Nathan Drake might pick up a bit more treasure next month.
Naughty Dog's Uncharted 2: Among Thieves leads the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences (AIAS) 13th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, netting 15 nominations including game of the year.
In the game of the year category, Uncharted 2 is up against Ubisoft’s Assassin's Creed 2, Rocksteady Studios’ Batman: Arkham Asylum, Infinity Ward’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and BioWare’s Dragon Age: Origins.
Having completely loved Uncharted 2 from start to finish, this is great news to me. It doesn’t look like it’ll be easy for Uncharted 2 to sweep the categories, however. Assassin's Creed 2 picked up 10 nominations, Modern Warfare 2 has nine nominations, Batman: Arkham Asylum has eight nominations and Sony’s Ratchet and Clank Future: A Crack in Time and Double Fine Productions’ Brutal Legend each have four nominations.
All of these were incredible games, and worth playing in their own right regardless of who wins the award. It really shows what a great year for gaming 2009 was.
This year the AIAS also created three new awards, for portable game of the year, outstanding achievement in game design and social networking game of the year. The awards will be given on February 18 in Las Vegas during the DICE Summit 2010. Comedian and actor Jay Mohr returns for his fifth year hosting the show.
Here’s a partial list of nominees. A full list can be found here.
Overall Game of the Year
Assassin's Creed II
Publisher: Ubisoft
Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Batman: Arkham Asylum
Publisher: Eidos/Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment
Developer: Rocksteady Studios
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Publisher: Activision
Developer: Infinity Ward
Dragon Age: Origins
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: BioWare
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: Naughty Dog
Action Game of the Year
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Publisher: Activision
Developer: Infinity Ward
Left 4 Dead 2
Publisher: Valve Software
Developer: Valve Software
Prototype
Publisher: Activision
Developer: Radical Entertainment
Red Faction: Guerrilla
Publisher: THQ
Developer: Volition
Shadow Complex
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Developer: Chair Entertainment
Casual Game of The Year
Drawn: The Painted Tower
Publisher: Big Fish Games
Developer: Big Fish Games
Flower
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: thatgamecompany
Flight Control
Publisher: Firemint
Developer: Firemint
Plants Vs. Zombies
Publisher: PopCap Games
Developer: PopCap Games
Scribblenauts
Publisher: Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment
Developer: 5th Cell Media
Role Playing/Massively Multiplayer Game of the Year
Borderlands
Publisher: 2K Games
Developer: Gearbox Software
Champions Online
Publisher: Atari
Developer: Cryptic Studios
Demon's Souls
Publisher: Atlus
Developer: From Software
Dragon Age: Origins
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Bioware
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Alphadream
Social Networking Game of the Year
Bejeweled Blitz
Publisher: PopCapGames
Developer: PopCap Games
Farmtown
Publisher: Codebell
Developer: Codebell
FarmVille
Publisher: Zynga
Developer: Zynga
Restaurant City
Publisher: Electronic Arts/Playfish
Developer: Playfish
Outstanding Innovation in Gaming
Demon's Soul's
Publisher: Atlus
Developer: From Software
Farmville
Publisher: Zynga
Developer: Zynga
Flower
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: thatgamecompany
Scribblenauts
Publisher: Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment
Developer: 5th Cell Media
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: Naughty Dog
Adventure Game of The Year
Assassin's Creed II
Publisher: Ubisoft
Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Batman: Arkham Asylum
Publisher: Eidos/Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment
Developer: Rocksteady Studios
New Super Mario Bros. Wii
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Nintendo
Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: Insomniac Games
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America
Developer: Naughty Dog
Members of the publishing and development communities are able to vote in the 13th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards up until Tuesday, January 26, 2010 (Mass Effect 2 day!). Award winners will be announced at the Interactive Achievement Awards ceremony on February 18, 2010, at the Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas.
What do you think of the selections and what should win each category?