Date: Thursday, October 25, 2007

Wii Sports Wins Big at the Gaming Baftas

Nintendo’s popular Wii Sports was the runaway success of the 2007 British Academy Video Games Awards. The annual event, held in London’s Battersea Park, saw Wii Sports win six out of fifteen awards. Comedian Vic Reeves presented the ceremony with guest presenters including comedians Peter Serafinowicz and Dom Joly.

Wii Sports allows its players to take part in a number of energetic virtual sporting activities, using the Wii controllers as tennis racquets, golf clubs and other pieces of sports equipment. The hands-on game has proven to be one of the most popular for Nintendo’s Wii system, whose sales so far this year have outstripped demand for the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. Nigel Kendall of The Times believes the console owes its success to its unique motion sensitive controllers, “which allow users to interact with the games they play.” A BBC report also stated that the motion sensitive aspect of the Wii was very attractive, particularly as it showed consumers, “a new way of playing computer games.”

The awards Wii Sports picked up on the night were for best multi-player game, best gameplay, best sports title, best strategy and simulation game, most innovative game and best casual gaming experience. Sadly, the game failed to pick up the coveted best game gong, which was awarded to Bioshock – a thriller for the PC and Xbox.

While Nintendo were celebrating their success, Sony was busy hiding its disappointment. Their newly-launched Playstation 3 (PS3) failed to win a single award, although the company did win a couple of low-key awards for games on their less advanced Playstation 2 (PS2) system.

Now in their second year, these BAFTA awards align the UK gaming industry with the better-known world of British television and film. Hilary Bevan Jones, Chairperson of the Academy, believed the awards were essential in recognising top gaming talent. She said: “our role is to encourage creative excellence in the field, for the benefit of a rapidly growing audience.”

Sources:

BBC

BBC

Times