XBox 360 News

BioShocked as Call of Duty 4 scoops the Academy's top honors

By Stevie Smith Feb 11, 2008, 11:07 GMT

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare scoops both major Game of the Year awards at the Annual Academy of Interactive Achievements Awards. Credit: Activision.

Lauded by many industry commentators as 2007’s best game, 2K’s underwater first-person shooter BioShock has enjoyed considerable plaudits from the critics -- along with numerous awards -- since its exclusive console release on the Xbox 360.

However, while BioShock scooped plenty of awards at the recent Academy of Interactive Achievements Awards, it was bodily shoved from the spotlight in the evening's ‘Best Game’ categories, with those particular honours falling to Activision and Infinity Ward’s white-knuckle action roller coaster Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (2) and Valve's Orange Box.

Beyond landing top spot for Console Game of the Year, and Overall Game of the Year, Call of Duty 4 also nabbed Action Game of the Year and Outstanding Achievement in Online Game Play -- the latter standing out as the game has once again kept Halo 3 from the top of the Xbox Live chart.

“It’s an honor for Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare to be recognized by the Academy as the best game of 2007,” beamed Robin Kaminsky, executive VP of publishing at Activision, Inc. “The team at Infinity Ward is committed to delivering groundbreaking entertainment to gamers worldwide and all of the awards are an acknowledgement of their talent, dedication and hard work.”

Despite a ton of nominations in leading categories, BioShock found itself honoured for several technical gongs including Outstanding Achievement awards in Art Direction, Story Development, Original Music Composition, and Sound Design.

Valve’s hugely popular Orange Box compilation (Half-Life 2, Episode 1, Episode 2, Portal, and Team Fortress 2) secured four awards on the night, including Computer Game of the Year, Outstanding Achievement in Game Design (Portal), and Outstanding Achievement in Game Design (Portal).

In a year that has seen the Xbox 360 leading the next-gen software pack, PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Wii fans were given a rare treat with Motorstorm (PS3) beating out stiff competition for the Racing Game of the Year award, and Super Mario Galaxy (Wii) grabbing Adventure Game of the Year.

The night’s other winners were as follows:

Outstanding Innovation in Gaming
Rock Band

Handheld Game of the Year
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass

Multiplayer Game of the Year
World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade

Cellular Game of the Year
skate

Role-Playing Game of the Year
Mass Effect

Sports Game of the Year
skate

Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year
Command and Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars

Family Game of the Year
Rock Band

Outstanding Achievement in Animation
Assassin's Creed

Outstanding Achievement in Visual Engineering
Crysis

Outstanding Character Performance
The Orange Box: Portal

Downloadable Game of the Year
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords

Outstanding Achievement in Soundtrack
Rock Band

Other personal achievement awards saw Mike Morhaime, the CEO and co-founder of Blizzard, inducted into the Academy's coveted hall of fame, and former Sony boss Ken Kutaragi honoured with the lifetime achievement award.