Witcher 3, Rise of the Tomb Raider lead DICE Awards with eight nominations each

The US Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences on Wednesday announced the full list of nominees for the upcoming 19th annual DICE Awards. Leading the way were The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and Rise of the Tomb Raider, each of which secured eight total nominations, including nods for overall Game of the Year.

Other games nominated for Game of the Year are Bloodborne, Fallout 4 and Ori and the Blind Forest.

Ori and the Blind Forest (with six) and Fallout 4 (with five) also received multiple nominations this year, as did Her Story, The Order: 1886 and Star Wars Battlefront (with four each).

Batman: Arkham Knight, Destiny: The Taken King, Rocket League, Lara Croft Go, Life is Strange and Undertale received three nominations each.

Winners will be revealed during an awards ceremony on Thursday, February 18, in Las Vegas. Comedian Pete Holmes returns from last year as the show's host.

In addition, event organizers announced today that the late Nintendo president Satoru Iwata will be honored during the event with a Lifetime Achievement Award. He joins an ultra-exclusive club, as only five other people have been given that award: EA founder Bing Gordon, ESA founder Doug Lowenstein, former PlayStation president Ken Kutaragi, former Nintendo of America president Minoru Arakawa and former Nintendo of America chairman Howard Lincoln.

Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima will also be inducted into the Hall of Fame during the awards show.

The full list of categories and nominees for the 19th annual DICE Awards is below, as compiled by Polygon.

The games were played by the Academy's "peer panels," made up of "the game industry's most experienced and talent men and women," to determine the nominees. Winners are chosen through a confidential voting process.

Game of the Year

• Bloodborne
• Fallout 4
• Ori and the Blind Forest
• Rise of the Tomb Raider
• The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction

• Fallout 4
• Life is Strange
• Rise of the Tomb Raider
• The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
• Undertale

Adventure Game of the Year

• Batman: Arkham Knight
• Life is Strange
• METAL GEAR SOLID V: The Phantom Pain
• Ori and the Blind Forest
• Rise of the Tomb Raider

Action Game of the Year

• Destiny: The Taken King
• Helldivers
• Just Cause 3
• Star Wars Battlefront
• Splatoon

Mobile Game of the Year

• Dominations
• Fallout Shelter
• Lara Croft GO
• Pac-Man 256
• The Room Three

DICE Sprite Award

• Her Story
• Galak-Z
• Kerbal Space Program
• Rocket League
• Undertale

Outstanding Achievement in Animation

• Assassin's Creed Syndicate
• Batman: Arkham Knight
• Ori and the Blind Forest
• Rise of the Tomb Raider
• The Order: 1886

Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction

• Lara Croft Go
• Ori and the Blind Forest
• Rise of the Tomb Raider
• The Order: 1886
• Star Wars Battlefront

Outstanding Achievement in Character

• Assassin's Creed Syndicate -- Evie Frye
• Her Story -- Hannah Smith
• Life is Strange -- Max
• Rise of the Tomb Raider -- Lara Croft
• The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt -- Geralt of Rivia

Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition

• Batman: Arkham Knight
• Everybody's Gone To The Rapture
• Ori and the Blind Forest
• Starcraft II: Legacy Of The Void
• The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design

• Destiny: The Taken King
• Ori and the Blind Forest
• Rise of the Tomb Raider
• Star Wars Battlefront
• The Order: 1886

Outstanding Achievement in Story

• Fallout 4
• Her Story
• Tales from the Borderlands: A Telltale Game Series
• Rise of the Tomb Raider
• The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Outstanding Technical Achievement

• Just Cause 3
• Rise of the Tomb Raider
• Star Wars Battlefront
• The Order: 1886
• The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Family Game of the Year

• Guitar Hero Live
• Lego Dimensions
• Rock Band 4
• Super Mario Maker
• Tearaway Unfolded

Fighting Game of the Year

• Mortal Kombat X
• Dead or Alive 5 Last Round
• Rising Thunder

Racing Game of the Year

• Forza Motorsport 6
• Need for Speed
• Project CARS

Role-playing/Massively Multiplayer Game of the Year

• Bloodborne
• Fallout 4
• Pillars of Eternity
• The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
• Undertale

Sports Game of the Year

• FIFA 2016
• Madden NFL 2016
• MLB 15 The Show
• NBA 2K16
• Rocket League

Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year

• Cities: Skylines
• Fallout Shelter
• Grey Goo
• Heroes of the Storm
• Kerbal Space Program

Handheld Game of the Year

• Earth Defense Force 2: Invaders from Planet Space
• Helldivers
• Pokemon: Super Mystery Dungeon
• Yo-Kai Watch

Outstanding Achievement in Online Gameplay

• Destiny: The Taken King
• Halo 5: Guardians
• Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft
• Rocket League
• Splatoon

Outstanding Achievement in Game Design

• Fallout 4
• Her Story
• Lara Croft GO
• Massive Chalice
• The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt