PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

CONTACT: THOMAS J. ALLEN

PHONE: 410.721.8895

E-MAIL: INFO AT NAVGTR DOT ORG

February 2, 2009 --- The National Academy of Video Game Testers and Reviewers Corp.™ is pleased to announce the nominees for its eighth annual awards honoring the best of the interactive entertainment industry in the fields of art, technology, and production.  A voting body of more than 950 eligible video game media critics, analysts, and journalists determined the final 209 nominees in 45 categories. 

This year, the Academy also announced special Honorary Awards to be given out for the first time in the organization’s history.  The first-ever recipients will be Mike Acton, Andy Burke, and Geoff Evans for their outstanding community contribution and dedication to Insomniac’s Nocturnal Initiative, a free open-source code, tools, and information sharing effort begun in 2008 that encourages better communication and lower development costs through the sharing of resources. 

With 37 nominations, Electronic Arts has more nominations than any other publisher this year.  Sony follows with 22 nominations, after having set a record in the previous year with 47 nominations.  Rounding out the double-digit publisher nominees are Ubisoft (16), Microsoft (15), and Square Enix (13).

With 19 nominations, the Electronic Arts studio system also holds the highest nomination tally among developers this year, with Mirror’s Edge developer DICE (Digital Illusions) following with 13 nods.  Square Enix follows with 11 nods, while Little Big Planet developer Media Molecule has 10 nods.  Ubisoft rounds out the top five developers with 8 nominations. 

The nominees for Game of the Year are Gears of War 2, Left 4 Dead, Little Big Planet, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriot, and Mirror’s Edge.  The nominees for Game of the Year represent 20.43% of the total nominations, down from 22.58% last year.  

Of the games which tallied three or more nominations this year, 58% of the nominations went to original properties (67), compared to franchises (49).  Last year, the comparison was 71:45 (61%).  Games leading in nominations are:

12, Mirror’s Edge     

10, Little Big Planet     

09, Dead Space     

07, Gears of War 2     

06, Fallout 3  

06, Grand Theft Auto IV     

06, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots  

06, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed     

05, Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway     

05, World of Goo     

04, Boom Blox     

04, Braid     

04, Castle Crashers     

04, Chrono Trigger     

04, The World Ends With You     

03, Auditorium     

03, Destroy All Humans: Path of the Furon"     

03, Fable II     

03, Patapon     

03, PixelJunk Eden     

03, Spore  

03, Left 4 Dead     

03, Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4     

The nominations webstream is produced by machinima artist Becky Manders, digital animation student at the British Columbia Institute of Technology.

For more information on NAVGTR Corp.’s missions and programs, log onto www.navgtr.org.  Winners will be announced February 28, 2009. 

The general voting body of more than 950 journalists and writers includes contributors for such varied outlets as 1up, About.com, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Austin American-Statesman, Chicago Sun-Times, CNN, Contra Costa Times, Detroit Free Press, Digital Journal, EclipseMagazine.com, elecplay.com, Evergeek Media, FHM, GamersTemple.com, GamingTarget.com, 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 hundreds more. 

The Academy is currently accepting applications from new analysts/journalists to become voters.  For more information, e-mail vote at navgtr dot org with a bio and/or resume. 

Creative/Technical Categories

Animation in a Game Cinema - Dead Space     

Animation in a Game Cinema - Devil May Cry 4     

Animation in a Game Cinema - Gears of War 2     

Animation in a Game Cinema - Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots     

Animation in a Game Cinema - Star Wars: The Force Unleashed     

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Animation in a Game Engine - Castle Crashers     

Animation in a Game Engine - Mirror’s Edge     

Animation in a Game Engine - Prince of Persia     

Animation in a Game Engine - Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Conspiracy     

Animation in a Game Engine - Spore     

Animation in a Game Engine - World of Goo     

 -----------------------------------------

Art Direction in a Game Cinema - Dead Space     

Art Direction in a Game Cinema - Final Fantasy IV     

Art Direction in a Game Cinema - Gears of War 2     

Art Direction in a Game Cinema - Lego Indiana Jones     

Art Direction in a Game Cinema - Tomb Raider: Underworld     

 -----------------------------------------

Art Direction in a Game Engine - Braid     

Art Direction in a Game Engine - Fallout 3     

Art Direction in a Game Engine - Little Big Planet     

Art Direction in a Game Engine - PixelJunk Eden     

Art Direction in a Game Engine - Tales of Vesperia      

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Camera Direction in a Game Engine - Dead Space     

Camera Direction in a Game Engine - Gears of War 2     

Camera Direction in a Game Engine - Mirror’s Edge     

Camera Direction in a Game Engine - Ninja Gaiden II     

Camera Direction in a Game Engine - Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Conspiracy     

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Character Design - Castle Crashers     

Character Design - Chrono Trigger     

Character Design - Fable II     

Character Design - Grand Theft Auto IV     

Character Design - Little Big Planet     

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Control Design - Boom Blox     

Control Design - Little Big Planet     

Control Design - Mirror’s Edge     

Control Design - Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword     

Control Design - Tom Clancy's End War     

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Control Precision - Banjo Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts     

Control Precision - Boom Blox     

Control Precision - Mirror’s Edge     

Control Precision - PixelJunk Eden     

Control Precision - World of Goo     

 -----------------------------------------

Costume Design - Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice     

Costume Design - Fable II     

Costume Design - Lost Odyssey

Costume Design - Soul Calibur IV     

Costume Design - The World Ends With You     

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Direction in a Game Cinema - Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway     

Direction in a Game Cinema - Dead Space     

Direction in a Game Cinema - Dynasty Warriors 6     

Direction in a Game Cinema - Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots     

Direction in a Game Cinema - Star Wars: The Force Unleashed     

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Game Design - Left 4 Dead     

Game Design - Little Big Planet     

Game Design - Mirror’s Edge     

Game Design - Patapon     

Game Design - Spore     

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Graphics/Technical - Far Cry 2     

Graphics/Technical - Little Big Planet     

Graphics/Technical - Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots     

Graphics/Technical - Mirror’s Edge     

Graphics/Technical - Star Wars: The Force Unleashed     

 -----------------------------------------

Innovation in Game Play - Auditorium     

Innovation in Game Play - Boom Blox     

Innovation in Game Play - Little Big Planet     

Innovation in Game Play - Mirror’s Edge     

Innovation in Game Play - World of Goo     

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Innovation in Game Technology - Fallout 3     

Innovation in Game Technology - Gamebryo 2.5     

Innovation in Game Technology - Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots     

Innovation in Game Technology - Mirror’s Edge     

Innovation in Game Technology - Torque Game Engine Advanced 1.7.1     

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Lighting/Texturing - Condemned 2: Bloodshot     

Lighting/Texturing - Dead Space     

Lighting/Texturing - Little Big Planet     

Lighting/Texturing - Mirror’s Edge     

Lighting/Texturing - Siren: Blood Curse     

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Original Musical Score - Castle Crashers     

Original Musical Score - Chrono Trigger     

Original Musical Score - Patapon     

Original Musical Score - Resistance 2     

Original Musical Score - World of Goo     

Original Musical Score - World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King     

 -----------------------------------------

Original/Adapted Song - "Haze," Haze     

Original/Adapted Song - "Never More," Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4     

Original/Adapted Song - ”The One Star,” The World Ends With You     

Original/Adapted Song - ”Twister,” The World Ends With You     

 -----------------------------------------

Song Collection - Braid     

Song Collection - Grand Theft Auto IV     

Song Collection - Rock Band 2      

Song Collection - Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4     

Song Collection - The World Ends With You     

 -----------------------------------------

Sound Editing in a Game Cinema - Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway     

Sound Editing in a Game Cinema - Dead Space     

Sound Editing in a Game Cinema - Star Wars: The Force Unleashed     

-----------------------------------------

Sound Effects - Dead Space     

Sound Effects - Gears of War 2     

Sound Effects - Left 4 Dead     

Sound Effects - Mirror’s Edge     

Sound Effects - Star Wars: The Force Unleashed     

-----------------------------------------

Lead Performance in a Comedy - Grant Albrecht, "Destroy All Humans: Path of the Furon"     

Lead Performance in a Comedy - Robin Atkin Downes, "No More Heroes"     

 -----------------------------------------

Lead Performance in a Drama - Keeley Hawes, “Tomb Raider: Underworld”     

Lead Performance in a Drama - Liam Neeson, “Fallout 3”     

Lead Performance in a Drama - Michael Hollick, “Grand Theft Auto IV”     

-----------------------------------------

Supp Performance in a Comedy - James Horan, "Destroy All Humans: Path of the Furon"     

Supp Performance in a Comedy - Jim Ward, "Secret Agent Clank"     

Supp Performance in a Comedy - Nolan North, “Crash: Mind over Mutant”     

Supp Performance in a Comedy - Richard Horvitz, "Destroy All Humans: PotF"     

Supp Performance in a Comedy - Stephen Fry, “Little Big Planet”     

 -----------------------------------------

Supp Performance in a Drama - Gideon Emery, "Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway"     

Supp Performance in a Drama - Jason Zumwalt, “Grand Theft Auto IV”     

Supp Performance in a Drama - Mike Neumann, "Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway"     

Supp Performance in a Drama - Nathalie Cox, “Star Wars: The Force Unleashed”     

Supp Performance in a Drama - Timothy Adams, "Grand Theft Auto IV"     

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Use of Sound - Auditorium     

Use of Sound - Dead Space     

Use of Sound - Fallout 3     

Use of Sound - Gears of War 2     

Use of Sound - Patapon     

-----------------------------------------

Writing in a Comedy - American McGee’s Grimm     

Writing in a Comedy - Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney     

Writing in a Comedy - Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3     

Writing in a Comedy - Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law     

Writing in a Comedy - No More Heroes     

Writing in a Comedy - Penny Arcade Adv. Ep 1: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness     

-----------------------------------------

Writing in a Drama - Braid     

Writing in a Drama - Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway     

Writing in a Drama - Chrono Trigger     

Writing in a Drama - Fallout 3     

Writing in a Drama - Lost Odyssey     

Genre Categories

Game Classic Revival - Chrono Trigger     

Game Classic Revival - Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen     

Game Classic Revival - Final Fantasy IV     

Game Classic Revival - Samba de Amigo     

Game Classic Revival - Space Invaders Extreme     

-----------------------------------------

Game Music or Performance - Audiosurf     

Game Music or Performance - Auditorium     

Game Music or Performance - Lips     

Game Music or Performance - Rock Band 2     

Game Music or Performance - SingStar Abba     

-----------------------------------------

Game Original Action - Braid     

Game Original Action - Castle Crashers     

Game Original Action - Dead Space     

Game Original Action - Mirror’s Edge     

Game Original Action - PixelJunk Eden     

-----------------------------------------

Game Orig Adventure - Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law     

Game Orig Adventure - Professor Layton and the Curious Village     

Game Orig Adventure - Penny Arcade Adv. Ep 1: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness     

 -----------------------------------------

Game Original Children's - Boom Blox     

Game Original Children's - de Blob     

Game Original Children's - Little Big Planet     

Game Original Children's - Mechanic Master     

Game Original Children's - World of Goo     

 -----------------------------------------

Game Original Fighting - No nominations.     

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Game Original Racing - Baja: Edge of Control     

Game Original Racing - Grid     

Game Original Racing - Pure     

-----------------------------------------

Game Original RPG - No nominations.     

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Game Original Sports - No nominations.     

-----------------------------------------

Game Sequel Action - Battlefield: Bad Company      

Game Sequel Action - Gears of War 2     

Game Sequel Action - Grand Theft Auto IV     

Game Sequel Action - Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots     

Game Sequel Action - S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Clear Sky     

-----------------------------------------

Game Sequel Adventure - Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney     

Game Sequel Adventure - Mortimer Beckett and the Time Paradox     

Game Sequel Adventure - Mystery Case Files: Return to Ravenhearst     

Game Sequel Adventure - Prince of Persia     

Game Sequel Adventure - Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Vegas 2     

-----------------------------------------

Game Sequel Children's - Animal Crossing: City Folk     

Game Sequel Children's - Lego Batman     

Game Sequel Children's - Lego Indiana Jones     

Game Sequel Children's - Mega Man 9     

Game Sequel Children's - Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise     

-----------------------------------------

Game Sequel Fighting - Bleach: Dark Souls     

Game Sequel Fighting - Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe     

Game Sequel Fighting - Naruto: The Broken Bond     

Game Sequel Fighting - Soul Calibur IV     

Game Sequel Fighting - Super Smash Bros. Brawl     

-----------------------------------------

Game Sequel Racing - Burnout Paradise     

Game Sequel Racing - FlatOut: Head On     

Game Sequel Racing - Mario Kart Wii     

Game Sequel Racing - Midnight Club: Los Angeles     

Game Sequel Racing - WipeOut HD     

-----------------------------------------

Game Sequel RPG - Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice     

Game Sequel RPG - Fable II     

Game Sequel RPG - Fallout 3     

Game Sequel RPG - Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4     

Game Sequel RPG - Valkyria Chronicles     

-----------------------------------------

Game Sequel Sports - FIFA Soccer 09     

Game Sequel Sports - Madden NFL 09     

Game Sequel Sports - Mario Super Sluggers     

Game Sequel Sports - NHL 09     

Game Sequel Sports - Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09     

-----------------------------------------

Game Simulation Game - Air Traffic Chaos     

Game Simulation Game - Spore     

-----------------------------------------

Game Special Class - Allen Carr's Easyway to Stop Smoking     

Game Special Class - Buzz! Quiz TV     

Game Special Class - Cooking: Personal Trainer     

Game Special Class - My Weight Loss Coach     

Game Special Class - Scene It? Seinfeld Deluxe     

Game Special Class - Wii Fit     

-----------------------------------------

Game Strategy - Age of Booty     

Game Strategy - Command & Conquer 3: Kane’s Wrath     

Game Strategy - Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift     

Game Strategy - Sid Meier’s Civilization IV: Colonization     

Game Strategy - Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning     

-----------------------------------------

Game of the Year - Gears of War 2     

Game of the Year - Left 4 Dead     

Game of the Year - Little Big Planet     

Game of the Year - Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots     

Game of the Year - Mirror’s Edge     

Special Awards

Honorary Awards – Mike Acton, Andy Burke, and Geoff Evans for their outstanding community contribution to Insomniac’s Nocturnal Initiative, a free open-source code, tools, and information sharing effort that encourages better communication and lower development costs through the sharing of resources. 

PUBLISHER TALLIES

-----------------------------------------

37, ELECTRONIC ARTS

22, SONY

16, UBISOFT

15, MICROSOFT

13, SQUARE ENIX

08, LUCASARTS

07, CAPCOM

07, NINTENDO

07, ROCKSTAR

06, BETHESDA SOFTWORKS

06, KONAMI

05, 2D BOY

05, THQ

04, NUMBER NONE

04, SEGA

04, THE BEHEMOTH

04, VALVE

03, ATLUS

03, CIPHER PRIME

03, NAMCO BANDAI

DEVELOPER TALLIES

-----------------------------------------

19, ELECTRONIC ARTS

13, DICE (DIGITAL ILLUSIONS)

11, SQUARE ENIX

10, MEDIA MOLECULE

08, UBISOFT

07, EPIC

07, ROCKSTAR

06, BETHESDA GAME STUDIOS

06, KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS

06, KROME

05, 2D BOY

05, GEARBOX

04, CAPCOM

04, NAMCO (BANDAI)

04, NINTENDO

04, NUMBER NONE

04, THE BEHEMOTH

03, ATLUS

03, CIPHER PRIME

03, LIONHEAD STUDIOS

03, MAXIS

03, PYRAMID

03, Q-GAMES

03, SANDBLAST

03, SONY

03, TRAVELLER’S TALES

03, VALVE

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