2014 BAFTA Video Game Awards: GTA 5 and The Last of Us Win Big

[Josh Engen]

2014 BAFTA Video Game Awards: GTA 5 and The Last of Us Win Big

Tonight, the British Academy handed out its 2014 game awards. Here's the rundown.

2013 was a monumental year for the video game industry. Not only did Sony and Microsoft finally unleash their latest systems, but developers like Rockstar and Naughty Dog did some of their very best work in the death throws of the last console generation. Unfortunately, the British Academy doesn't have an endless supply of BAFTAs, which means that some well-deserving developers walked away empty handed.

Naughty Dog managed to accumulate an armful of awards. The Last of Us won five BAFTAs, including Game of the Year. But Grand Theft Auto V scooped up the Game Design and Multiplayer awards.

Rockstar also won the British Game award, which fills me with American rage.

Tearaway picked up an award for Artistic Achievement and another in the Mobile & Handheld category. And Papers, Please, which nearly won Escapist's Readers Choice Award [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/10892-The-Escapist-Readers-Choice-GotY-2013-Recap-and-Winners], grabbed the Strategy and Simulation BAFTA.

Here's the full list of winners:

Game of the Year: The Last of Us
Action and Adventure: The Last of Us
British Game: Grand Theft Auto 5
Original Music: BioShock Infinite
Story: The Last of Us
Strategy and Simulation: Papers, Please
Artistic Achievement: Tearaway
Audio Achievement: The Last of Us
Sports: FIFA 14
Family: Tearaway
Game Innovation: Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
Mobile & Handheld: Tearaway
Ones to Watch: Size DOES Matter
Game Design: Grand Theft Auto 5
Multiplayer: Grand Theft Auto 5
Debut Game: Gone Home
Performer: The Last of Us (Ashley Johnson)

Source: BAFTA [http://awards.bafta.org/award/2014/games]

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[mrgerry123]

How did GTA 5 win multiplayer? Did anyone actually play it? Or was it because it didn't win the main award and when you spend that much money it has to win something.

 

[Supdupadog]

Certainly my game of the year

 

[V4Viewtiful]

I find it hilarious how Bioshck I one Original Music when the majority of the music in it had remixed versions of songs from the future

 

[RA92]

What kind of idiot puts Strategy and Simulation in the same category?

 

[Xman490]

2014 BAFTA Video Game Awards: GTA 5 and The Last of Us Win Big
Game of the Year: The Last of Us
Original Music: BioShock Infinite
Family: Tearaway
Game Design: Grand Theft Auto 5

Source: BAFTA [http://awards.bafta.org/award/2014/games]

The Last of Us is overrated.

Music and Family awards should have gone to Super Mario 3D World. BioShock Infinite's music was good for being somewhat generic and occasionally period-themed, but SM3DW's music is way more catchy. Tearaway isn't even a game a family can play together! I'm greatly disappointed that Mario means so little in this day and age, except to Sonic and some much worse games.

I have no clue what "Game Design" is supposed to mean and how Grand Theft Auto 5 nails it. Maybe due to appropriately varied missions in the story?

 

[WashAran]

So GTA V in their eyes is a better multiplayer game then World of Tanks, BF4 and motherfuking Dota2. How?

 

[FlambeNobunaga]

The BAFTAs lost all credibility they ever had when Shadow of the Colossus didn't win best soundtrack for it's respective year. As a result, I have stopped caring.

 

[Ed130 The Vanguard]

So GTA V in their eyes is a better multiplayer game then World of Tanks, BF4 and motherfuking Dota2. How?

Because they are based in Cryprus, Sweden and Bellevue, US while the letter 'B' in BAFTA stands for British which Rockstars founders and current presidents are of said Nationality?

 

[WashAran]

So GTA V in their eyes is a better multiplayer game then World of Tanks, BF4 and motherfuking Dota2. How?

Because they are based in Cryprus, Sweden and Bellevue, US while the letter 'B' in BAFTA stands for British which Rockstars founders and current presidents are of said Nationality?

http://awards.bafta.org/award/2014/games/multiplayer

Games | Multiplayer in 2014

Nominees

Grand Theft Auto V
World of Tanks
Super Mario 3D World
The Last of Us
Dota 2



Game of the Year: The Last of Us -> american developer
Action and Adventure: The Last of Us -> american developer
British Game: Grand Theft Auto 5
Original Music: BioShock Infinite -> american developer
Story: The Last of Us -> american developer
Strategy and Simulation: Papers, Please
Artistic Achievement: Tearaway
Audio Achievement: The Last of Us -> american developer
Sports: FIFA 14
Family: Tearaway
Game Innovation: Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons -> swedish developer
Mobile & Handheld: Tearaway
Ones to Watch: Size DOES Matter
Game Design: Grand Theft Auto 5
Multiplayer: Grand Theft Auto 5
Debut Game: Gone Home -> american developer
Performer: The Last of Us (Ashley Johnson) -> american actress

 

[F'Angus]

I wish there would be more contenders for sports game. Fifa wins it every year.

 

[Ed James]

I wish there would be more contenders for sports game. Fifa wins it every year.

That's because it's pretty much the only sports game sold in Britain, other than the PES remakes. The Hockey and Handegg (sorry, American Football) games have little to no appeal outside of North America and other sports games like tennis and golf are generally terrible.

OT: Rockstar being seen as a British developer is a bit of a stretch to me. Sure they were British when they were founded but now they are completely based in the States. I guess the real issue would have been if they didn't win it, who would have? CA's Rome 2? While I'd love that to be the case a launch that bad rarely wins awards.

 

[Ed130 The Vanguard]

So GTA V in their eyes is a better multiplayer game then World of Tanks, BF4 and motherfuking Dota2. How?

Because they are based in Cryprus, Sweden and Bellevue, US while the letter 'B' in BAFTA stands for British which Rockstars founders and current presidents are of said Nationality?

http://awards.bafta.org/award/2014/games/multiplayer

Games | Multiplayer in 2014
Win Grand Theft Auto V
Development Team
World of Tanks
Development Team
Super Mario 3D World
Development Team
The Last of Us
Development Team
Dota 2
Development Team
Battlefield 4
Development Team

Yep, and if you haven't already noticed that companies only get awarded a couple of times each?

BAFTA's tend to be more spread out than something like the Oscars for some reason.

Combined that with some good old British bias (Remember: the letter 'B' in BAFTA stands for British) and it isn't that surprising that GTA got it over titles you think are more deserving.

And until we can create a completely unbiased AI capable of judging games I doubt we'll be rid of it anytime soon.

 

[Tom_green_day]

Since when was 'British' a genre of games? I get that it's a British award show but we don't need to make a special category just so we win something. Not that GTA is undeserving of huge recognition, and I definitely think it deserves the multiplayer award, but do we need to make a category for it to win?

 

[F'Angus]

I wish there would be more contenders for sports game. Fifa wins it every year.

That's because it's pretty much the only sports game sold in Britain, other than the PES remakes. The Hockey and Handegg (sorry, American Football) games have little to no appeal outside of North America and other sports games like tennis and golf are generally terrible.

We get Madden here too. But I haven't seen any hockey games. I'd love another good Rugby game. And do they still make PES? (it wasn't ever really a competition for Fifa though, Fifa has a monopoly on teams.)

OT: Good to see Tearaway win a few awards. Might push more Vita developers.