Rise of the Tomb Raider and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt lead the 19th D.I.C.E. Awards nominations
The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences today announced nominations for the 19th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards, hosted by comedian, podcaster, voice actor and cartoonist Pete Holmes. Academy members begin voting for the video game industry’s premier peer-based awards show Thursday, January 14th at 3 PM PST; the winners will be revealed at the Awards ceremony on Thursday, Feb. 18, at The Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas at the conclusion of the 2016 D.I.C.E. (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit.
Leading the count with nine nominations is Rise of the Tomb Raider. Several games received multiple nods, including: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt with eight nominations; Ori and the Blind Forest with six nominations; Fallout 4 receiving five nominations; Her Story, The Order: 1886 and Star Wars Battlefront each with four nominations; and Batman: Arkham Knight, Destiny: The Taken King, Rocket League, Lara Croft GO, Life is Strange, and Undertale with 3 each.
This year, the D.I.C.E. Awards ceremony will honor the late Satoru Iwata as its Lifetime Achievement Award recipient. Also being honored this year as the Hall of Fame recipient is Hideo Kojima, world-renowned game creator and auteur recognized for the best-selling Metal Gear series.
“Looking at the nominees for the 19th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards, I am especially impressed by the broad range of titles catering to gamers’ increasingly sophisticated and diverse tastes,” said Martin Rae, president, Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. “It is always gratifying to watch our industry and its many artists and craftsmen grow and continue to challenge and thrill audiences. February 18th will be another memorable celebration of the best in interactive entertainment bolstered by the playful humor of host Pete Holmes.”
The D.I.C.E. Awards nominees:
GAME OF THE YEAR
Bloodborne
Fallout 4
Ori and the Blind Forest
Rise of the Tomb Raider
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN GAME DIRECTION
Fallout 4
Life is Strange
Rise of the Tomb Raider
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Undertale
ADVENTURE GAME OF THE YEAR
Batman: Arkham Knight
Life is Strange
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
Ori and the Blind Forest
Rise of the Tomb Raider
ACTION GAME OF THE YEAR
Destiny: The Taken King
Helldivers
Just Cause 3
Star Wars Battlefront
Splatoon
MOBILE GAME OF THE YEAR
Dominations
Fallout Shelter
Lara Croft GO
Pac-Man 256
The Room Three
DICE SPRITE AWARD
Her Story
Galak-Z
Kerbal Space Program
Rocket League
Undertale
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN ANIMATION
Assassin’s Creed Syndicate
Batman: Arkham Knight
Ori and the Blind Forest
Rise of the Tomb Raider
The Order: 1886
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN ART DIRECTION
Lara Croft Go
Ori and the Blind Forest
Rise of the Tomb Raider
The Order: 1886
Star Wars Battlefront
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN CHARACTER
Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, Evie Frye
Her Story, Hannah Smith
Life is Strange, Max
Rise of the Tomb Raider, Lara Croft
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Geralt of Rivia
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN ORIGINAL MUSIC COMPOSITION
Batman: Arkham Knight
Everybody’s Gone To The Rapture
Ori and the Blind Forest
Starcraft II: Legacy Of The Void
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND DESIGN
Destiny: The Taken King
Ori and the Blind Forest
Rise of the Tomb Raider
Star Wars Battlefront
The Order: 1886
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN STORY
Fallout 4
Her Story
Tales from the Borderlands: A Telltale Game Series
Rise of the Tomb Raider
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
OUTSTANDING TECHNICAL ACHIEVEMENT
Just Cause 3
Rise of the Tomb Raider
Star Wars Battlefront
The Order: 1886
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
FAMILY GAME OF THE YEAR
Guitar Hero Live
LEGO Dimensions
Rock Band 4
Super Mario Maker
Tearaway Unfolded
FIGHTING GAME OF THE YEAR
Mortal Kombat X
Dead or Alive 5 Last Round
Rising Thunder
RACING GAME OF THE YEAR
Forza Motorsport 6
Need for Speed
Project CARS
ROLE-PLAYING/MASSIVELY MULTIPLAYER GAME OF THE YEAR
Bloodborne
Fallout 4
Pillars of Eternity
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Undertale
SPORTS GAME OF THE YEAR
FIFA 2016
Madden NFL 2016
MLB 15 The Show
NBA 2K16
Rocket League
STRATEGY/SIMULATION GAME OF THE YEAR
Cities: Skylines
Fallout Shelter
Grey Goo
Heroes of the Storm
Kerbal Space Program
HANDHELD GAME OF THE YEAR
Earth Defense Force 2: Invaders from Planet Space
Helldivers
Pokemon: Super Mystery Dungeon
Yo-Kai Watch
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN ONLINE GAMEPLAY
Destiny: The Taken King
Halo 5: Guardians
Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft
Rocket League
Splatoon
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN GAME DESIGN
Fallout 4
Her Story
Lara Croft GO
Massive Chalice
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
