Canadian Videogame Award Finalists Announced

[Andy Chalk]

Canadian Videogame Award Finalists Announced

The Canadian Videogame Awards [http://www.canadianvideogameawards.com/] finalists have been announced and as you might expect, it pretty much comes down to a three-way brawl between Edmonton, Montreal and Vancouver.

I don't have much use for awards shows, to be honest, mostly because nothing I like ever wins anything, but I do enjoy the way they encourage venomous, hate-filled arguments on the internet. In that spirit, I present you with the list of finalists for the Canadian Videogame Awards, honoring the best in Canadian-made videogames in a ceremony being held on May 18th in Vancouver. Your nominees are:

Game of the Year

Assassin's Creed Brotherhood
Dead Rising 2
FIFA 11
Mass Effect 2
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction
Best Console Game

Assassin's Creed Brotherhood
Dead Rising 2
FIFA 11
Mass Effect 2
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction
Best Game on the Go

Lil' Pirates
Osmos for iPad
Scrabble for iPad
A Space Shooter for 2 Bucks
Trainyard
Best Downloadable Game

Dead Rising 2: Case Zero
Deathspank
HOARD
Shank
A Space Shooter for 2 Bucks
Best Audio

Assassin's Creed Brotherhood
Dawn of War II: Chaos Rising
Mass Effect 2
Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction
Best Social/Casual Game

Dex Hamilton: Alien Entomologist
GardenMind
Mercenaries of War
Pocket God on Facebook
Pot Farm
Best Game Design

Assassin's Creed Brotherhood
Deathspank
Mass Effect 2
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction
Trainyard
Best Technology

Assassin's Creed Brotherhood
Kinect for XBOX 360
Mass Effect 2
Scrabble for iPad
Your Shape Fitness Evolved
Best Visual Arts

Assassin's Creed Brotherhood
Mass Effect 2
Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction
Tron: Evolution
Best Writing

Assassin's Creed Brotherhood
Dawn of War II: Chaos Rising
Mass Effect 2
Prince of Persia - The Forgotten Sands
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction
Best Student Game

Codex
Ginkgo
Hootlin
WOMP!
Innovation Award

Kinect Joy Ride
ModNation Racers
Scrabble for iPad
Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions
Your Shape Fitness Evolved


Unsurprisingly, BioWare's Mass Effect 2 features prominently in this list, as do Assassin's Creed Brotherhood and Splinter Cell: Conviction, both from Ubisoft Montreal. The Vancouver connection is a little less obvious and includes titles like Dead Rising 2, developed in part by Capcom-owned Blue Castle Games, FIFA Soccer 11 from EA Canada and Shank, created by Klei Entertainment. Public voting is open now and runs until May 15.

I'm a bit mystified about why there's a "Best Console Game" category but not a "Best PC Game," but whatever credibility dents are inflicted by that bit of oddness are at least partially offset by the fact that something called Pot Farm is up for an award. Welcome to Canada, eh.


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[RedEyesBlackGamer]

Edit: I missed the "Canadian-made" part.

 

[Hashime]

The fact the P3P isn't a finalist for "Game on the go" is a crime. I don't really care about who wins, just irks me a little that it gets no recognition.

Was it made in canada?

 

[Hashime]

I am voting. Probably for ME2 in every category is come up in.
As for the "Pot Farm" game, that is Vancouver for you.

 

[LostNumber]

The fact the P3P isn't a finalist for "Game on the go" is a crime. I don't really care about who wins, just irks me a little that it gets no recognition.

Isn't Atlus based in Japan? These are for best Canadian-made games.

 

[Radoh]

I'm kind of surprised that SC: Conviction is in the Game of the Year, I thought that game got a pretty poor reception.

 

[King Toasty]

I'm Canadian, but FIFA 11!? BAHAHAHAHAHAHA OHOHO, whew. That's a LOL.

Seriously though, how the hell does that ALWAYS end up on GotY lists!?

 

[Suskie]

I'm kind of surprised that SC: Conviction is in the Game of the Year, I thought that game got a pretty poor reception.

It most certainly did not. And I can confirm that it's actually a pretty sick game, so I'm glad to see it there.

 

[Radoh]

I'm kind of surprised that SC: Conviction is in the Game of the Year, I thought that game got a pretty poor reception.

It most certainly did not. And I can confirm that it's actually a pretty sick game, so I'm glad to see it there.

I know it was good, I still play it on occasion, I thought it did badly because no one I know liked it.

 

[Assassin Xaero]

Dead Rising 2 for best game, seriously? It was a fun game and all, but when the game is mostly a melee killing style game and the melee mechanics are tolerable at best (more like shitty), that doesn't seem right at all.

 

[Quantum Star]

Yeah, pot's pretty big here in B.C, being the hippies that we are. As a matter of fact, April 20th is Pot Day.

 

[cream]

Wooooo go Canada.

I'm from Ontario, what did they bring to the table?

 

[Nouw]

Go Dawn of War 2, best of luck Relic!

 

[Cain_Zeros]

Yeah, pot's pretty big here in B.C, being the hippies that we are. As a matter of fact, April 20th is Pot Day.

Perhaps not legally, but that doesn't stop anyone. BC stands for Baked Canadians, after all.[footnote]It doesn't actually, for those who weren't sure.[/footnote]

Seeing that reminds me how few big games we really make, though. All the non-casual/portable/indie categories are mostly the same games...

 

[Phlakes]

Okay, AssCreed Brotherhood really wasn't that good. I don't see why it's been nominated for everything in all of these award things.

And what really invalidates the whole thing is not having BFBC2 for best audio.

 

[WrongSprite]

I'm Canadian, but FIFA 11!? BAHAHAHAHAHAHA OHOHO, whew. That's a LOL.

Seriously though, how the hell does that ALWAYS end up on GotY lists!?

Because its a very popular, well received series?

 

[Soviet Heavy]

Nice to see Chaos Rising on that list. Brilliant singleplayer campaign with terrific dialogue. Araghast and Eliphas are brilliantly hammy.

 

[-Dragmire-]

I'm Canadian, but FIFA 11!? BAHAHAHAHAHAHA OHOHO, whew. That's a LOL.

Seriously though, how the hell does that ALWAYS end up on GotY lists!?

At least it's not under the innovation award section

 

[DirgeNovak]

Wooooo go Canada.

I'm from Ontario, what did they bring to the table?

Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Go Ubisoft! Vive le Québec libre!