GDC Choice Awards now open for nominations

The Game Developers Conference (GDC) has opened nominations for the 14th annual Game Developers Choice Awards through January 4, 2014. Produced by the UBM Tech Game Network, the Choice Awards are one of the most prestigious honors in the video game development industry and will take place the evening of March 19, during GDC 2014 at the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco, CA. The Game Developers Choice Awards celebrate the skills and expertise of developers recognizing them as leaders in their craft across multiple game development disciplines. Award nominations in 10 categories are now open for games that were released during the 2013 calendar year. The Audience Award category is also returning to the Choice Awards, giving fans the opportunity to vote on their favorite finalist released in the previous calendar year. Voting for the Audience Award will begin on February 19, 2014 and will be open to the public to cast votes. In addition, nominations are also open for three special award categories: the Pioneer Award, acknowledging individuals who have developed groundbreaking video game genres, technology, gameplay design or concepts which set the foundation for others that followed, the Ambassador Award, honoring individuals who have influenced or helped advance the game industry to a better place – by either being an advocate for video games outside the industry, or generating an improved game community from within, and the Lifetime Achievement Award. Nominations for the special awards are open to anyone that has not been a recipient previously. Nominations can be submitted by any game professional, registered with a Gamasutra.com account, simply by voting via the Game Developers Choice Awards website. The Game Developers Choice Awards’ International Choice Awards Network (ICAN) will select winners chosen by a group comprised of leading game creators and professionals across the video game industry. Special Award winners are selected by the Game Developers Choice Awards Advisory Committee, which includes honorable industry veterans from Konami, PopCap Games, Valve, Arkane Studios, ngmoco and more. The 2014 Game Developers Choice Award categories open for nominations are: (Regular Awards) • Best Audio • Best Debut Game • Best Downloadable Game • Best Handheld/Mobile Game • Best Game Design • Best Narrative • Best Technology • Best Visual Arts • Innovation Award • Game of the Year • Audience Award (Voting to open on February 19, 2014) (Special Awards) • Lifetime Achievement • Pioneer Award • Ambassador Award The ceremony is produced by the GDC and will take place on Wednesday, March 19, 2014 at 6:30pm. The event is held immediately following the Independent Games Festival Awards at the San Francisco Moscone Convention Center. For more information about the Game Developers Choice Awards or to submit a nomination ballot, visit the GDCA site. For further information and to register for GDC, the official website. Gamasutra and GDC are sibling organizations under parent UBM Tech