Last night was the British Academy Games Awards, hosted by the brilliant Dara O’Briain, who once again brought his wonderful and hilarious comedy for the fifth time.
The night included a huge array of games from independent to AAA titles, which was refreshing to see when the BAFTA awards are often criticised for having a very narrow view on the titles nominated each year.
Some of the games to look out for going into the night were, Journey, The Walking Dead and Far Cry 3, who had all received a number of nominations this year.
The ceremony opens with a surprisingly ardent O’Briain on his recent interviews on video game violence, as the man who has now become somewhat of a figure head for the industry in recent years due to his work and his feelings towards the industries excitement for creating origin stories of our favourite characters. O’Briain begins his imitation of a young Italian plumber coming to terms with having to murder a small turtle for the first time.
Best Debut Game
The first award of the evening begins with Matthew Horne (Gavin & Stacey) taking to the stage to grant the award for the best debut game. One of the most important awards for some of the nominees, as this is not only the debut of their games but also the debut of their company in the industry.
The Nominations
Forza Horizon
The Unfinished Swan
Dear Esther
The Room
Deadlight
Proteus
Winner
The Unfinished Swan
A first person adventure game that trades in guns for paint brushes, an incredibly innovative game but may seem like an under dog in the category as the award came with some surprise, namely due to its mixed reviews attained on release.
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8 Comments
Great to see New Star Soccer won Best Sports Game. I hadn’t heard of it before reading this article, but it’s wonderful to see a real underdog win in a category otherwise dominated by stacks of cash and licenses. It goes to show that the awards really do recognise achievement!
Absolutely astounded FIFA didn’t win in the best sports category. It is nothing short of amazing that a game which uses such archaic physics, namely the “top down” feature, beat a franchise which succeeded it in both graphics and innovation a decade ago. Just… Wow.
…and which has essentially been churning out the same game ever since.
FIFA is a formula. Achievements made a decade ago shouldn’t count for awards gained this season. New Star Soccer was made by one man and combines a sequence of beautiful elements in an artfully presented package.
That a game is three-dimensional counts for nothing. Top-down gameplay isn’t “archaic” – it’s still a very prominent style, largely because there are so many indie developers emerging who can’t afford to throw millions of pounds into a graphics department.
But this one man did create great graphics – 2D and top-down though they may be – and designed a fantastic game which plays very, very well.
He totally deserves this award. More so than EA bloody Sports.
I didn’t think a lot of New Star Soccer to begin with but as I got into it I was totally hooked, really good formula and gameplay.
As good as FIFA is, I’m fed up of being charged £40 odd each year just so they can tell me, “Look, the graphics are a wee bit better.” or “The defenders actually act like defenders now!” They’ve been at it for 20 years now, I just expect a little more from it.
Have you played it Thom? Because you said you hadn’t heard of it prior to reading this article…
I think the only reason you’re saying New Star Soccer deserved to win is because it was made by one guy whereas Fifa was made by a big company (EA).
I’ve made comparisons of the content present in the two games, deduced that Fifa is still Fifa and that New Star Soccer is a slick affair with a great diversity of content and, it’s apparent, impressively responsive gameplay.
You are entitled to think that the only reason I’m saying it deserved to win is because “it was made by one guy whereas Fifa was made by a big company (EA)”, but you would be wrong in that thought. That’s no reason to give somebody a BAFTA and I damn well know that as an aspiring writer & filmmaker.
Equally, I shall embrace my entitlement to the retort of that thought which is that you’re merely a Fifa fanboy.
Fact is, I stand by the reasons given:
1. It “combines a sequence of beautiful elements in an artfully presented package.”
2. “This one man did create great graphics and designed a fantastic game which plays very, very well.”
3. “New Star Soccer is a slick affair with a great diversity of content and, it’s apparent, impressively responsive gameplay.”
Does it make a difference that it was made by one man? No, that’s just a noteworthy achievement. Does his winning the award make this the better game? Not necessarily – it makes it award winning, but that needn’t mean better.
Fifa very well may be the better game, but it doesn’t deserve the award for that reason. It is the same game it was the year before, as it was the year before. It’d be like showing up at the Film and TV awards with a recut of your film which already took the award the previous year, which is to say it would be plain silly to give the award to Fifa! Especially when there’s such a fantastic example of indie development on show.
Thom, we both know you don’t play FIFA, and I highly doubt you have played New Star Soccer either. You’re not in any position to contrast the two.
I have played New Star Soccer and it is a no-frills bare-essential football game that remains entertaining for all of 10 minutes before falling into the realms of tedium. FIFA is a superior game, better in terms of graphics, gameplay and entertainment value and for those reasons should be winning awards such as these. I can’t believe that anyone who has devoted more than a couple of months to a FIFA game would disagree with that.
You may “know” I don’t play FIFA, yet I know I do. And honestly, I trust my opinion on that one. Pretty sure my memories with regards to my own life are more accurate than the ones you’ve invented for me. Cheers.
Anyway, forgiving you that, I still question whether FIFA has introduced these qualities in the latest game just this past year.
Quality graphics.
Game play.
Entertainment value.
Has it innovated in any of these categories, the ones you list, in the previous year?
I’ve also played New Star Soccer, believe it or not (though I don’t understand why it would be unbelievable), which has a unique approach to the genre. The physics are intuitive, the play is responsive and the graphics…
No, they’re not as good as FIFA but as stated in my last comment, the maker didn’t have millions of pounds to throw into a graphics department. And for an individual’s work, the graphics are very, very, very good! It’s unfair to say it doesn’t deserve to challenge FIFA simply because it isn’t 3D.
It’s a deserved win. More innovative than FIFA certainly, which I persist in insisting, despite being a great series, hasn’t really changed very much. Repackaging a done formula in new graphics is not deserving of an award win.
Great game, but the better achievement was recognised! And that’s a damn good thing for indie development, and for the gaming industry as a whole. :D