London, 7 March 2016: The British Academy of Film and Television Arts has announced today the shortlist of nominated eSports games of 2015 for this year’s AMD eSports Audience Award.
This is the only award voted for by the public and the first time this category of gaming has been recognised at this year’s British Academy Games Awards, which take place on Thursday 7 April, at London’s Tobacco Dock.
The nominations for the AMD eSports Audience Award are:
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 3
- Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
- Dota 2
- Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft
- League of Legends
- SMITE
The AMD eSports Audience Award aims to recognise and acknowledge the games that captured the hearts and imaginations of players and audiences over the past year in the eSports space. eSports, also known as professional gaming, is a form of competitive gameplay consisting of individual players and/ or teams, with tournaments often streamed live and available for fans to attend.
A panel of leading media, gaming and eSports industry experts assembled the nominations and based their decisions on games that were accessible to professional gamers and viewers alike, engaging to watch, constantly evolving and aesthetically desirable.
Members of the public will be able to cast their votes from Monday 7 March until Friday 1 April at 18:00 via www.amd-audienceaward.co.uk/bafta/ and will be able to engage in conversation with fellow voters by using the hashtags #AMDVote and #BAFTAGames.
Christian Dotzauer, Sr. Manager, Channel Marketing of EMEA & APJ said: “AMD is thrilled to expand our commitment to eSports with this award and through our very recent sponsorship of Fnatic. AMD technology delivers superior performance for eSports and offers the performance and stability to help eSports athletes, such as Fnatic, to stay on top of the competition and take home championships. This sponsorship is incredibly important to AMD and truly highlights our long term commitment to bringing the best technology to eSports enthusiasts the world over.
Harvey Elliott, Chair BAFTA Games Committee said: “The British Academy Games Awards is always an exciting event, where we celebrate the very best in digital entertainment. We are passionate about recognising all areas of the gaming industry and are thrilled to be able to include eSports within our ceremony and celebrating this area of the industry with a dedicated award. eSports is a huge and ever growing community and it is only right that the eSports community get to decide who wins the award on the night.”
The winner of the AMD eSports Audience Award will be announced at the British Academy Games Awards on Thursday 7 April.
For further information:
Lucy Toms – Junior Account Manager, Stature PR
T 0207 100 0856
E [email protected]
About the AMD eSports Audience Award Nominations:
www.amd-audienceaward.co.uk/bafta/
#AMDVote #BAFTAGames
Call of Duty: Black Ops 3
Treyarch/ Activision
Published by Activision Publishing inc. and Developed by award winning developer ‘Treyarch’; Call of Duty: Black Ops 3, the No. 1 top-selling video game of 2015, delivers the most engaging and rewarding multiplayer offering to date, featuring a new momentum-based, chained-movement system that allows players to move fluidly through custom-built environments with finesse, all while maintaining complete control over their weapon at all times. Treyarch also introduced a new Specialist system, which lets players choose and rank up nine elite Black Ops soldiers, each with their own look, personality, voice and battle-hardened weapons and abilities, fundamentally changing the way players engage in combat. Multiplayer is rounded out with an all-new weapon customization system that give players more powerful tools than ever to build and personalize that perfect weapon.
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
Hidden Path Entertainment/ Valve
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS: GO) expands upon the team-based action gameplay that it pioneered when Counter-Strike was first released in 1999. CS: GO features new maps, characters, weapons and updated versions of the classic CS content. Thanks to its marriage of individual skill and team strategy, CS: GO has become one of the leaders in the eSports revolution – thrilling audiences worldwide.
Dota 2
Valve/ Valve
What does a hero truly need?
That depends upon the hero! Dota is a competitive game of action and strategy, played both professionally and casually by millions of passionate fans worldwide. Players pick from a pool of over a hundred heroes, forming two teams of five players. Radiant heroes then battle their Dire counterparts to control a gorgeous fantasy landscape, waging campaigns of cunning, stealth, and outright warfare.
Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft
Blizzard Entertainment/ Blizzard Entertainment
Deceptively simple, yet insanely fun – Hearthstone is the free strategy card game for everyone. Play your cards to sling spells, summon creatures, and command the heroes of Warcraft to outwit your opponents in this game of awesome strategy!
League of Legends
Riot Games/ Riot Games
League of Legends, a competitive multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) game, was released in 2009. Two teams of five players go head to head in a battle on Summoner’s Rift to destroy each other’s Nexus and claim victory.
What makes League of Legends so compelling is the enormous range of options at each team’s disposal. There are over 125 champions for teams to choose from, each with unique abilities and a role to play in the team, so deciding on the right strategic combination is vital.
SMITE
Hi-Rez Studios/ Hi-Rez Studios
Come with us, and leave your mortal world behind. This is SMITE, an online battleground where the Gods of Old wage war in the name of conquest, glory and eternal battle. Whether this is your first Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) game or you’re a seasoned veteran, the intense action and irreverent mythology of SMITE will make you a believer.
