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E3 Judges Announce Premature Awards for 2010
It's that time of year where the industry's most respected journalists (including our own Andy McNamara) get together to make premature evaluations of the titles and technologies shown at E3. Which half-finished games and prototype gadgets were the best this year?
As long forgotten former winners like Majestic, Star Wars: Galaxies, The Sims Online, and Auto Modellista prove, it's not easy (or entirely useful) to dole out awards for games in various states of completion. But the world and its marketers love awards, so who are we to keep them from their happiness?
Nintendo's impressive new 3DS handheld won all the praise for new technology, earning a best of show nod and the best hardware award. In the games space, id Software preserved its reputation as a pioneering studio with three wins for best console game, best action game, and a special commendation for graphics. The biggest surprise of the awards goes to Harmonix's Dance Central, which won for best original game and best motion simulation game.
On the publisher front, Electronic Arts took home the most awards, landing four for Star Wars: The Old Republic, NBA Jam (thanks Midway), Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit, and Rock Band 3. The Xbox 360 had the most playable games win awards (10), followed closely by the PlayStation 3 (9) and PC (9). Here is the full list of awards.
- Best of Show: Nintendo 3DS (Nintendo)
- Best Original Game: Dance Central (Harmonix/MTV Games/Microsoft for Xbox 360)
- Best Console Game: Rage (id Software/Bethesda for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
- Best Handheld Game : God of War: Ghost of Sparta (Ready at Dawn/Sony Santa Monica for PSP)
- Best PC Game: Portal 2 (Valve)
- Best Hardware : Nintendo 3DS (Nintendo)
- Best Action Game : Rage (id Software/Bethesda for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
- Best Action/Adventure Game: Portal 2 ( Valve for PC/Mac, PS3, and Xbox 360)
- Best Role-Playing Game: Star Wars: The Old Republic (BioWare Austin/LucasArts/EA for PC)
- Best Fighting Game : Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds (Capcom for PS3 and Xbox 360)
- Best Racing Game: Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit (Criterion Games/Electronic Arts for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
- Best Sports Game : NBA Jam (EA Canada/EA Sports for Wii)
- Best Strategy Game: Civilization V (Firaxis/2K Games for PC)
- Best Social/Casual Game: Rock Band 3 (Harmonix/MTV Games/Electronic Arts for PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii)
- Best Motion Simulation Game: Dance Central (Harmonix/MTV Games/Microsoft for Xbox 360)
- Best Online Multiplayer : Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
- Special Commendation for Graphics: Rage (id Software/Bethesda for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
See how these awards stack up with our own Game Informer E3 2010 awards here.
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