The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) has announced the nominees for the 16th annual Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain (D.I.C.E.) Awards. Leading the pack this year is thatgamecompany's Journey, which scored eleven total nominations, including Game of the Year, Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction, Outstanding Innovation in Gaming, Downloadable Game of the Year, Casual Game of the Year, Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction, Outstanding Achievement in Gameplay Engineering, Outstanding Achievement in Online Gameplay, Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition, Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design, and Outstanding Achievement in Story.

Each of the remaining Game of the Year nominees (all of which placed on Game Rant's list of the Top 10 Games of 2012) earned multiple nominations, as well, with five for Borderlands 2, seven for Far Cry 3, eight for The Walking Dead, and three for XCOM: Enemy Unknown. Other heavily nominated games include Halo 4 (six nominations) and Dishonored (five nominations).

The awards will be handed out on Thursday, February 7th, during the 2013 D.I.C.E. Summit in Las Vegas, and the ceremony will be streamed live on Machinima.com starting at 7:30pm PT. Nerdist head honcho/comedian Chris Hardwick will assume hosting duties for the event, replacing longtime host Jay Mohr.

The Walking Dead

Hardwick, who tweeted that he's "EXCITED like heated electrons" to be hosting the show, discusses the event.

"The D.I.C.E. Awards are VERY important to me. I have been playing video games since there were video games. I hope there is some type of Dovahkiin Shout that will make sure I don't mess this up. I will find one! If not, I'll just look like a psychotic, screaming a**hole leading up to the Awards."

Take a look at the full list of 2013 D.I.C.E. Awards nominees below.

Game of the Year

  • Borderlands 2
  • Far Cry 3
  • Journey
  • The Walking Dead
  • XCOM: Enemy Unknown

Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction

  • Journey
  • Dishonored
  • Far Cry 3
  • The Unfinished Swan
  • The Walking Dead

Outstanding Innovation in Gaming

  • Journey
  • Nintendo Land
  • Sound Shapes
  • The Unfinished Swan
  • The Walking Dead

Downloadable Game of the Year

  • Fez
  • Journey
  • Mark of the Ninja
  • The Unfinished Swan
  • The Walking Dead

Handheld Game of the Year

  • Gravity Rush
  • Paper Mario Sticker Star
  • Resident Evil Revelations
  • Sound Shapes
  • Uncharted: Golden Abyss

Mobile Game of the Year

  • Fairway Solitaire
  • Hero Academy
  • Horn
  • Rayman Jungle Run

Web Based Game of the Year

  • Bingo Bash
  • Burrito Bison Revenge
  • CityVille 2
  • Sim City Social
  • Song Pop

Action Game of the Year

  • Borderlands 2
  • Far Cry 3
  • Halo 4
  • Hitman: Absolution
  • Sleeping Dogs

Adventure Game of the Year

  • Assassin's Creed III
  • Darksiders II
  • Dishonored
  • New Super Mario Bros. Wii U
  • The Walking Dead

Casual Game of the Year

  • Fairway Solitaire
  • Journey
  • Puzzle Craft
  • Rayman Jungle Run
  • Sound Shapes

Family Game of the Year

  • Dance Central 3
  • Just Dance 4
  • LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes
  • Nintendo Land
  • Skylanders Giants

Fighting Game of the Year

  • Persona 4 Arena
  • PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale
  • Souldcalibur V
  • Street Fighter X Tekken
  • Tekken Tag Tournament 2

Racing Game of the Year

  • Forza Horizon
  • LittleBigPlanet Karting
  • MotorStorm RC
  • Need for Speed Most Wanted
  • Trials: Evolution

Role-Playing/Massively Multiplayer Game of the Year

  • Diablo III
  • Dust: An Elysian Tale
  • Guild Wars 2
  • Mass Effect 3
  • Torchlight 2

Sports Game of the Year

  • FIFA Soccer 13
  • MLB The Show 2013
  • NBA 2K13

Strategy Game of the Year

  • FTL
  • Minecraft Xbox 360
  • Orcs Must Die 2
  • Total War: SHOGUN 2 - Fall of the Samurai
  • XCOM: Enemy Unknown

Outstanding Achievement in Animation

  • Assassin's Creed III
  • Far Cry 3
  • Hitman: Absolution
  • Mark of the Ninja
  • Uncharted: Golden Abyss

Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction

  • Borderlands 2
  • Dishonored
  • Far Cry 3
  • Halo 4
  • Journey

Outstanding Character Performance

  • Borderlands 2: Tiny Tina
  • Far Cry 3: Vaas Montenegro
  • Halo 4: Cortana
  • Mass Effect 3: Female Commander Shepard
  • The Walking Dead: Lee Everett

Outstanding Achievement in Connectivity

  • Call of Duty: Black Ops II
  • Halo 4
  • Nike + Kinect Training

Outstanding Achievement in Gameplay Engineering

  • Dishonored
  • Gravity Rush
  • Journey
  • The Walking Dead
  • XCOM: Enemy Unknown

Outstanding Achievement in Online Gameplay

  • Borderlands 2
  • Call of Duty: Black Ops II
  • Diablo III
  • Halo 4
  • Journey

Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition

  • Diablo III
  • Far Cry 3
  • Journey
  • Mass Effect 3
  • World of Warcraft Mists of Pandaria

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design

  • Assassin's Creed III
  • Diablo III
  • Journey
  • Medal of Honor: Warfighter
  • Syndicate

Outstanding Achievement in Story

  • Dishonored
  • Journey
  • Sleeping Dogs
  • Spec Ops: The Line
  • The Walking Dead

Outstanding Achievement in Visual Engineering

  • Call of Duty: Black Ops II
  • Halo 4
  • Hitman: Absolution
  • Need for Speed Most Wanted
  • Total War: SHOGUN 2 - Fall of the Samurai
Far Cry 3

Bethesda's Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim dominated the D.I.C.E. awards last year with wins in five categories. Following strong showings at the 2012 Spike VGAs, will Journey and The Walking Dead be able to keep their winning streaks alive? Will either game earn more awards than Skyrim? What do you think?

Ranters, are there any games that you think the AIAS has unfairly overlooked? Do you find any surprises among the nominations? And who would you pick to win the major categories? Let us know in the comments below.

The 16th annual D.I.C.E. Awards ceremony takes place February 7, 2013. Check back with Game Rant for a full list of the winners.

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Source: The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences