March 31, 2004 --- Today, the National Academy of Video Game Testers and Reviewers Corp. announced the winners for its
third annual “NAViGaTR” awards honoring interactive entertainment. A voting body of more than 950 eligible
video game testers, reviewers, and media critics determined the initial nominees in 43 categories and selected the winners,
which were announced live March 25 and 26 at the Game Developers Conference.
With seven (7) awards, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time™ was the only
game to win more than 2 awards, including Game of the Year. Sony and Electronic
Arts each one five awards as publishers, while Nintendo and Konami won 4 awards each.
LucasArts won 3 awards.
Ubisoft, with 7 awards for Prince of Persia, two (2) awards for Beyond Good
& Evil, and one (1) award for Adam West’s voice performance in “XIII,” has set a publishers’ record
by winning 10 awards in a single year.
Computer Graphics World (www.cgw.com) hosted the announcement event from its booth on the expo floor, with presenters David Michael, Stephen Peacock, Joe Markert,
and Tommy Tallarico. “I want to thank Karen Moltenbrey, Susan Hughes, and
Kathleen DePetrillo at Computer Graphics World for really having fun with this event and making it a success for us,”
said Thomas J. Allen, executive director for NAVGTR Corp. “I hope the developers
enjoyed it as much as we did.”
In addition to serving as a presenter, David Michael was covering
the GDC for GameDev.net (www.gamedev.net). He is also the author of "The Indie
Game Development Survival Guide." Stephen Peacock serves as
Global Games Manager of NXN Software.
Joe Markert is the Chief Gaming Officer with Gamehelper,
a service group providing Beta-Test Management, End-User Support and Community Management services to the interactive entertainment
industry. Gamehelper is now working with Our Tribe Productions to handle media sales and content for their
TV show Gamer Nation TV. For more information, point your browser to http://www.gamernationtv.com and www.gamehelper.com.
Tommy Tallarico is the President of Tommy Tallarico Studios, Inc.,
a well-known audio development studio serving the game industry. He is also the
President/Founder of G.A.N.G. (Game Audio Network Guild, online at www.audiogang.org, which is devoted to bringing more attention to game audio as an integral part of the gaming experience. The company also has an annual awards program voted on by audio professional members. In addition to his work in the game industry, Tommy is also a host, writer, and co-producer for “The
Electric Playground” and “Judgment Day,” two television shows covering the industry. “Judgment Day” is featured on the G4 network and other outlets, and is currently the only program
on G4 with true critical analysis.
And the winners are…