[ad_1]
LOS ANGELES — The stars of America’s video game industry, donning blazers and glamorous dresses, downing cocktails, changing industry gossip and dealing with some of Hollywood’s biggest names, gather for a long-delayed reunion at the Game Awards Thursday night. came.
The lavish event was a kind of victory lap for the video game community. While the movie industry worries about ticket sales and cannibalism through streaming services like Netflix, the video game industry experienced tremendous growth during the pandemic. According to video game analytics firm Newzoo, an estimated 2.9 billion people — one in three people on the planet — have played a video game this year.
Thursday’s awards were also a welcome opportunity to bring the industry together, as last year’s event was held online due to the pandemic. Celebrities known for their work in other entertainment industries also attended the red carpet at the vast Microsoft Theater in downtown Los Angeles.
Rock music icon Sting was supported by an orchestra as he opened the show with his performance of the haunting song “What Could Have Been” from the Netflix series “Arcane” based on the hit video game “League of Legends”. Hit band Imagine Dragons performed “Enemy”, another song from “Arcane”.
Rapper and comedian Lil Dicky told some jokes in a video spot. Paul George, a basketball star playing for the local Clippers, rose above the crowd. And there were appearances—some in person and some via video—by television and movie stars Will Arnett, Ming-Na Wen., Jim Carrey and Keanu Reeves.
If you had chosen a crossover theme, you would have been right. And if you had the feeling that the Game Awards was a bit like any other very elaborate Los Angeles entertainment award events, you would be on your nose too.
At the center of the games industry’s response to the Oscars was video game and television personality Geoff Keighley, who created and hosted the annual event and, with a seemingly endless reserve of energy and enthusiasm, sought to channel an increasingly moody audience into something more. three hours of awards presentations and trailers interspersed with music from the orchestra for upcoming plays.
The show started in 2014 and has attracted millions of eyes on YouTube and Twitch every year. Last year’s full-distance version garnered 83 million live streams, and Mr Keighley said he expects more people to watch it live this year after Thursday’s show, but preliminary numbers were not yet available, according to organizers.
The joy so evident on Mr. Keighley’s face was due to one simple reason: Finally, after nearly two years of Zoom calls and virtual hangouts, the industry is back in the same room. “I miss it,” he said in an interview after the show.
Most of the mask-wearing, invite-only crowd said they couldn’t believe the incident had actually happened.
Twitch streamer Hannah Kennedy: “Great but a little overwhelming” bnanssaid in the crowded lobby after the show. “We’ve been in quarantine for a long time but after two years it’s really nice to hang out with everyone and see each other again.”
More than two dozen awards were given in categories such as best action game and best art direction. The most prestigious game of the year went to “It Takes Two,” a two-player puzzle adventure game developed by Hazelight Studios about a married couple’s journey through a fantasy world in the process of divorce.
Microsoft’s gaming division has brought in multiple awards, including “Age of Empires IV” winning best strategy game, “Halo Infinite” winning a fan award for voice of gamers, and “Forza Horizon 5,” a car racing game to take home. three honors. The first-person shooter game “Deathloop” developed by Arkane Studios also won many awards.
The winners were determined by the votes of those in the industry and the general public.
For many viewers, though, the awards were just a side show. The Game Awards are also used by the industry to promote new game announcements and promote the first trailers for upcoming games. If the audience reaction is any indication, the fantasy game “Elden Ring” remains one of the most anticipated games of next year.
Sales have exploded since the last time the video game world converged. Microsoft and Sony’s new game consoles suffer from high demand and supply shortages. Game publishers such as Electronic Arts and Riot Games reported record revenue. And Roblox, a popular online game world among kids, entered the stock market, surpassed a valuation of $45 billion on the first day of trading.
The growing mainstream interest in online worlds has also been a validation for industry insiders and gamers who used the term “metaverse” years before Mark Zuckerberg made the decision. Facebook would change its name to Meta. Even Mr. Carrey, who attended the awards ceremony with a pre-recorded video, joked about it.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t be there with you but I look forward to meeting all of your avatars in the metaverse where we can really get to know each other,” she said.
As the industry has grown, it has faced increasing challenges that are no more oppressive than the treatment of its employees on Thursday night. The scandal that followed the game publisher Activision Blizzard, which has been under fire for the months following the incident, cast a shadow over the event. A case from California accusing him promoting a workplace environment where maltreatment and harassment of women is commonplace.
A handful of protesters stood outside the theater on Thursday evening with placards supporting Activision employees, and Mr. Keighley faced pressure to denounce the company at the start of the event.
he tweeted out He opened the event last week by saying that Activision will not be a part of the awards ceremony and that “game creators should be supported by the companies that employ them”.
“We must not and will not tolerate any form of abuse, harassment and predatory practices,” said Mr. Keighley, although he did not mention Activision by name. Activision president Rob Kostich is on the advisory board for the Game Awards.
Before the event, Mr. Keighley said in an interview that he wanted to strike a balance between using his platform for good and maintaining the upbeat mood of an awards ceremony.
“Are we going to use our platform to publicly commission companies in the show? It’s always something worth considering,” he said, “but this isn’t a referendum on the industry.”
[ad_2]
Source link