BAFTA Announces The Nominations For The British Academy Video Games Awards

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts today announced the nominations for The British Academy Video Games Awards in association with Nokia N-Gage and PC World. The nominated games for 2006 show the incredible variety and innovation the industry now offers. The awards ceremony will reward the individuals behind the very best in artistic, creative and technical innovation for video games, and will be held at the historic Roundhouse on 5th October, hosted by Vernon Kay.

Loco Roco, a PlayStation Portable game that features a world where jelly-like creatures sing, roll and bounce, received the joint-highest nominations with eight, alongside the latest offering from the Tom Clancy franchise - Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter. The snowballing We Love Katamari amassed six nominations, whilst games offering new ways to interact and play also did well, with Guitar Hero receiving five nominations, Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training earning three and Singstar Rocks! garnering two.

New instalments of some of the video games industry’s biggest franchises still retained their potency – for example Tomb Raider: Legend which scooped five nominations including one for Lara Croft in the Character category. She was joined by Hitman’s Agent 47, Lego Star Wars’ Han Solo, Rogue Trooper’s Rogue and lastly, LocoRoco. Also re-workings of old themes proved popular, with LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy receiving four nominations.

Paul Jackson, chairman of the BAFTA Games committee commented, “This year’s decision for the Academy to elevate games to an equal status alongside film and television has been praised by the industry, government and media, and the stage is firmly set for The British Academy Video Games Awards to become the industry and consumers’ benchmark of excellence.”

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