Game Critics Best of E3 Winners

[Cuddly Knife]

Nintendo, Spore, and Gears of War are the critics' favorites.
by Daemon Hatfield

May 31, 2006 - The official Game Critics Awards for E3 2006 have been announced.

Nintendo leads the pack with five awards, including Best of Show and Best Hardware. Spore won more awards than any other game, taking home Best Original Game, Best PC Game, and Best Simulation Game. Right behind Spore was Gears of War, with Best Console Game and Best Action Game.

The Game Critics Awards is an independent group of journalists from 37 leading North American media outlets that cover the videogame industry, including our very own goat-bearded satyr of an editorial director: Tal Blevins.

The full list of winners is included below:

BEST OF SHOW
Wii
(Nintendo)

BEST ORIGINAL GAME
Spore
(Maxis/Electronic Arts for PC)

BEST PC GAME
Spore
(Maxis/Electronic Arts for PC)

BEST CONSOLE GAME
Gears of War
(Epic Games / Microsoft Game Studios for Xbox 360)

BEST HANDHELD GAME
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
(Nintendo for Nintendo DS)

BEST HARDWARE
Wii
(Nintendo)

BEST ACTION GAME
Gears of War
(Epic Games / Microsoft Game Studios for Xbox 360)

BEST ACTION/ADVENTURE GAME
Assassin's Creed
(Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft for PlayStation 3)

BEST FIGHTING GAME
Heavenly Sword
(Ninja Theory / Sony Computer Entertainment for PlayStation 3)

BEST ROLE PLAYING GAME
Mass Effect
(Bioware / Microsoft Game Studios for Xbox 360)

BEST RACING GAME
Excite Truck
(Nintendo for Wii)

BEST SIMULATION GAME
Spore
(Maxis / Electronic Arts for PC)

BEST SPORTS GAME
Wii Sports
(Nintendo for Wii)

BEST STRATEGY GAME
Supreme Commander
(Gas Powered Games / THQ for PC)

BEST PUZZLE/TRIVIA/PARLOR GAME
Guitar Hero II
(Harmonix / Red Octane for PlayStation 2)

BEST ONLINE MULTIPLAYER GAME
Enemy Territory: Quake Wars
(Splash Damage/id/Activision for PC)
What's Heavenly Sword? One-on-one fighting?

[Mochan]

No, Heavenly Sword is that game where you have a red-haired girl cut a swath of carnage through armies.

[Rogue Bounty Hunter]

No, Heavenly Sword is that game where you have a red-haired girl cut a swath of carnage through armies.

Any idea if Heavenly Sword has different environments in the game? The only thing I have read about so far is an arena.

[Mochan]

Well in one of the trailers she was out in a big battlefield on the plains charging alone against a massive army.

[Gadfly2317]

So who else has been blown away by the Spore footage and gameplay concepts?

Biggest surprise on that list was to see Excite Truck listed as best racing game. Is it going to feature Online play? Because it seems like that is essential in putting a racing game over the top these days. I think it's hilarious that Sony showed ten minutes of footage on the next Gran Turismo game in their boring press conference, and their flag ship got beaten by a game with the unlikely and stupid sounding name "Excite Truck."

Are we actually getting ready to enter a less superficial era where gameplay trumps eye candy?

[Fivespot]

Are we actually getting ready to enter a less superficial era where gameplay trumps eye candy?

I sure hope so!

Another factor in my opinion is that GT4 was only in video form. I don't think any game deserves "best of" honors without having a playable format (otherwise it's pure speculation on whether the game will be any good or not). Of course it could still earn "best video/trailer" or something along those lines.

[Cuddly Knife]

Are we actually getting ready to enter a less superficial era where gameplay trumps eye candy?
Why do you think I keep those old PS1 and emu games? It's not for their excellent bump-mapping techniques and 80 million polygons per boobie. It's because they're so fun and play so damn well.

[GameLegend]

Why do you think I keep those old PS1 and emu games? It's not for their excellent bump-mapping techniques and 80 million polygons per boobie. It's because they're so fun and play so damn well.

every now and again, i complete Contra 2 every year, play Worms Armaggedon, Carregadeon, ya and even starcraft, still pwn online.

Why do i post and visit this site the most when i have midterms/exams? I never come here when I have free time.

[Mochan]

So who else has been blown away by the Spore footage and gameplay concepts?

That happened to me about a year ago.

[Gadfly2317]

That happened to me about a year ago.

I'm glad I overlooked it a year ago. It would have just made the wait that much longer.