quality that balances important creative and technical perspectives and represents the most hard-core enthusiasts from industry and media.

ABOUT NAVGTR CORP.

NAVGTR Corp. is a 501(c)(6) non-profit corporation devoted to promoting and recognizing the developments and achievements of the interactive entertainment industry for public awareness and education. 

Through annual awards, television specials, videos, special events, and other future plans, the Academy hopes to preserve the history of the medium as well as honor the creative and technical individuals who have paved the way for new ideas and innovations.

(www.navgtr.org)