The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences has announced the nominees for the 22nd Annual DICE Awards, led by (this might sound familiar) God of War with 12 nominations. Following close behind is Marvel's Spider-Man with 11, Red Dead Redemption 2 with eight, and this year's champion of the PC contenders, Return of the Obra Dinn, with six.
Here's what's in the running—fair to say it's been a pretty good year for Sony.
Outstanding Achievement in Animation:
- God of War
- GRIS
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- Moss
- Red Dead Redemption 2
Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction:
- Detroit: Become Human
- God of War
- GRIS
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- Red Dead Redemption 2
Outstanding Achievement in Character:
- Assassin's Creed Odyssey (Kassandra)
- God of War (Atreus)
- God of War (Kratos)
- Marvel's Spider-Man (Peter Parker/Spider-Man)
- Red Dead Redemption 2 (Arthur Morgan)
Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition:
- Detroit: Become Human
- Forgotton Anne
- God of War
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- Tetris Effect
Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design:
- Battlefield 5
- Detroit: Become Human
- God of War
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- Moss
Outstanding Achievement in Story:
- Assassin's Creed Odyssey
- Florence
- God of War
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- Return of the Obra Dinn
Outstanding Technical Achievement:
- Astro Bot Rescue Mission
- Battlefield 5
- God of War
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- Red Dead Redemption 2
Action Game of the Year:
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 4
- Celeste
- Destiny 2: Forsaken
- Far Cry 5
- Shadow of the Tomb Raider
Adventure Game of the Year:
- Detroit: Become Human
- God of War
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Return of the Obra Dinn
Family Game of the Year:
- Astro Bot Rescue Mission
- Kirby Star Allies
- Lego DC Super-Villains
- Starlink: Battle for Atlas
- Unravel Two
Fighting Game of the Year:
- BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle
- Dragon Ball Fighter Z
- Soulcalibur 6
- Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Racing Game of the Year:
- Forza Horizon 4
- F1 2018
- Wreckfest
Role-Playing Game of the Year:
- Assassin's Creed Odyssey
- Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age
- Monster Hunter World
- Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom
- Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire
Sports Game of the Year:
- FIFA 19
- Mario Tennis Aces
- MLB The Show 18
Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year:
- Bad North
- Frostpunk
- Into the Breach
- Northgard
- RimWorld
Immersive Reality Technical Achievement:
- Astro Bot Rescue Mission
- Beat Saber
- Dr. Grordbort's Invaders
- Tónandi
- Torn
Immersive Reality Game of the Year:
- Astro Bot Rescue Mission
- Beat Saber
- Moss
- Sprint Vector
- Transference
Outstanding Achievement for an Independent Game:
- Celeste
- Florence
- Into the Breach
- Minit
- Return of the Obra Dinn
Portable Game of the Year:
- Dandara
- Donut County
- Dragalia Lost
- Florence
- Oddmar
Online Game of the Year:
- Fortnite
- Destiny 2: Forsaken
- Laser League
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Sea of Thieves
Outstanding Achievement in Game Design:
- God of War
- Into the Breach
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- Return of the Obra Dinn
- Subnautica
Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction:
- Florence
- God of War
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Return of the Obra Dinn
Game of the Year:
- God of War
- Into the Breach
- Marvel's Spider-Man
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Return of the Obra Dinn
This year's DICE Awards Hall of Fame recipient will be Bonnie Ross, the head of Halo studio 343 Industries. The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony that will take place on February 13 in Las Vegas, and will be livestreamed in its entirety beginning at 8 pm PT/11 pm ET. (The event is being held in Vegas, so it's a bit of a late start for those of us on the east coast.)
If you just can't get enough of awards show arguing, don't forget that the Independent Games Festival Awards and the Game Developers Choice Awards nominees were also recently announced, and will be settled in March.
