D.I.C.E. Award for Mobile Game of the Year | |
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Country | United States |
Presented by | Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences |
First awarded | 2005 |
Currently held by | What the Car? |
Website | www |
The D.I.C.E. Award for Mobile Game of the Year is an award presented annually by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences during the D.I.C.E. Awards. This award recognizes a game "for a mobile device platform such as a mobile phone or tablet. These games demonstrate a skilled usage of the device's software and hardware features to offer a unique and addictive play experience. All game genres are eligible. Mobile platforms include, but are not limited to iOS or Android". All active creative/technical, business, and affiliate members of the Academy are qualified to vote for this category.[1]
The most recent winner is What the Car?, developed and published by Triband.
The Academy introduced, for the 2002 awards, the award for Hand-Held Game of the Year, which is a category for "game(s) developed for a handheld platform that demonstrates the greatest achievement in overall game design, play and/or breakthrough in handheld gaming".[2] The handheld category was originally presented as a console award.[3][4] The nomination form for the 2004 awards listed Handheld as a "Wireless & Handheld" category with the inclusion of Wireless Game of the Year. However, there were no finalists named for Wireless in 2004.[5] Finalists would be listed for Wireless Game of the Year, which recognized a "game developed for a wireless phone or handset that demonstrates the greatest achievement in overall game design, play and/or breakthrough in wireless gaming," in 2005 Awards.[6][7] However, the only nominees for the award at the 2005 awards were games for Nintendo handheld devices. Since there was already a Handheld Game of the Year, Wireless Game of the Year would be replaced Cellular Game of the Yearin2006.[8] It was changed to Mobile Game of the Yearin2007 but reverted to Cellular Game of the Yearin2008.[9][10] The 2010 Awards offered Portable Game of the Year which recognized games that was being "developed for a portable platform" that included either "gaming handhelds or other mobile devices".[11] The Academy then began offering separate awards for Handheld Game of the Year and Mobile Game of the Year again in 2012.[12] The awards would be combined into Portable Game of the Year again in 2019 and 2020, and would ultimately be replaced with Mobile Game of the Yearin2021.[13][14][15]
Indicates the winner |
Nintendo has published the most nominees and wins, and developing the most nominees and wins. The majority of Nintendo-published titles are made for their handheld devices, except for Fire Emblem Heroes and Dragalia Lost. Nintendo has published handheld winners for seven consecutive years from 2002to2008. Nintendo is also the only publisher with wins in both the handheld and mobile categories and won both categories within the same year in 2018. In addition, Nintendo has also published winners for Handheld and Wirelessin2005. Nintendo has published every handheld finalist in 2004. Annapurna Interactive has published back-to-back winners for Portablein2019 and 2020. Level-5 has developed the most nominees without a win. Nokia and Square Enix have published the most nominees without publishing a single winner.
Developer | Nominations | Wins |
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Nintendo EAD/R&D1/R&D2/SPD | 14 | 8 |
Intelligent Systems | 10 | 3 |
Ready at Dawn | 2 | 2 |
Square Enix[e] | 8 | 1 |
Game Freak | 4 | 1 |
Blizzard Entertainment | 2 | 1 |
Chair Entertainment | 2 | 1 |
5th Cell | 2 | 1 |
Riot Games | 2 | 1 |
TiMi Studio Group | 2 | 1 |
Triband | 2 | 1 |
Level-5 | 8 | 0 |
Capcom | 6 | 0 |
AlphaDream | 3 | 0 |
Flagship | 3 | 0 |
Japan Studio | 3 | 0 |
Big Fish Studios | 2 | 0 |
Gameloft | 2 | 0 |
HAL Laboratory | 2 | 0 |
Konami | 2 | 0 |
Phosphor Studios | 2 | 0 |
RedLynx | 2 | 0 |
Ustwo | 2 | 0 |
Publisher | Nominations | Wins |
---|---|---|
Nintendo | 52 | 15 |
Electronic Arts | 7 | 4 |
Sony Computer Entertainment | 12 | 3 |
Annapurna Interactive | 4 | 2 |
Blizzard Entertainment | 2 | 1 |
Epic Games | 2 | 1 |
Riot Games | 2 | 1 |
Triband | 2 | 1 |
Nokia | 4 | 0 |
Square Enix[f] | 4 | 0 |
Devolver Digital | 3 | 0 |
Activision | 2 | 0 |
Apple, Inc. | 2 | 0 |
Big Fish Games | 2 | 0 |
Capcom | 2 | 0 |
Gameloft | 2 | 0 |
Konami | 2 | 0 |
Ubisoft | 2 | 0 |
Ustwo | 2 | 0 |
The Mario franchise has the most nominations, and ties with Pokémon and Metroid for the most wins. God of War and Metroid have won every single time they have been nominated. The majority of repeat nominees are from handheld gaming devices; the only multiple nominees that have been produced exclusively for mobile devices are Infinity Blade, Monument Valley, and What the?. Pokémon and Fire Emblem are the only franchises with nominations in both Handheld and Mobile categories. Pokémon is the only franchise with wins on both the handheld gaming device and mobile device, as well as winning both Handheld and Mobile categories within the same year in 2017. Super Mario 64 DS is a finalist for both Handheld and Wirelessin2005, winning for the latter. Professor Layton is the most nominated franchise without a win.
Franchise | Nominations | Wins |
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Mario[g] | 12 | 3 |
Pokémon | 7 | 3 |
Metroid | 3 | 3 |
The Legend of Zelda | 6 | 2 |
God of War | 2 | 2 |
Fire Emblem | 5 | 1 |
Advance Wars | 3 | 1 |
Final Fantasy | 2 | 1 |
Infinity Blade | 2 | 1 |
League of Legends[h] | 2 | 1 |
What the? | 2 | 1 |
Professor Layton | 4 | 0 |
Dragon Quest | 3 | 0 |
Castlevania | 2 | 0 |
Kirby | 2 | 0 |
Monument Valley | 2 | 0 |