Topic: D.I.C.E. Awards confuse me

[idolminds]

Source

Action Game of the Year: Destiny
Adventure Game of the Year: Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor

Destiny getting Action GOTY means it was a shit year for action games. However...in what universe is Shadow of Mordor not an action game? What does "Adventure Game" even mean anymore? Because it apparently doesn't mean what I think it means.

Role-Playing/Massively Multiplayer Game of the Year: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Sports Game of the Year: FIFA 15
Racing Game of the Year: Mario Kart 8
Fighting Game of the Year: Super Smash Bros.
Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year: Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft
Family Game of the Year: LittleBigPlanet 3
Handheld Game of the Year: Super Smash Bros.
Mobile Game of the Year: Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft
DICE Sprite Award: Transistor
Outstanding Achievement in Online Gameplay: Destiny
Outstanding Achievement In Sound Design: Destiny
Outstanding Achievement In Art Direction: Monument Valley

Ok, ok. Now get this.

Outstanding Innovation in Gaming: Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor
Outstanding Achievement In Story: Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor
Outstanding Achievement In Character: Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor
Outstanding Technical Achievement: Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor
Outstanding Achievement In Animation: Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor
Outstanding Achievement In Gameplay Design: Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor
Outstanding Achievement In Game Direction: Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor

Wow, Shadow of Mordor sounds amazing! Clearly a no contest shoe-in to win....

Game of the Year: Dragon Age: Inquisition

wut

[Quemaqua]

How did Destiny win in online gameplay? Isn't it pretty much universally accepted that Destiny isn't fun and nobody likes it except for Brad Shoemaker, because he has to somehow justify his addiction to carrots dangled from sticks?

EDIT - And I typed out a whole thing before realizing shit, I'm really in cranky old man mode today. I'll just say instead: that seems like a deeply flawed list that would be almost impossible to defend. So good thing these are meaningless, I guess.

[MysterD]

Adventure Games
For me, an adventure game usually involves solving puzzles and/or some decision-making elements.
Think Fahrenheit AKA Indigo Prophecy; ; The Longest Journey series; Syberia series; Myst series; Telltale's The Walking Dead games; etc.

Odd with SoM winning adventure game. I personally look at it as an open-world action game - one where you're often slaughtering orcs, hehe. I doubt you can finish SoM without killing anyone.

Shadow of Mordor...
Granted, I haven't played SoM yet...but I think the innovation would lie in its Nemesis AI System. Otherwise - this game looks like a cross b/t Assassin's Creed (open-world game with platforming elements; and missions and stuff on the map); Batman Arkham (with its combat); and the Middle-Earth license/setting. B/c the game has a pre-set story (which supposed to be good) and that also the Nemesis can shape certain elements (to make it feel like it's also shaping its own small stories - which can add to the game itself), this game looks to have something really interesting going on in here w/ that kind of mixture. About technical awards for it - having a huge open-world like that; its crazy AI system (Nemesis); and an optional Ultra HD texture pack that requires 6GB VRAM - no other game goes to these lengths on the PC and push PC's to the edge, if you want to max it out on your PC.

I think it's crazy SoM wins all those awards, yet DA:I takes GOTY. I'm trying to figure out what they're thinking here. Maybe the only way one could justify SoM winning all those awards and DAI winning GOTY is that...well, all the technical achievements were awesome, but it overall SoM is lacking something that DAO has  Maybe SoM is lacking the ridiculous game length + content amount and the branching decision-making elements that can shape your game's direction?

Best RPG/MMO, and DA:I
I also don't get why they combined Best RPG and MMO. Could they not come up w/ a best new MMO releases in 2014? If they can't - just leave the award off the list! They shouldn't have combined them. I haven't played DAI yet, BTW. Anyways...DAI has a MP portion, but this game isn't a MMO like Guild Wars series, WoW, TSW, and other MMO's.

[Cobra951]

You're right, D.  For a second, my heart skipped a beat when I read that DA:O was the best MMO.  Say what?  I don't but MMOs.  Don't tell me that I got suckered into buying one.  Oh, wait, it's a senselessly combined category.  What next, Sports/JRPG award?

The Nemesis system is a game changer, one I'm still trying to come to grips with.  No other game I've played has such real consequences for failure.  Makes it more interesting, but also more scary.  You're waist-deep in Orcs most of the time, and their hard-to-kill leaders with different strengths and weaknesses shift and increase based on your screw-ups.  It's quite a deep game, for the genre.  I guess that genre would be action-adventure, so I can see it getting an adventure award.  Maybe they figured Destiny was a better match for the action side of that category?  I don't know what their rationale is.  But combining role playing with MMO is stupid no matter how you try to justify it.

[W7RE]

How did Destiny win in online gameplay? Isn't it pretty much universally accepted that Destiny isn't fun and nobody likes it except for Brad Shoemaker, because he has to somehow justify his addiction to carrots dangled from sticks?

EDIT - And I typed out a whole thing before realizing shit, I'm really in cranky old man mode today. I'll just say instead: that seems like a deeply flawed list that would be almost impossible to defend. So good thing these are meaningless, I guess.

I like Destiny, but acknowledge how flawed it is. I wouldn't have given it any awards, except maybe best new MMO. (which would probably just cause arguments about whether it's an mmo or not)

[MysterD]

I like Destiny, but acknowledge how flawed it is. I wouldn't have given it any awards, except maybe best new MMO. (which would probably just cause arguments about whether it's an mmo or not)

MMO is such a particular thing - b/c you're expecting to be online with ridiculous amounts of players online at once, usually in the same area/map.
I don't know, but there should be a category for Best Online-Only Game, Best Online-Only Shooter or something - namely for something that isn't a MMO, but it at least forces the Internet on you at all times.