Okami, Gears of War, and Final Fantasy XII lead the 2006 NAViGaTR Awards
Nintendo sets new all-time record as developer and wins most awards this year as publisher; Gears of War and Oblivion both score trifecta wins in design, art, and sound. Atsushi Inaba, Cliff Bleszinski, and Shigeru Miyamoto Win Multiple Awards; Dan Houser sets new record; Inaba, Tracy Rosenthal-Newsom, and Yoshinori Kitase enter NAViGaTR™ history.
- Baltimore, MD (1888PressRelease) November 22, 2010 - The winners of the 2006 NAViGaTR Awards were announced today, revealing the winners in 48 categories. Multiple awards went to Atsushi Inaba, Cliff Bleszinski, and Shigeru Miyamoto, only half the number of multiple winners last year.
The awards are presented by the National Academy of Video Game Testers and Reviewers Corp.™, a non-profit media organization with over 1,150 voters honoring the best of the interactive entertainment industry in the fields of art, technology, and production for calendar year 2006.
Though tied for third place over-all in terms of most awards won, the game Okami won Game of the Year over five-time winner Gears of War and six-time winner Final Fantasy XII.
Okami won for Animation in a Game Engine, Art Direction in a Game Engine, Outstanding Original Adventure Game, and Game of the Year.
Final Fantasy XII won for Animation in a Game Cinema, Art Direction in a Game Cinema, Direction in a Game Cinema, Sound Editing in a Game Cinema, Original or Adapted Song, and Outstanding Role Playing Game Sequel.
Gears of War won for Camera Direction in a Game Engine, Game Design, Lighting/Texturing, Use of Sound, and Outstanding Original Action Game.
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion also won 4 awards (Outstanding Costume Design, Outstanding Sound Effects, Outstanding Lead Performance in a Drama - Sean Bean, and Outstanding Graphics, Technical), and Guitar Hero II won 3 awards (Outstanding Control Precision, Outstanding Song Collection, and Outstanding Music or Performance Game).
Gears of War and Oblivion are the only games this year to win awards for design, art, and sound.
Wrapping up the multiple award winners are Bully, Company of Heroes, Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy, Neverwinter Nights 2, Wii Sports, and the Nintendo Wii console with two (2) awards each.
Publisher Tallies
This year, Nintendo holds the publisher record with 8 wins. Following behind are Microsoft and Square Enix with 6 wins each. Capcom won 5 awards, and Bethesda Softworks won 4 awards. RedOctane and THQ each won three awards, while LucasArts, Atari, and Rockstar each won two awards. Winning single awards as publishers were Sony, 2K, Konami, Namco, Telltale, Electronic Arts, GameTap, and Valve.
Last year, Sony set a publishers' record by winning 11 awards in a single year. The record was previously held by Ubisoft, which won 10 awards for the year 2003.
Developer Tallies
This year, Square Enix holds the developer record with 7 wins. Nintendo follows close behind with 6 awards, while Clover and Epic tied for 5 awards each. Bethesda Game Studios won 4 awards as a developer, and Harmonix won 3 awards. Obsidian, Relic, Rockstar, and Traveller's Tales each won 2 awards.
Since the inception of the NAViGaTR Awards, Nintendo and Square have each won 18 awards to date as developers, surpassing Sony's cumulative total of 16 awards last year. Also surpassing Sony this year is Rockstar, with a grand total of 17 awards to date.
Individual Tallies
This year, Cliff Bleszinski (a.k.a. CliffyB) won 2 awards for Gears of War. Also, Tracy Rosenthal-Newsom and Yoshinori Kitase earned a third NAViGaTR award in their respective careers, thus taking their places among a group of only twenty-six (26) people to have won three (3) or more awards to date.
Dan Houser, Shigeru Miyamoto, Fumito Ueda, and Takashi Tezuka have won the most awards to date. Dan Houser has won eight (8) awards for his widespread work in the Grand Theft Auto® series, as well as one award this year for the original property "Bully," giving him a total of nine (9) awards and retaining his record for most wins.
Shigeru Miyamoto has won eight (8) awards to date. With the exception of last year's win for Innovation in Game Play, Miyamoto has won only for roles as a producer in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, Super Mario Sunshine, Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door, and lastly, Wii Sports, Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, and Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem --- the only non-Mario games in the group. This year marks the first time Mr. Miyamoto has won for a Zelda game.
Fumito Ueda and Takashi Tezuka have won five (5) awards to date. Ueda has won 2 awards for ICO™ and 3 awards for Shadow of the Colossus™ in the areas of animation and design. Takashi Tezuka has won for Animal Crossing®, Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3, and Super Mario Sunshine.
Jamie King, Jeremy Pope, and Leslie Benzies have each won four (4) awards for producing the Grand Theft Auto® series, including two genre awards and two Game of the Year awards.
Tracy Rosenthal-Newsom has won for the games Frequency, Karaoke Revolution, and Guitar Hero II.
Yoshinori Kitase has won for Final Fantasy X, Kingdom Hearts, and Final Fantasy III.
Hajime Sugiyama has won 3 awards --- two for ICO's camera and lighting, plus a technical graphics award for Colossus.
Atsuko Fukuyama has won 3 awards --- two for Animation in a Game Engine (Ico™ and Shadow of the Colossus™), as well as an award for Colossus' character design.
Bruce Oberg has earned his third award for programming on the Sly Cooper series.
Keita Takahashi has won three awards for the Katamari series.
James Worral has also won three (3) awards for writing and design in the Grand Theft Auto® series.
Akira Yamaoka has won three awards for his work on the Silent Hill® series, winning in the categories of Sound Effects, Use of Sound, and Original Musical Score.
Mathieu Laforce has won three awards. His first two awards were for Graphics, Technical and Lighting & Texturing Effects for Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell™ in 2002, and his third award was for Lighting & Texturing Effects for Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time™ in 2003.
Rik Schaffer has won three awards, including two for Sound Effects in Call of Duty and Doom 3, as well as one for Sound Editing in a Game Cinema for Doom 3.
Programmers Ben Wallace, Bernie Freidin, Charles Gough, Chris Butcher, Mat Noguchi, Matt Segur, Eamon McKenzie, and Stefan Sinclair have all won three awards for the first Halo®.
Of those who have won at least three awards, Shigeru Miyamoto, Takashi Tezuka, Tracy Rosenthal-Newsom, Yoshinori Kitase, Dan Houser, Mathieu Laforce, Atsuko Fukuyama, Fumito Ueda, Hajime Sugiyama, and Rik Schaffer are the only people that have won awards for work in multiple franchises.
Through annual awards, television specials, videos, and other future plans, we hope to preserve the history of the medium as well as honor the creative and technical individuals who have paved the way for new ideas and innovations.
For more information on NAVGTR Corp.'s missions and programs, log onto www.navgtr.org. Winners will be announced May 20, 2007.
The general voting body of more than 1,150 journalists and writers includes contributors for such varied outlets as About.com, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Austin American-Statesman, NBC, CNN, CNN.com, CNNmoney.com, Chicago Sun-Times, Computer Gaming World, Contra Costa Times, Digital Journal, ElectricPlayground.com, FHM, GamersTemple.com, GamingTarget.com, Gannett News Service, Gear, HappyPuppy.com, Kids & Computers, LA Weekly, Los Angeles Times, National Post, New York Times, Marquee, PC Gamer, Philadelphia Inquirer, PlanetPong.com, Salon, San Jose Mercury-News, USA Today, USAToday.com, Wired News, Wizard Magazine, WOW Weekly, ZDNet, Detroit Free Press, National Public Radio, Public Radio International, Play Magazine, Electronic Gaming Monthly (Ziff-Davis Media), Evergeek Media, The Ottawa Citizen, The Vancouver Sun, The Regina Leader-Post, EclipseMagazine.com, and hundreds more.
Nominee clips available at www.navgtr.org/ballotvideos2006.html
About NAVGTR Corp.
NAVGTR Corp. is a 501(c)(6) non-profit corporation devoted to promoting and recognizing the developments and achievements of the interactive entertainment industry for public awareness and education. In addition to the annual awards, the academy's future goals include acknowledging, documenting, and/or memorializing industry leaders and historical events through educational and informative television specials or videos, as well as efforts to preserve the history of interactive entertainment through the development of archives in public libraries and universities. (www.navgtr.org)
Creative/Technical Categories
Adult Content - Bully - WINNER
Adult Content - Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories
Adult Content - Love Chess: Age of Egypt
Adult Content - Scarface: The World is Yours
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Animation in a Game Cinema - Call of Duty 3
Animation in a Game Cinema - Fight Night Round 3
Animation in a Game Cinema - Final Fantasy XII - WINNER
Animation in a Game Cinema - Gears of War
Animation in a Game Cinema - Okami
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Animation in a Game Engine - Gears of War
Animation in a Game Engine - Kingdom Hearts II
Animation in a Game Engine - Loco Roco
Animation in a Game Engine - Okami - WINNER
Animation in a Game Engine - Zoo Tycoon 2: Marine Mania
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Art Direction in a Game Cinema - Final Fantasy XII - WINNER
Art Direction in a Game Cinema - Gears of War
Art Direction in a Game Cinema - Godfather, The
Art Direction in a Game Cinema - Marvel Ultimate Alliance
Art Direction in a Game Cinema - Suikoden V
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Art Direction in a Game Engine - Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Art Direction in a Game Engine - Final Fantasy XII
Art Direction in a Game Engine - Gears of War
Art Direction in a Game Engine - Okami - WINNER
Art Direction in a Game Engine - Yoshi's Island DS
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Camera Direction in a Game Engine - Gears of War - WINNER
Camera Direction in a Game Engine - Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence
Camera Direction in a Game Engine - Okami
Camera Direction in a Game Engine - Rule of Rose
Camera Direction in a Game Engine - Viva Pinata
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Character Design - Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Character Design - Final Fantasy XII
Character Design - Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy - WINNER
Character Design - Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner
Character Design - Yggdra Union
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Control Design - Company of Heroes
Control Design - Gears of War
Control Design - Loco Roco
Control Design - Okami
Control Design - Tokobot Plus: Mysteries of the Karakuri
Control Design - Wii Sports - WINNER
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Control Precision - Elite Beat Agents
Control Precision - Gears of War
Control Precision - Guitar Hero II - WINNER
Control Precision - Loco Roco
Control Precision - Tomb Raider: Legend
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Costume Design - Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - WINNER
Costume Design - Final Fantasy XII
Costume Design - Marvel Ultimate Alliance
Costume Design - N3: Ninety-Nine Nights
Costume Design - Suikoden V
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Direction in a Game Cinema - Dead Rising
Direction in a Game Cinema - Final Fantasy XII - WINNER
Direction in a Game Cinema - Gears of War
Direction in a Game Cinema - Okami
Direction in a Game Cinema - Rise of Nations: Rise of Legends
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Game - Classic Revival - Bonk's Adventure (1990)
Game - Classic Revival - Final Fantasy III - WINNER
Game - Classic Revival - Gunstar Heroes (1993)
Game - Classic Revival - Metal Slug Anthology
Game - Classic Revival - Tetris DS
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Game - Music or Performance - Elite Beat Agents
Game - Music or Performance - Guitar Hero II - WINNER
Game - Music or Performance - Guitaroo Man Lives!
Game - Music or Performance - SingStar Rocks!
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Game - Original Action - Dead Rising
Game - Original Action - Gears of War - WINNER
Game - Original Action - Just Cause
Game - Original Action - Prey
Game - Original Action - Resistance: Fall of Man
Game - Original Action - Saint's Row
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Game - Original Adventure - Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine
Game - Original Adventure - Bully
Game - Original Adventure - Marvel Ultimate Alliance
Game - Original Adventure - Okami - WINNER
Game - Original Adventure - Rule of Rose
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Game - Original Children's - Cooking Mama
Game - Original Children's - Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime
Game - Original Children's - Loco Roco
Game - Original Children's - Super Princess Peach
Game - Original Children's - Viva Pinata - WINNER
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Game - Original Fighting - God Hand - WINNER
Game - Original Fighting - Samurai Champloo Sidetracked
Game - Original Fighting - Yakuza
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Game - Original Racing - Cars: The Video Game
Game - Original Racing - Excite Truck - WINNER
Game - Original Racing - GT Pro Series
Game - Original Racing - Pursuit Force
Game - Original Racing - Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam
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Game - Original RPG - Contact
Game - Original RPG - Enchanted Arms
Game - Original RPG - Steambot Chronicles
Game - Original RPG - Titan Quest - WINNER
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Game - Original Sports - Mario Hoops: 3 on 3
Game - Original Sports - Super Swing Golf
Game - Original Sports - Table Tennis
Game - Original Sports - Wii Sports - WINNER
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Game - Sequel Action - Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin
Game - Sequel Action - Daxter
Game - Sequel Action - Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories
Game - Sequel Action - Half-Life 2: Episode 1 - WINNER
Game - Sequel Action - Metroid Prime Hunters
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Game - Sequel Adventure - Broken Sword: The Angel
Game - Sequel Adventure - Dreamfall: The Longest Journey
Game - Sequel Adventure - Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess - WINNER
Game - Sequel Adventure - Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops
Game - Sequel Adventure - Sam and Max: Episode 1
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Game - Sequel Children's - Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy - WINNER
Game - Sequel Children's - Mega Man: Powered Up
Game - Sequel Children's - New Super Mario Bros.
Game - Sequel Children's - Nintendogs: Dalmation
Game - Sequel Children's - Yoshi's Island DS
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Game - Sequel Fighting - Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2
Game - Sequel Fighting - Fight Night Round 3 - WINNER
Game - Sequel Fighting - Guilty Gear: Judgment
Game - Sequel Fighting - Mortal Kombat: Armageddon
Game - Sequel Fighting - Tekken: Dark Resurrection
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Game - Sequel Racing - ATV Off Road Fury 4
Game - Sequel Racing - FlatOut 2
Game - Sequel Racing - Outrun 2006
Game - Sequel Racing - Ridge Racer 7 - WINNER
Game - Sequel Racing - Test Drive Unlimited
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Game - Sequel RPG - Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Game - Sequel RPG - Final Fantasy XII - WINNER
Game - Sequel RPG - Kingdom Hearts II
Game - Sequel RPG - Neverwinter Nights 2
Game - Sequel RPG - Suikoden V
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Game - Sequel Sports - FIFA 07
Game - Sequel Sports - Madden NFL 2007
Game - Sequel Sports - NBA 2K7
Game - Sequel Sports - NHL 2K7
Game - Sequel Sports - World Soccer Winning Eleven 9 - WINNER
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Game - Simulation Game - Microsoft Flight Simulator X
Game - Simulation Game - Sid Meier's Railroads - WINNER
Game - Simulation Game - The Sims 2: Open for Business
Game - Simulation Game - The Sims 2: Pets
Game - Simulation Game - Zoo Tycoon 2: Marine Mania
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Game - Special Class - Big Brain Academy
Game - Special Class - Brain Age - WINNER
Game - Special Class - Gunpey
Game - Special Class - Lumines II
Game - Special Class - Trauma Center: Second Opinion
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Game - Strategy - Age of Empires: The War Chiefs
Game - Strategy - Company of Heroes - WINNER
Game - Strategy - Defcon
Game - Strategy - Medieval II: Total War
Game - Strategy - Rise of Nations: Rise of Legends
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Game Design - Dead Rising
Game Design - Final Fantasy XII
Game Design - Gears of War - WINNER
Game Design - New Super Mario Bros
Game Design - Okami
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Game of the Year - Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Game of the Year - Final Fantasy XII
Game of the Year - Gears of War
Game of the Year - Loco Roco
Game of the Year - Okami - WINNER
Game of the Year - Viva Pinata
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Graphics/Technical - Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - WINNER
Graphics/Technical - Final Fantasy XII
Graphics/Technical - Gears of War
Graphics/Technical - Okami
Graphics/Technical - Resistance: Fall of Man
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Innovation in Game Play - Elektroplankton
Innovation in Game Play - Loco Roco
Innovation in Game Play - Nintendo Wii - WINNER
Innovation in Game Play - Odama
Innovation in Game Play - Viva Pinata
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Innovation in Game Technology - Havok FX 4.0
Innovation in Game Technology - Nintendo Wii - WINNER
Innovation in Game Technology - Sony PlayStation 3
Innovation in Game Technology - Unreal Engine 3
Innovation in Game Technology - Vivox Precision Studio
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Lighting/Texturing - Dark Messiah of Might and Magic
Lighting/Texturing - Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Lighting/Texturing - Final Fantasy XII
Lighting/Texturing - Gears of War - WINNER
Lighting/Texturing - Resistance: Fall of Man
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Original Musical Score - Company of Heroes - WINNER
Original Musical Score - Dreamfall: The Longest Journey
Original Musical Score - Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Original Musical Score - Final Fantasy XII
Original Musical Score - Suikoden V
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Original/Adapted Song - "Heavenly Star," Lumines II
Original/Adapted Song - "Kiss Me Good-bye," Final Fantasy XII - WINNER
Original/Adapted Song - "Loco Roco No Uta," Loco Roco
Original/Adapted Song - "Sanctuary," Kingdom Hearts II
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Song Collection - Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories
Song Collection - Guitar Hero II - WINNER
Song Collection - Lumines II
Song Collection - Saint's Row
Song Collection - SingStar Rocks!
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Sound Editing in a Game Cinema - Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII
Sound Editing in a Game Cinema - Final Fantasy XII - WINNER
Sound Editing in a Game Cinema - Gears of War
Sound Editing in a Game Cinema - Okami
Sound Editing in a Game Cinema - Rise of Nations: Rise of Legends
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Sound Effects - Call of Duty 3
Sound Effects - Company of Heroes
Sound Effects - Dead Rising
Sound Effects - Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - WINNER
Sound Effects - Gears of War
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Use of Sound - Company of Heroes
Use of Sound - Gears of War - WINNER
Use of Sound - Guitar Hero II
Use of Sound - Okami
Use of Sound - Resistance: Fall of Man
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Lead Performance in a Comedy - Christopher Warren, "Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine"
Lead Performance in a Comedy - Gerry Rosenthal, "Bully"
Lead Performance in a Comedy - Grant Albrecht, "Destroy All Humans! 2: Make War Not Love"
Lead Performance in a Comedy - Johnny Depp, "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow
Lead Performance in a Comedy - Max Casella, "Daxter" - WINNER
Lead Performance in a Comedy - Seth MacFarlane, "Family Guy"
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Lead Performance in a Drama - Ellie Conrad-Leigh, "Dreamfall: The Longest Journey"
Lead Performance in a Drama - Merle Dandridge, "Half-Life 2: Episode 1"
Lead Performance in a Drama - Patrick Stewart, "Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion"
Lead Performance in a Drama - Sean Bean, "Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion" - WINNER
Lead Performance in a Drama - Vida Guerra, "Scarface: The World is Yours"
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Supp Performance in a Comedy - John Bell, "Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine"
Supp Performance in a Comedy - Peter Vack, "Bully" - WINNER
Supp Performance in a Comedy - Richard Horvitz, "Destroy All Humans! 2: Make War Not Love"
Supp Performance in a Comedy - Seth Green, "Family Guy"
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Supp Performance in a Drama - Adam Sietz, "Neverwinter Nights 2" - WINNER
Supp Performance in a Drama - Andreas Katsulas, "24: The Game"
Supp Performance in a Drama - Catherine Taber, "Final Fantasy XII"
Supp Performance in a Drama - Christopher Lee, "Kingdom Hearts II"
Supp Performance in a Drama - Terence Stamp, "Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion"
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Writing in a Comedy - Bully
Writing in a Comedy - Destroy All Humans! 2: Make War Not Love
Writing in a Comedy - Elite Beat Agents
Writing in a Comedy - Sam and Max: Episode 1 - WINNER
Writing in a Comedy - Viva Pinata
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Writing in a Drama - Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Writing in a Drama - Final Fantasy XII
Writing in a Drama - Neverwinter Nights 2 - WINNER
Writing in a Drama - Rule of Rose
Writing in a Drama - Suikoden V
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