How To Watch The British Academy Games Awards

For the first time ever, this year's BAFTA Games Awards will be an online-only event, hosted by Dara O’Briain, and available for everyone to watch on Thursday 2 April at 19.30 BST.

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvkXzAM5Ino Twitter - https://twitter.com/i/broadcasts/1OwGWQnBgYexQ Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/bafta/videos/285332645782956 Twitch - https://www.twitch.tv/bafta

Growing concerns over the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) led to BAFTA’s announcement earlier this month that the format of the Awards would change from a red carpet ceremony at London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall to the online live stream.

Since then, the situation has developed further, with the government advising limited social contact and our two prospective venues for the live stream -- the Queen Elizabeth Hall and BAFTA Piccadilly -- closing for the foreseeable future.

In light of this, the awards will now be a pre-produced digital show streaming live, featuring a ‘year in games’ highlights reel, as well as the announcement of the winners and their acceptance speeches, including this year’s Fellowship recipient, Hideo Kojima. Youtube stars, Ali-A and Clare, will present the EE Mobile Game of the Year Award, which recognises the mobile game that offers the best experience over a network, as voted for by the public.

Amanda Berry OBE, Chief Executive at BAFTA, said: "This Thursday marks the first time BAFTA has presented an Awards show digitally. I am proud that we have been able to adapt the format to ensure we are still able to deliver an exciting celebration of the very best in games. I look forward to joining the global games community as we come together online to discover the winners of this year’s British Academy Games Awards."

Jo Twist OBE, Chair of the BAFTA Games Committee and CEO of UKIE, said: "At a time when the games community have come together like never before to support one another through this difficult time, games are entertaining and connecting people globally more than ever, we are excited to celebrate excellence in the industry. The creativity and skill of all of the nominated games is a testament to the talented workforce, and I look forward to seeing who takes home a win this year."

New categories introduced this year include; Animation and Technical Achievement, which was previously Game Innovation and now recognises programmers. The performer category has been divided into Lead Performer and Supporting Performer, in order to recognise even more voiceover talent.

The BAFTA Games Awards will be streamed on all major platforms including BAFTA’s YouTube, Twitter (@BAFTAGames), Facebook, Twitch, and supported with sales of nominee titles on Humble Bundle, Epic Store and Steam.

Tune in on Thursday 2nd April from 19.30 BST for the digital ceremony.

ENDS

Notes to editors:

Footage available for press:

The full programme will be made available and can be taken as off-air from approx. 20:45BST, following completion of the full broadcast online. Alternatively, please contact WDW Entertainment for clips.

PROGRAMME RESTRICTIONS

THE FOLLOWING RESTRICTIONS APPLY TO USING EXCERPTS OF THE BRITISH ACADEMY GAMES AWARDS 2020 LIVE STREAM

●       Broadcasters/news wires/online content providers must use the on-screen credit ‘BAFTA Games Awards 2020’

●       No use of excerpt(s) until after transmission on BAFTA channels, commencing at 19:30 BST, Thursday 2 April 2020

●       Broadcasters/news wires/online content providers may use up to TWO (2) minutes under news access restrictions within the period ending 00:00 BST on Friday 10 April 2020

●       The material may be used only for news reporting purposes directly related to the awards presentation as an event. Broadcasters do not have the right to use the content for special programming

●       No library access. No resale

Requests for extensions to the news access window may be emailed to Joe Okell at [email protected]

The Awards are supported by BAFTA’s official games partners Activision Blizzard, Electronic Arts, PlayStation, SEGA Europe Ltd., Tencent Games, and Ubisoft Entertainment.

EE sponsors the EE Mobile Game of the Year Award, which recognises the mobile game that offers the best experience over a network, and is the only Award voted for by the public.

The British Academy Games Awards is part of the London Games Festival, backed by the Mayor of London and delivered by Games London, an initiative from Film London, the capital’s screen industries agency, and video game trade boy Ukie (The Association for UK Interactive Entertainment) to make London the games capital of the world. The annual festival is still going ahead with key events moving to a digital structure. More information at www.games.london

BAFTA curates a year-round global programme of events and initiatives that support the games industry. This includes developer talks, showcases, debates, scholarships and networking, as well as the flagship Games Lecture by an inspirational practitioner. BAFTA Young Game Designers (YGD) gives young people and educators insights into the industry and access to the brightest creative minds in games; BAFTA Crew is a network that connects practitioners with two to five years’ experience working in the UK games industry and provides participants with a skills development programme designed to aid professional and creative development; BAFTA Scholarships enable talented individuals to study a postgraduate course in games; and BAFTA Breakthrough supports emerging stars of the games industry.

For further information, to receive the winners press release or interview requests, please contact WDW Entertainment:

Izzy Baker | [email protected] | +447876222779

Molly Whitehall | [email protected] | +447789848782