The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) announced the winners for the 7th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, which were held at Rain in the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, March 4, 2004.
CALL OF DUTY took home the top prizes for Game of the Year and PC Game of the Year. However, Console Game of the Year winner PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME from Ubisoft was the big winner with eight awards in total. Hollywood stars Elijah Wood and Jada Pinkett-Smith won character performance awards for reprising their film roles for the LORD OF THE RINGS and MATRIX games respectively. Pinkett-Smith shared the Female Character Performance prize with POWERPUFF GIRLS voice actress Tara Strong for her work on FINAL FANTASY X-2.
Below is a complete list of winners. Each game is followed by the developer then publisher if only one company is listed then they served as both developer and publisher.
Game of the YearCALL OF DUTY (Infinity Ward, Activision)
PC Game of the YearCALL OF DUTY (Infinity Ward, Activision)
Console Game of the YearPRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME (Ubisoft)
Innovation in PC GamingPRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME (Ubisoft)
Innovation in Console GamingEYE TOY (SCEA)
Console Action/AdventureCRIMSON SKIES: HIGH ROAD TO REVENGE (FASA Studios, Microsoft)
Console FightingSOUL CALIBUR 2 (Namco)
Console First Person ActionTOM CLANCY'S RAINBOW SIX 3 (Red Storm, Ubisoft)
Console Platform Action/AdventurePRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME (Ubisoft)
Console RacingNEED FOR SPEED UNDERGROUND (Electronic Arts)
Console Role Playing GameSTAR WARS: KNIGHTS OF THE OLD REPUBLIC (Bioware, LucasArts)
Console Sports SimulationMADDEN NFL 2004 (EA/Tiburon, Electronic Arts)
Family Game of the YearEYE TOY (SCEA)
Handheld Game of the YearFINAL FANTASY TACTICS ADVANCE (Square Enix)
PC FamilyZOO TYCOON: COMPLETE COLLECTION (Blue Fang Games, Microsoft)
PC Action / AdventurePRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME (Ubisoft)
PC First Person ActionCALL OF DUTY (Infinity Ward, Activision)
PC Massively Multiplayer / Persistent WorldEVERQUEST: LOST DUNGEONS (Sony Online Ent.)
PC Role Playing GameSTAR WARS: KNIGHTS OF THE OLD REPUBLIC (Bioware, LucasArts)
PC SimulationTHE SIMS: SUPERSTAR (Maxis, Electronic Arts)
PC SportsMADDEN NFL 2004 (EA/Tiburon, Electronic Arts)
PC StrategyCOMMAND & CONQUER: GENERALS (Electronic Arts)
Game DesignPRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME (Ubisoft)
Character or Story DevelopmentSTAR WARS: KNIGHTS OF THE OLD REPUBLIC (Bioware, LucasArts)
Art DirectionTHE LEGEND OF ZELDA: THE WIND WAKER (Nintendo)
AnimationPRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME (Ubisoft)
Original Music CompositionMEDAL OF HONOR: RISING SUN (EA LA, Electronic Arts)
Sound DesignLORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING (EARS, Electronic Arts)
Gameplay EngineeringPRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME (Ubisoft)
Visual EngineeringPRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME (Ubisoft)
Console Action SportSSX 3 (EA Canada, Electronic Arts)
Licensed SoundtrackSSX 3 (EA Canada, Electronic Arts)
Console ChildrenMARIO PARTY 5 (Nintendo)
PC DownloadableHAMSTER BALL (Raptisoft, Real.com)
Character Performance - MaleElijah Wood (Frodo) - LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING (EARS, Electronic Arts)
Character Performance - FemaleJada Pinkett-Smith (Niobe) - ENTER THE MATRIX (Shiny Ent., Atari)Tara Strong (Rikku) - FINAL FANTASY X-2 (Square Enix)
AIAS is the 5,000-member professional organization of the interactive entertainment industry, created to promote, communicate and advance the common interests of the worldwide entertainment software community. Annually, the Academy's two signature events are The Interactive Achievement Awards, the industry's premier and most highly regarded award show, recognizing outstanding achievement in interactive entertainment, and The DICE Summit, the only entertainment industry event dedicated exclusively to exploring the creative process, current trends and future of game design, development and marketing. The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences is located 9343 Culver Blvd., Culver City, California 90232. For more information call 310/441-2280 or visit www.interactive.org.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
