The 31st Golden Joystick Awards took place earlier today. The largest publicly voted game awards had a total of 17 categories this year, including a newly introduced Lifetime Achievement award. With over 10 million people voting, the awards represent an important accolade for both developers and publishers. Rockstars Grand Theft Auto V, which broke video game
sales records when released, took home the Game of the Year award. While The Last of Us by Naughty Dog picked up two awards including Best Newcomer and Best Storytelling. The critically acclaimed title was the
biggest selling new IP on the PS3 and helped its developer accept the award for Studio of the Year. Ken Levine received the Lifetime Achievement award for his contribution to gaming. Ken, who co-founded Irrational Games, has been responsible for games such as BioShock, System Shock 2 and Thief: The Dark project. Throughout his career he has won multiple Game of the Year awards and is best known for his storytelling. Other awards included Mark of the Ninja receiving Best Indie Game and World of Tanks getting the gong for Best Online Game. The Most Wanted award went to the Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, which was announced in January 2012 and is expected to release for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One next year. The full list of winners can be seen below:
Lifetime Achievement: Ken Levine Game of the Year: Grand Theft Auto V Most Wanted: The Witcher 3 Hall of Fame: Call of Duty Best Online Game: World of Tanks Best Multiplayer: Payday 2 Best Storytelling: The Last of Us Best Indie Game: Mark of the Ninja Best Visual Design: BioShock Infinite Best Newcomer: The Last of Us Best Handheld Game: Assassins Creed 3: Liberation Best Gaming Moment: Far Cry 3 The Definition of Insanity Innovation of the Year: Oculus Rift Best Gaming Platform: Steam Best Mobile/Tablet Game: XCOM: Enemy Unknown YouTube Gamer Award: The Yogscast Studio of the Year: Naughty Dog