Fallout 3, LittleBigPlanet Top EMA's 2008 Award Nominees

Bethesda's Fallout 3 and Sony and Media Molecule's LittleBigPlanet top the Entertainment Merchant Associaton's 2009 Video Game Home Entertainment Awards nominees, which selected 90 games across 20 categories. Fallout 3 and LittleBigPlanet received the most nominations with five each, and Call of Duty: World at War, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, Gears of War 2 and Grand Theft Auto IV received four nominations each. The award categories this year included all major platforms and genres including action/adventure, casual, children/family, fighting, racing, RPG/strategy, shooter/military and best non-sequel games. The EMA will also present individual awards for categories like best graphics, most-innovative game, and best game of the year, and has added a new category this year to recognize the best third-party publisher. For the first time in 2008, the EMA nominated only one title in the "PC Game of the Year" category: World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King. The publisher with the most nominations was Sony Computer Entertainment with 13, followed by Nintendo with 10. Electronic Arts received nine nominations, and Microsoft and Ubisoft were given eight nominations each. All games released during the 2008 calendar year were eligible, and the categories and nominees were determined by the EMA's special nominating committee, comprised of game retailers and distributors. A vote of the EMA's members will determine the winners. The EMA will announce the winners at its Game Supply: The Supply Chain Academy for Interactive Entertainment event on February 11, 2009 in Burbank, CA. "The wonderful growth in the video game market is a direct result of the impressive quality of the games being produced along with the enriching diversity of product," says EMA president and CEO Bo Andersen. "Video games appeal to all ages and are a core component in home entertainment. The retailers who sell and rent video games are very excited to honor the outstanding games in the marketplace."