God of War scoops seven Interactive Achievement Awards

Sony Computer Entertainment America has dominated the 9th annual Interactive Achievement Awards, picking up seven awards for God of War, including the prestigious Game of the Year gong.

Nominated in twelve categories, the PS2 title remains the focus of immense critical acclaim for its character and narrative development, unique blend of gameplay elements and outstanding visual and aural design. Gamesindustry.biz sister site, Eurogamer.net, reports that the game has also been targeted for a Hollywood movie adaptation, and is rumoured to be in the hands of Universal Pictures and Batman Begins producer, Charles Roven.

The second highest achiever was Harmonix' innovative rhythm action title, Guitar Hero, which picked up five awards during the D.I.C.E. Summit ceremony, including Outstanding Innovation in Gaming.

The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences (AIAS) currently has an active membership of more than 8000 publishers, developers and industry professionals. However, the awards are only open to those members, or those who have paid a separate fee of US$1000 for eligibility in the awards nominations, effectively discounting a number of high profile and top selling videogames such as Capcom's critically acclaimed and phenomenally successful title, Resident Evil 4.

The full list of award winners announced in Las Vegas is detailed below:

Overall Game of the Year:
God of War - SCEA

PC Game of the Year:
Battlefield 2 - Electronic Arts/Digital Illusions

Console Game of the Year:
God of War - SCEA

Outstanding Innovation in Gaming:
Guitar Hero - Red Octane/Harmonix

Outstanding Achievement, Animation:
God of War - SCEA

Outstanding Achievement, Art Direction:
Shadow of the Colossus - SCEA

Outstanding Achievement, Soundtrack:
Guitar Hero - Red Octane/Harmonix

Outstanding Achievement, Original Music Composition:
God of War - SCEA

Outstanding Achievement, Sound Design:
God of War - SCEA

Outstanding Achievement, Story and Character Development:
Call of Duty: Big Red One - Activision/Treyarch

Outstanding Achievement, Gameplay Engineering:
Nintendogs - Nintendo
Tied with:
Guitar Hero - Red Octane/Harmonix

Outstanding Achievement, Online Game Play:
Battlefield 2 - Electronic Arts/Digital Illusions

Outstanding Achievement, Visual Engineering:
Shadow of the Colossus - SCEA

Outstanding Achievement, Game Design:
Guitar Hero - Red Octane/Harmonix

Outstanding Character Performance, Male:
God of War - SCEA

Outstanding Character Performance, Female:
Jade Empire - Microsoft/BioWare

Sports Game of the Year:
SSX On Tour - Electronic Arts

First-Person Action Game of the Year:
Battlefield 2 - Electronic Arts/Digital Illusions

Role-Playing Game of the Year:
Jade Empire - Microsoft/BioWare

Fighting Game of the Year:
Soul Calibur III - Namco

Action/Adventure Game of the Year:
God of War - SCEA

Racing Game of the Year:
Need for Speed: Most Wanted - Electronic Arts

Children's Game of the Year:
We Love Katamari - Namco

Downloadable Game of the Year:
Wik: Fable of Souls - Microsoft/Reflexive

Family Game of the Year:
Guitar Hero - Red Octane/Harmonix

Simulation Game of the Year:
The Movies - Activision/Lionhead Studios

Strategy Game of the Year:
Civilization IV - 2K Games/Firaxis

Massively Multiplayer/Persistent World Game of the Year:
City of Villains - NCsoft/Cryptic Studios
Tied with:
Guild Wars - NCsoft/ArenaNet

Handheld Game of the Year:
Nintendogs - Nintendo

Cellular Game of the Year:
Ancient Empires II - Glu Mobile