EA SPORTS takes top honors at Kotaku Video Game of the Year Awards
spomeroy
2011-11-08
Kotaku handed out its annual Sports Video Games of the Year Awards and EA SPORTS took home five of the top seven prizes. Let’s rundown which games nabbed the top slots.
NBA JAM: On Fire Edition – First up was NBA JAM: On Fire Edition which topped the list for Best Downloadable Game for its continued focus on unlockables, the new XP system which allows you to pick and choose you loot and of course, the Honey Badgers.
Fight Night Champion – The Comeback Player of the Year went to Fight Night Champion. FNC won for its brave and unprecedented approach to the game through the all-new Champion Mode which allows you to step into the shoes of up-and-coming middleweight contender Andre Bishop. The captivating and emotional gameplay experienced through Bishops trials and tribulations both inside and outside the ring are what made this game nab the award.
FIFA 12 – FIFA 12 took home two awards for its continued innovations. It won both Best Multiplayer Game and Best Team Game. Football Club’s ability to find a match based on skill level among the vast population of players is one of the reasons FIFA 12 landed on top of the multiplayer pack. The week-long Football Club “season,” with teams getting promoted or relegated at the end, and the always addictive Ultimate Team are a few of the others. Taking home the Best Team Game was largely due to FIFA’s new precision dribbling and collision and defensive mechanics that take it to a whole new level.
Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 12: The Masters – Finally, the title of Best Individual Sports Game belongs to Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 12: The Masters. This game brought Augusta National Golf Club and The Masters to mainstream gaming for the first time in history. EA SPORTS adapted precision surveying equipment, the kind used at construction sites and crime scenes, to scan each hole down to every sixth millimeter of detail. The shadows on the fairways and putting greens were created by scanning the actual branches and foliage surrounding them. This allows the players to essentially take a virtual tour of Augusta. Add to that the addition of a caddy to recommend shots and a career mode focusing on earning a bid to The Masters and the game stands out as both rewarding and memorable.
