The New York Videogame Awards nominees have been announced ahead of the show’s air date on January 22, 2019. It will be hosted by the New York Videogame Critics Circle and will honor Assassin’s Creed co-creator Jade Raymond with the Andrew Yoon Legend Award.
Jade Raymond was announced as the recipient of this year’s Legend Award yesterday by the organization. Harold Goldberg, president of the New York Videogame Critics Circle gave a statement on the matter.
“We’re thrilled,” he said. “From her early days at Sony Online Entertainment to this very day, Jade really has had a game-changer of a career. It makes total sense that the first woman we honor with our Legend Award be Jade Raymond.”
Raymond recently left EA Motive, a studio she founded in 2015. Before joining EA she spent close to a decade at Ubisoft steering Assassin’s Creed and other big franchises for the French publisher. She has yet to announce what she is doing after leaving EA in October.
Alongside the Legend Award, nominees for the 8th annual New York Videogame Awards were announced earlier today.
New York Videogame Awards Nominees
Big Apple Award for Best Game of the Year
- Monster Hunter World
- God of War
- Ni No Kuni 2: Revenant Kingdom
- Celeste
- Marvel’s Spider-Man
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Super Smash Bros Ultimate
Central Park Children’s Zoo Award for Best Kids Game
- Nintendo Labo Variety Pack
- Yoku’s Island Express
- LEGO DC Super-Villains
- Starlink: Battle for Atlas
- Moss
- Pokemon Let’s Go Pikachu and Let’s Go Eevee
A-Train Award for Best Mobile Game
- Alto’s Odyssey
- Death Road to Canada
- Florence
- Part Time UFO
- Final Fantasy XV: Pocket Edition
- Homo Machina
- Dx2 Shin Megami Tensei: Liberation
Coney Island Dreamland Award for Best Virtual Reality Game
- Moss
- Fire Escape
- Astro Bot Rescue Mission
- Tetris Effect
- Beat Saber
- Firewall: Zero Hour
Off Broadway Award for Best Indie Game
- Celeste
- Dead Cells
- Finding Paradise
- Donut County
- Return of the Obra Dinn
- Gris
Tin Pan Alley Award for Best Music in a Game
- Yakuza 6: The Song of Life
- Octopath Traveler
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Tetris Effect
- Fallout 76
- Chuchel
- Far Cry 5
Statue of Liberty Award for Best World
- God of War
- Minit
- Monster Hunter World
- Far Cry 5
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey
Herman Melville Award for Best Writing
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- God of War
- Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales
- Where the Water Tastes Like Wine
- Life Is Strange 2: Episode 1: Roads
Raging Bull Award for Best Fighting Game
- Soul Calibur 6
- BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle
- Dragon Ball FighterZ
- Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition
- Mario Tennis Aces (???)
- Super Smash Bros Ultimate
Freedom Tower Award for Best Remake
- Shadow of the Colossus
- Bayonetta 1 and Bayonetta 2 collection
- Spyro Reignited Trilogy
- Diablo 3 (Switch)
- Yakuza Kiwami 2
- SNK 40th Anniversary Collection
Great White Way Award for Best Acting in a Game
- Christopher Judge as Kratos in God of War
- Sunny Suljic as Atreus in God of War
- Laura Bailey as MJ Watson in Marvel’s Spider-Man
- Roger Clark as Arthur Morgan in Red Dead Redemption 2
- Cali Elizabeth Moore as Abigail Roberts in Red Dead Redemption 2
The New York Videogame Critics Circle is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that advocates for those working in games media. The organization also runs mentoring programs, provides paid internships, and teaches courses in their community about video games. Harold Goldberg, founder and current president of the organization, is a freelance writer who recently published a story about Red Dead Redemption 2. You might remember it as the one that sparked an industry-wide debate about labor in the games industry.
