Each of the remaining Game of the Year nominees (all of which placed on Game Rant’s list of the Top 10 Games of 2012) earned multiple nominations, as well, with five for Borderlands 2, seven for Far Cry 3, eight for The Walking Dead, and three for XCOM: Enemy Unknown. Other heavily nominated games include Halo 4 (six nominations) and Dishonored (five nominations).
The awards will be handed out on Thursday, February 7th, during the 2013 D.I.C.E. Summit in Las Vegas, and the ceremony will be streamed live on Machinima.com starting at 7:30pm PT. Nerdist head honcho/comedian Chris Hardwick will assume hosting duties for the event, replacing longtime host Jay Mohr.
Hardwick, who tweeted that he’s “EXCITED like heated electrons” to be hosting the show, discusses the event.
Take a look at the full list of 2013 D.I.C.E. Awards nominees below.
Game of the Year
Borderlands 2 Far Cry 3 Journey The Walking Dead XCOM: Enemy Unknown
Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction
Journey Dishonored Far Cry 3 The Unfinished Swan The Walking Dead
Outstanding Innovation in Gaming
Journey Nintendo Land Sound Shapes The Unfinished Swan The Walking Dead
Downloadable Game of the Year
Fez Journey Mark of the Ninja The Unfinished Swan The Walking Dead
Handheld Game of the Year
Gravity Rush Paper Mario Sticker Star Resident Evil Revelations Sound Shapes Uncharted: Golden Abyss
Mobile Game of the Year
Fairway Solitaire Hero Academy Horn Rayman Jungle Run
Web Based Game of the Year
Bingo Bash Burrito Bison Revenge CityVille 2 Sim City Social Song Pop
Action Game of the Year
Borderlands 2 Far Cry 3 Halo 4 Hitman: Absolution Sleeping Dogs
Adventure Game of the Year
Assassin’s Creed III Darksiders II Dishonored New Super Mario Bros. Wii U The Walking Dead
Casual Game of the Year
Fairway Solitaire Journey Puzzle Craft Rayman Jungle Run Sound Shapes
Family Game of the Year
Dance Central 3 Just Dance 4 LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes Nintendo Land Skylanders Giants
Fighting Game of the Year
Persona 4 Arena PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale Souldcalibur V Street Fighter X Tekken Tekken Tag Tournament 2
Racing Game of the Year
Forza Horizon LittleBigPlanet Karting MotorStorm RC Need for Speed Most Wanted Trials: Evolution
Role-Playing/Massively Multiplayer Game of the Year
Diablo III Dust: An Elysian Tale Guild Wars 2 Mass Effect 3 Torchlight 2
Sports Game of the Year
FIFA Soccer 13 MLB The Show 2013 NBA 2K13
Strategy Game of the Year
FTL Minecraft Xbox 360 Orcs Must Die 2 Total War: SHOGUN 2 - Fall of the Samurai XCOM: Enemy Unknown
Outstanding Achievement in Animation
Assassin’s Creed III Far Cry 3 Hitman: Absolution Mark of the Ninja Uncharted: Golden Abyss
Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction
Borderlands 2 Dishonored Far Cry 3 Halo 4 Journey
Outstanding Character Performance
Borderlands 2: Tiny Tina Far Cry 3: Vaas Montenegro Halo 4: Cortana Mass Effect 3: Female Commander Shepard The Walking Dead: Lee Everett
Outstanding Achievement in Connectivity
Call of Duty: Black Ops II Halo 4 Nike + Kinect Training
Outstanding Achievement in Gameplay Engineering
Dishonored Gravity Rush Journey The Walking Dead XCOM: Enemy Unknown
Outstanding Achievement in Online Gameplay
Borderlands 2 Call of Duty: Black Ops II Diablo III Halo 4 Journey
Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition
Diablo III Far Cry 3 Journey Mass Effect 3 World of Warcraft Mists of Pandaria
Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design
Assassin’s Creed III Diablo III Journey Medal of Honor: Warfighter Syndicate
Outstanding Achievement in Story
Dishonored Journey Sleeping Dogs Spec Ops: The Line The Walking Dead
Outstanding Achievement in Visual Engineering
Call of Duty: Black Ops II Halo 4 Hitman: Absolution Need for Speed Most Wanted Total War: SHOGUN 2 - Fall of the Samurai
Bethesda’s Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim dominated the D.I.C.E. awards last year with wins in five categories. Following strong showings at the 2012 Spike VGAs, will Journey and The Walking Dead be able to keep their winning streaks alive? Will either game earn more awards than Skyrim? What do you think?
Ranters, are there any games that you think the AIAS has unfairly overlooked? Do you find any surprises among the nominations? And who would you pick to win the major categories? Let us know in the comments below.
The 16th annual D.I.C.E. Awards ceremony takes place February 7, 2013. Check back with Game Rant for a full list of the winners.
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Follow me on Twitter @HakenGaken.
Source: The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences
