Canadian Video Game Awards Winners Announced

Organizers of the inaugural Canadian Awards for the Electronic and Animated Arts (CAEAA 2006) have announced the winners of the recent event, which took place on September 14 in Vancouver, British Columbia, and was hosted by Star Trek icon William Shatner. The event, which honored Canadian achievements in game development and animation, served as a way to bridge the two industries, as well as recognize the students and educators who supply the talent for both trades. Nominees were broken up into three separate areas of the Electronic and Animated Arts industry: talent development (New Media and Animation Art Schools), animation, and video game development. Peter Jackson's King Kong was the big game-related winner of the event, as Ubisoft's movie adaptation walked away with awards for Best Character Design, Best Graphics, and Best Innovation in Gaming. Titles from French-headquartered Ubisoft, which led gaming nominations for the event, also picked up awards for Best Motion Graphics (Far Cry Instincts Predator) and Best Console Game (Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones). BattleGoat Studios' Supreme Ruler 2010 won for Best PC Game, while Buena Vista Games' Kim Possible Kimmunicator took the award for Best Mobile Game of the Year. The award for Best Visual Effects was given to Pseudo Interactive's Xbox 360 car combat game, Full Auto, while Electronic Arts' Need for Speed Most Wanted took home a pair of audio awards for Best Musical Score and Best Soundscape. Microsoft and Backbone Entertainment's Age of Empires: The Age of Kings was singled out with the award for Game Design of the Year, while Relic Entertainment's Xbox 360 action strategy game The Outfit came away with the prestigious Game of the Year nod. Finally, BioWare president Dr. Greg Zeschuk & CEO Dr. Ray Muzyka were each given the accolades with a special Video Game Hall of Fame award. "The evening was a huge success," said Yannis Mallat, chief executive officer of Ubisoft's Montreal studio. "The first edition of the Canadian Awards for the Electronic and Animated Arts is a step forward for the entire Canadian video game industry." To see a full list of nominees and winners from each of the categories, visit the official CAEAA 2006 website.