Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences introduces categories to honor VR games and experiences

Games on the list of honorees include SUPERHOT VR, Job Simulator, and Eagle Flight.

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As a nod to the growing influence of virtual and augmented reality in the games industry, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) announced nominees for two new categories: Immersive Reality Game of the Year, and Immersive Reality Technical Achievement.

The Immersive Game of the Year category recognizes a "single game released on an immersive reality platform that best utilizes the attributes of the platform to entertain users," a representative of AIAS explained in correspondence with Shacknews.

Factors such as narrative, design, and direction are considered.

Meanwhile, Immersive Reality Technical Achievement pays tribute to games that aspire to "the highest level of technical achievement within an immersive reality experience through the combined attention to gameplay engineering and visual engineering."

Winners will be revealed on Thursday, February 23, following the 2017 DICE (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit. Nerdist's Jessica Chobot and Kinda Funny co-founder Greg Miller will co-host the event, which will be streamed at 7:30 p.m. PT / 10:30 p.m. ET on the DICE website.

Nominees for Immersive Reality Game of the Year include Eagle Flight, I Expect You To Die, Job Simulator, The Lab, and SUPERHOT VR. Nominees for Immersive Reality Technical Achievement span Eagle Flight, I Expect You To Die, Job Simulator, SUPERHOT VR, and Tilt Brush.

Long Reads Editor

David L. Craddock writes fiction, nonfiction, and grocery lists. He is the author of the Stay Awhile and Listen series, and the Gairden Chronicles series of fantasy novels for young adults. Outside of writing, he enjoys playing Mario, Zelda, and Dark Souls games, and will be happy to discuss at length the myriad reasons why Dark Souls 2 is the best in the series. Follow him online at davidlcraddock.com and @davidlcraddock.

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