And the Award is Sold to...
Capcom has harsh words for AIAS, which has snubbed the company for the second year in a row.
Award shows offer a chance to reward the efforts of the people who worked on the best games coming out each year, but what happens when money becomes a deciding factor? Should companies have to pay to have their games even considered?
Dead Rising was one of Capcom's big games in '06Capcom came out strong last week after the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences snubbed the company for the second year running, leaving Okami and Dead Rising out in the cold. The reason: Capcom isn't a paying member of the organisation and hence its games are ineligible for consideration.
Last year, Resident Evil 4 missed out on being nominated for the same reason, despite the game earning several Best Of nods from various publication on- and offline.
"Does our company really need to pay tens of thousands of dollars in order to present awards to our own games?," asked Capcom's Seth Killian, in a statement after the latest snubbing.
While Capcom made sure not to denigrate the efforts of those games that were nominated - Gears of War leads with 10 nominations - it's clear that it has no intention of playing AIAS's game:
"As a company," wrote Killian, "we find ourselves questioning the value or credibility of awards that seem to honor developers for their creative work, when the truth is that their marketing departments have to pay to obtain consideration."
Alex Wollenschlaeger
Editor, Kikizo
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