The National Academy of Video Game Trade Reviewers, a non-profit corporation devoted to promoting and recognizing developments and achievements of the interactive entertainment industry, has announced the 12th Annual 2012 NAVGTR Award nominations for the year’s best work in video games. Each year since 2001, a panel of over 600 trade voters choose the best and brightest in over 50 categories, recognizing interactive entertainment industry achievements in the fields of art, technology, and production, for the most comprehensive gaming awards program in the industry.
2012 NAVGTR Award winners will be announced on March 24, 2013, after the PAX East gaming show in Boston. The awards feature 53 categories, including “Game of the Year,” “Innovation in Game Technology,” “Animation,” “Art Direction,” “Direction in a Game Cinema,” “Control Precision,” “Game Design,” “Graphics, Technical,” “Dramatic Score,” “Use of Sound,” “Writing in a Drama,” and more. This year, a panel of 918 video game trade voters determined the nominees through a ranking system. Heading the nomination totals are games Far Cry 3, Max Payne 3, and Mass Effect 3. Assassin’s Creed III, The Walking Dead, and Journey round out the top contenders. Nominees were also chosen for “Innovation in Game Technology” and include Gaikai, Gameglobe, Google Native Client NaCl, Sphero, and Symphony.
In addition, Lisanne Pajot and James Swirsky will receive honorary awards for their gaming industry documentary film, “Indie Game: The Movie,” which chronicles the trials and tribulations and long gestation period of current and previous NAVGTR award nominees Fez (the puzzle/platform game) and Super Meat Boy (the jumping meat cube game).
NAVGTR Nominations’ Highlights (full list): Nominations for “Game of the Year”: Borderlands 2 Far Cry 3 Journey Spec Ops: The Line Torchlight II The Walking Dead Nominations for “Lead Performance in a Drama”: Dave Fennoy as “Lee Everett” in The Walking Dead, produced by AMC and Activision. Will Yun Lee as “Wei Shen” in Sleeping Dogs, set in Hong Kong. Michael Mando as “Vaas” in Far Cry 3, the third installment of the island escape game. Mackenzie Mason as “Cortana” in Halo 4, an ancient alien forces game. James McCaffrey as “Max Payne” in Max Payne 3, developed by Rockstar Studios. Matthew Porretta as “Alan Wake” in Alan Wake’s American Nightmare, a psychological horror game. Nominations for “Control Design, 3D”: Far Cry 3 Halo 4 Resident Evil 6 Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor Tiny & Big: Grandpa’s Leftovers ZombiU
