In a bid to recognize and celebrate the industries best games and developers alike the Game Developers Choice Awards 2017 Nominees have been announced today. This will be the 17th annual Game Developers Choice Awards originally known as the Computer Game Developers Conference, the first ever GDC was put together in San Jose not far from where the next GDCA will be held, at the San Francisco Moscone Center. Returning for a sixth go around at hosting duties is Double Fine Productions founder Tim Schaffer having hosted before in 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013 and 2015 this conference should be an interesting one indeed. One of the most exciting developments in the 2017 awards is the inclusion of a brand new category. This new category is the best VR/AR Game. With Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality games taking off huge in the last couple of years it comes as no surprise they are being recognized at this years Game Developers Conference Awards. With the addition of VR/AR games like Superhot VR and Pokémon Go this category has some heavy hitters in just it’s very first year of being awarded.
There will be a total of fourteen categories with the biggest prize being Game Of The Year. Although it is clear that one game has risen above the pack in regards to nominations this year and that game is Playdead’s Inside which managed to garner an impressive six nominations in the following categories Best Audio, Best Design, the Innovation Award, Best Narrative, Best Visual Art and Game of the Year. Inside being the follow-up to the equally impressive Limbo was not the only game/studio garnering multiple nominations this year. With games such as DOOM, Overwatch, Battlefield 1, Uncharted 4, and Firewatch all accumulating multiple nominations for their respective studios and developers this years GDC is shaping up to be quite impressive. The Game Developers Choice Awards ceremony is taking place on Wednesday, March 1st, 2017 at 6:30pm at the San Francisco Moscone Center For more information on the conference itself including information on how to attend visit GDCA. Additionally you can find the complete list of both Nominated and Honorable mentions below.
BEST AUDIO
Battlefield 1 (EA DICE / Electronic Arts)
Thumper (Drool)
DOOM (id Software / Bethesda Softworks)
Inside (Playdead)
Overwatch (Blizzard Entertainment)
Honorable Mentions: Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End (Naughty Dog / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Rez Infinite (Monstars / Enhance Games), Hyper Light Drifter (Heart Machine), Firewatch (Campo Santo / Panic), Dishonored 2 (Arkane Studios / Bethesda Softworks), The Last Guardian (JAPAN Studio / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Titanfall 2 (Respawn Entertainment / Electronic Arts)
BEST DEBUT
Heart Machine (Hyper Light Drifter)
Campo Santo (Firewatch)
ConcernedApe (Stardew Valley)
Drool (Thumper)
Night School Studio (Oxenfree)
Honorable Mentions: SUPERHOT Team (SUPERHOT), Numinous Games (That Dragon, Cancer), Giant Squid Studios (Abzu), Ghost Town Games (Overcooked), iNK Stories (1979 Revolution: Black Friday)
BEST DESIGN
Overwatch (Blizzard Entertainment)
Dishonored 2 (Arkane Studios / Bethesda Softworks)
The Witness (Thekla)
Inside (Playdead)
DOOM (id Software / Bethesda Softworks)
Honorable Mentions: Titanfall 2 (Respawn Entertainment / Electronic Arts), Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End (Naughty Dog / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Dark Souls III (From Software / Bandai Namco Entertainment), Firewatch (Campo Santo / Panic), Hitman (IO Interactive / Square Enix)
BEST MOBILE/HANDHELD GAME
Super Mario Run (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
Clash Royale (Supercell)
Pokémon Go (Niantic)
Reigns (Nerial / Devolver Digital)
Pokémon Sun/Moon (Game Freak / The Pokémon Company)
Honorable Mentions: Mini Metro (Dinosaur Polo Club), Severed (DrinkBox Studios), Deus Ex: Go (Square Enix Montreal / Square Enix), Fire Emblem Fates (Intelligent Systems and Nintendo SPD / Nintendo), Imbroglio (Michael Brough), Swap Sword (AP Thomson and Diego Garcia)
INNOVATION AWARD
The Witness (Thekla)
Inside (Playdead)
No Man’s Sky (Hello Games)
Firewatch (Campo Santo / Panic)
Pokemon Go (Niantic)
Honorable Mentions: That Dragon, Cancer (Numinous Games), The Last Guardian (JAPAN Studio / Sony Interactive Entertainment), SUPERHOT (SUPERHOT Team), Thumper (Drool), Quadrilateral Cowboy (Blendo Games)
BEST NARRATIVE
The Last Guardian (JAPAN Studio / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Oxenfree (Night School Studio)
Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End (Naughty Dog / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Inside (Playdead)
Firewatch (Campo Santo / Panic)
Honorable Mentions: That Dragon, Cancer (Numinous Games), Dishonored 2 (Arkane Studios / Bethesda Softworks), The Witcher 3: Blood & Wine (CD Projekt RED / CD Projekt), Kentucky Route Zero – Act IV (Cardboard Computer), Mafia III (Hangar 13 / 2K Games)
BEST TECHNOLOGY
Battlefield 1 (EA DICE / Electronic Arts)
No Man’s Sky (Hello Games)
Overwatch (Blizzard Entertainment)
DOOM (id Software / Bethesda Softworks)
Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End (Naughty Dog / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Honorable Mentions: Inside (Playdead), Pokemon Go (Niantic), The Last Guardian (JAPAN Studio / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Dishonored 2 (Arkane Studios / Bethesda Softworks), The Witness (Thekla)
BEST VISUAL ART
Firewatch (Campo Santo / Panic)
The Last Guardian (JAPAN Studio / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Overwatch (Blizzard Entertainment)
Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End (Naughty Dog / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Inside (Playdead)
Honorable Mentions: The Witness (Thekla), Battlefield 1 (EA DICE / Electronic Arts), Abzu (Giant Squid Studios), Thumper (Drool), DOOM (id Software / Bethesda Softworks)
BEST VR/AR GAME
Rez Infinite (Monstars / Enhance Games)
Superhot VR (SUPERHOT Team)
Job Simulator: The 2050 Archives (Owlchemy Labs)
Pokémon Go (Niantic)
Fantastic Contraption (Radial Games / Northway Games)
Honorable Mentions: Thumper (Drool), Superhypercube (Kokoromi / Polytron Corporation), Batman Arkham VR (Rocksteady Studios / Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment), Space Pirate Trainer (I-Illusions), The Lab (Valve)
GAME OF THE YEAR
Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End (Naughty Dog / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Overwatch (Blizzard Entertainment)
Inside (Playdead)
Dishonored 2 (Arkane Studios / Bethesda Softworks)
Firewatch (Campo Santo / Panic)
Honorable Mentions: DOOM (id Software / Bethesda Softworks), The Witness (Thekla), Battlefield 1 (EA DICE / Electronic Arts), The Last Guardian (JAPAN Studio / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Titanfall 2 (Respawn Entertainment / Electronic Arts)
