Yesterday evening at Fan Expo Vancouver, Reboot Communications and Greedy Productions held the Canadian Videogame Awards, hosted by industry voice actor Elias Toufexis (Adam Jensen in Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Andriy Kobin in the Splinter Cell series).
Nominations and finalists for the CVAs are chosen from triple-A and indie games developed primarily in Canada. Mark of the Ninja came in with the most nominations at 11 (see the full list of finalists here) and ended up winning two on the night. The big winner however, was Far Cry 3 which took home the most awards, followed by Mass Effect 3. Read on for the full list of winners and some thoughts.
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Game of the Year: Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
- Assassin's Creed III (Ubisoft Montreal)
- Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
- Mark of the Ninja (Klei Entertainment/Microsoft)
- Mass Effect 3 (Bioware/Electronic Arts)
- Papo & Yo (Minority Media/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Best Console Game: Mass Effect 3 (Bioware/Electronic Arts)
- Assassin's Creed III (Ubisoft Montreal)
- Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
- FIFA Soccer 13 (EA Sports)
- Mass Effect 3 (Bioware/Electronic Arts)
- Sleeping Dogs (United Front Games/Square Enix Ltd.)
Best Downloadable Game: Mark of the Ninja (Klei Entertainment/Microsoft)
- Incredipede (Northway Games)
- Mark of the Ninja (Klei Entertainment/Microsoft)
- MechWarrior Online (Piranha Games/Infinite Games Publishing)
- Shank 2 (Klei Entertainment/Electronic Arts)
- Waveform (Eden Industries)
Best Game on the Go: Sound Shapes (Queasy Games/Sony Computer Entertainment)
- Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition (Beamdog)
- My Singing Monsters (Big Blue Bubble)
- Shellrazer (Slick Entertainment)
- Sound Shapes (Queasy Games/Sony Computer Entertainment)
- The Bard's Tale (Square One Games/inXile Entertainment)
Best Social/Casual Game: The Secret World (Funcom Games/Electronic Arts)
- i saw her standing there (krangGAMES)
- Jurassic Park Builder (Ludia)
- Marvel Avengers: Battle for Earth (Ubisoft Quebec)
- Rubber Tacos (Sava Transmedia/Zygna)
- The Secret World (Funcom Games/Electronic Arts)
Best Animation: Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
- Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
- Mark of the Ninja (Klei Entertainment/Microsoft)
- Prototype 2 (Radical Entertainment/Activision)
- Shank 2 (Klei Entertainment/Electronic Arts)
- Sleeping Dogs (United Front Games/Square Enix Ltd.)
Best Audio: Assassin's Creed III (Ubisoft Montreal)
- Assassin's Creed III (Ubisoft Montreal)
- Incredipede (Northway Games)
- Mark of the Ninja (Klei Entertainment/Microsoft)
- My Singing Monsters (Big Blue Bubble)
- Sound Shapes (Queasy Games/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Best Game Design: Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
- Assassin's Creed III (Ubisoft Montreal)
- Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
- Mark of the Ninja (Klei Entertainment/Microsoft)
- Mass Effect 3 (Bioware/Electronic Arts)
- Sound Shapes (Queasy Games/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Best Game Innovation: Sound Shapes (Queasy Games/Sony Computer Entertainment)
- Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
- Mark of the Ninja (Klei Entertainment/Microsoft)
- Papo & Yo (Minority Media/Sony Computer Entertainment)
- Sound Shapes (Queasy Games/Sony Computer Entertainment)
- Waveform (Eden Industries)
Best Indie Game: Mark of the Ninja (Klei Entertainment/Microsoft)
- Mark of the Ninja (Klei Entertainment/Microsoft)
- Papo & Yo (Minority Media/Sony Computer Entertainment)
- Shank 2 (Klei Entertainment/Electronic Arts)
- Sound Shapes (Queasy Games/Sony Computer Entertainment)
- Waveform (Eden Industries)
Best New Character: Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft) - Vaas
- Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft) - Vaas
- Nun Attack (Frima Studio) - The Nun Squad!
- Papo & Yo (Minority Media/Sony Computer Entertainment) - Quico
- Prototype 2 (Radical Entertainment/Activision) - James Heller
- Sleeping Dogs (United Front Games/Square Enix Ltd.) - Wei Shen
Best Original Music: Mass Effect 3 (Bioware/Electronic Arts) - Leaving Earth
- Assassin's Creed III (Ubisoft Montreal) - Main Theme Song
- Mass Effect 3 (Bioware/Electronic Arts) - Leaving Earth
- Papo & Yo (Minority Media/Sony Computer Entertainment) - Liberation
- Sleeping Dogs (United Front Games/Square Enix Ltd.) - Sleeping Dogs Score
- Sound Shapes (Queasy Games/Sony Computer Entertainment) - Cities
Best Technology: Assassin's Creed III (Ubisoft Montreal)
- Assassin's Creed III (Ubisoft Montreal)
- Mark of the Ninja (Klei Entertainment/Microsoft)
- MechWarrior Online (Piranha Games/Infinite Games Publishing)
- Prototype 2 (Radical Entertainment/Activision)
- SSX (EA Sports)
Best Visual Arts: Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
- Assassin's Creed III (Ubisoft Montreal)
- Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
- Incredipede (Northway Games)
- Mark of the Ninja (Klei Entertainment/Microsoft)
- Mass Effect 3 (Bioware/Electronic Arts)
Best Writing: Mass Effect 3 (Bioware/Electronic Arts)
- Assassin's Creed III (Ubisoft Montreal)
- Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
- Mark of the Ninja (Klei Entertainment/Microsoft)
- Mass Effect 3 (Bioware/Electronic Arts)
- Sleeping Dogs (United Front Games/Square Enix Ltd.)
Future Shop Fans' Choice Award: Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
- Assassin's Creed III (Ubisoft Montreal)
- Batman Arkham City Armored Edition (WB Games Montreal)
- Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
- Mark of the Ninja (Klei Entertainment/Microsoft)
- Mass Effect 3 (Bioware/Electronic Arts)
- Papo & Yo (Minority Media/Sony Computer Entertainment)
- Prototype 2 (Radical Entertainment/Activision)
- Sleeping Dogs (United Front Games/Square Enix Ltd.)
- Sound Shapes (Queasy Games/Sony Computer Entertainment)
- Waveform (Eden Industries)
Some highlights: Far Cry 3 wins best game but was beaten out by Mass Effect 3 in the console category, despite also winning best game design and animation. This is one of those common inexplicable quirks with game award shows that have the same games nominated in two categories that are essentially the same. Which of the two wins "Best PC"? If Far Cry 3 is the "best game" what made it not the best on consoles? Count on Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon being nominated for a few awards next year.
For best social/casual game, Marvel Avengers: Battle for Earth had no chance of winning for its mixed reviews, and it came down to three mobile apps vs. an MMO. Sound Shapes, the innovative music game, didn't win sound or best original music, but did manage to take home two well-deserved wins. The somewhat controversial winner is Mass Effect 3 for best writing, a game that was panned for its nonsensical and incomplete conclusion to the series. The character dialogue was still top-notch, despite the story issues, and looking at the trilogy as a whole, it was mostly brilliant, abandoned threads aside. The other oddity is seeing MechWarrior Online nominated for two categories. The free-to-play MMO is still in beta, and hasn't even launched its main-game meta world, but because it was nominated pre-release, it's not eligible for next year's awards when the full game is actually out. Still, it was at least honored as a finalist for two categories, despite not being an actual released game.
The biggest note however, is how incredible the offerings from Canadian developers are and how they continue to expand and improve. Not even among the winners (or finalists) were some of the best titles from EA Sports, and Sleeping Dogs was nominated for a few categories as well. It's another must-play. The future is bright for the gaming industry in Canada and looking at all the finalists above, no one's losing.
Victor Lucas, executive producer of The Electric Playground and CVA co-founder:
"The sheer concentration of quality games produced in 2012 was utterly mind-boggling. Small or large, independently produced or developed by teams of hundreds, the nominees this year truly represent the diversity in the Canadian videogame industry, congratulations to all of the winners and nominees tonight - you should be immensely proud of the amazing work you have created!"
Gamers looking to see the award show should tune in for the two-hour special on CityTV on April 27, 2013 at 9:00 pm, and on G4 Canada on April 28, 2013.
Follow Rob on Twitter @rob_keyes.