'LittleBigPlanet' Garners Most Nominations For Interactive Achievement Awards

PS3 exclusive "LittleBigPlanet" received 10 nominations for the 12th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, and will be duking it out with "GTA IV," "Left 4 Dead," "Fallout 3" and "Metal Gear Solid 4" for Overall Game of the Year.

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Today the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences announced the nominees for the 12th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards. PS3 exclusive "LittleBigPlanet" had the most nominations with 10, including categories like Overall Game of the Year and Console Game of the Year.

Other games that got nods in multiple categories include: "Gears of War 2," "Fable II," "Left 4 Dead," "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots" and "Fallout 3."

The winners will be announced on February 19 at an awards ceremony, hosted by comedian Jay Mohr, during the D.I.C.E. (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit in Las Vegas.

Check out the full press release below, along with the full list of nominees for Overall Game of the Year, Console Game of the Year, Computer Game of the Year, Outstanding Innovation in Gaming and Handheld Game of the Year:

Littlebigplanet leads with an impressive 10 Interactive Achievement Award NOMINATIONS

Fallout 3, Grand Theft Auto IV, Left 4 Dead, LittleBigPlanet and Metal Gear Solid 4 Fight It Out for ‘Overall Game of the Year’ Honors

CALABASAS, CA – January 23, 2009 – The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences® (AIAS) today announced the nominees for the 12th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards®. The nominations for the peer-based awards have been dominated by blockbuster game, LittleBigPlanet (Sony Computer Entertainment America) with an astounding 10 nominations from industry leaders and members of the interactive entertainment software business. In addition, finalists with multiple nominations include: Gears of War 2 (Microsoft Game Studios), Left 4 Dead (Valve Software), Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.), Fallout 3 (Bethesda Softworks), and Fable II (Microsoft Game Studios).

The awards ceremony will take place during the D.I.C.E. (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit® 2009, on February 19th at the Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas, with comedian, actor and proud game enthusiast, Jay Mohr, returning for his fourth year to host the award ceremony.

These peer-based awards recognize the outstanding products, talented individuals and development teams that have contributed to the advancement of the multi-billion dollar worldwide entertainment software industry.

“This was an exciting year for games,” said Joseph Olin, president, AIAS. “The depth of talent and creativity in this industry continues to amaze me and we are honored to highlight some of the most impressive games of the year at the Interactive Achievement Awards. The 2009 nominees indeed reflect a stronghold of talent embodying the best and brightest in this field.”

Following is a partial list of finalists; the complete list of finalists is available at www.interactive.org:

Overall Game of the Year

Fallout 3
Publisher: Bethesda Softworks
Developer: Bethesda Game Studios

Grand Theft Auto IV
Publisher: Rockstar Games
Developer: Rockstar North

Left 4 Dead
Publisher: Valve Software
Developer: Valve Software

LittleBigPlanet
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: Media Molecule

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
Publisher: Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.
Developer: Kojima Productions

Console Game of the Year

Fallout 3
Publisher: Bethesda Softworks
Developer: Bethesda Game Studios

Gears of War 2
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Developer: Epic Games, Inc.

Grand Theft Auto IV
Publisher: Rockstar Games
Developer: Rockstar North

LittleBigPlanet
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: Media Molecule

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
Publisher: Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.
Developer: Kojima Productions

Computer Game of the Year

Fallout 3
Publisher: Bethesda Softworks
Developer: Bethesda Game Studios

Left 4 Dead
Publisher: Valve Software
Developer: Valve Software

Mass Effect
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Bioware

Spore
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Maxis

World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King
Publisher: Blizzard Entertainment
Developer: Blizzard Entertainment

Outstanding Innovation in Gaming

Braid
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Developer: Number None

Left 4 Dead
Publisher: Valve Software
Developer: Valve Software

LittleBigPlanet
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: Media Molecule

Spore
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Maxis

Wii Fit
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Nintendo

Handheld Game of the Year

Advance Wars: Days of Ruin
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Intelligent Systems

Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia
Publisher: Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.
Developer: Konami

God of War: Chains of Olympus
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: Ready at Dawn

Patapon
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: Sony Computer Entertainment International

Professor Layton and the Curious Village
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Level 5, Inc.

Since 1996, the Interactive Achievement Awards have recognized outstanding games, individuals and development teams that have contributed to the advancement of the multi-billion dollar worldwide entertainment software industry. More than 100 titles were played and evaluated by members of the Academy’s Peer Panels. These panels, one for each award category, are comprised of the game industry’s most experienced and talented men and women who are experts in their chosen fields. Interactive Achievement Award recipients are then determined by a vote of qualified Academy members, which is secret, conducted online, and supervised and certified by Votenet™ Solutions, Inc. The integrity of the system, coupled with a broad-based voting population of AIAS members, makes the Interactive Achievement Awards the most credible, respected and recognized awards for interactive entertainment software industry.

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Readers, what do you think? Does "LittleBigPlanet" deserve all the kudos or do other games need to get more credit? Which game do you think should win in each category? Were there any glaring omissions?