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The D.I.C.E. Award for Family 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 "the best title of any genre towards a shared, family gaming experience. The title's play dynamics must be suitable for a younger audience but can appeal to adults as well. These games often offer a mini-game component and encourage group play".[1] All active creative/technical, business, and affiliate members of the Academy are qualified to vote for this category.[2] Originally only offered as a computer game category, the first winner was Lego Island, developed and published by Mindscape.[3] The first console winner was Pokémon Snap in 2000.[4] Since condensing the computer and console awards into a single category (briefly introduced in 2003), the first winner of the current version was Guitar Hero in 2006.[5]
| D.I.C.E. Award for Family Game of the Year | |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Presented by | Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences |
| First awarded | 1998 |
| Currently held by | Super Mario Bros. Wonder |
| Website | www |
The award's most recent winner is Super Mario Bros. Wonder, developed and published by Nintendo.
Originally, only one family-related category, PC Family/Kids Title of the Year, was offered for the first award ceremony.[6] This was split into two separate categories for PC Children's Entertainment Title of the Year and PC Family Title of the Year in 1999, and introduced an Online Family/Board Game of the Year.[7] The first family-related console award, Console Children's/Family Title of the Year, was offered in 2000, while there was still separate "Children's" and "Family" categories for PC.[8] The 2001 awards had console and PC categories for Family Title of the Year.[9] Both were renamed Children's Title of the Year for the 2002 awards.[10][11] Originally separate console and computer awards for Children's Title of the Year were offered for the 2002 awards, but a single "Family Game of the Year" would be offered that featured finalists for both console and PC releases.[12][13] For the 2004 awards, separate awards for Children's Game of the Year and Family Game of the Year would be offered for both console and computer; however, there were not any finalists named for Computer Children's Title of the Year.[14] One finalist was named for Computer Children's Game of the Year in 2005. The 9th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards was the first ceremony that did not feature separate genre awards for console and computer. Children's Game of the Year was still presented in 2006 and 2007, but would not be offered in 2008. Only Family Game of the Year has been offered since 2008.
- PC Family/Kids Title of the Year (1998)
- PC Children's Entertainment Title of the Year (1999–2000)
- PC Family (Entertainment) Title of the Year (1999–2001)
- Online Family/Board Game of the Year (1999)
- Console Children's/Family Title of the Year (2000)
- Console Family Title of the Year (2001)
- Console Children's Title of the Year (2002, 2004–2005)
- Computer Children's Title of the Year (2002)
- Family Game of the Year (2003, 2006–present)
- Console Family Game of the Year (2004–2005)
- Computer Family Game of the Year (2004–2005)
- Computer Children's Game of the Year (2005)
- Children's Game of the Year (2006–2007)
1990s
| Indicates the winner |
2000s
2010s
2020s
Developers and publishers
Nintendo and Harmonix are tied for developing the most winners. Harmonix has developed the most finalists. There are numerous developers that have received consecutive wins:
- Dynamix won PC awards in 2000 with 3D Ultra Lionel Traintown, and 2001 with Return of the Incredible Machine: Contraptions.
- Hudson Soft won console awards in 2002 with Mario Party 3, 2003 with Mario Party 4, and 2004 with Mario Party 5.
- Blue Fang Games won computer awards in 2004 with Zoo Tycoon: Complete Collection, and 2005 with Zoo Tycoon 2.
- Harmonix had two winning streaks for Family Game of the Year
- 2006 with Guitar Hero, 2007 with Guitar Hero II, and 2008 with Rock Band.
- 2010 with The Beatles: Rock Band, and 2011 with Dance Central.
- Nintendo EPD won in 2020 with Super Mario Maker 2, and 2021 with Animal Crossing: New Horizons.
Nintendo has published the most nominees and the most winners for Family Game of the Year, with Sony Interactive Entertainment in second with most nominees and winners. Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment has published the most nominees without a single winner. There have been numerous publishers with consecutive wins:
- Nintendo had two winning streaks for consecutive wins as a publisher.
- Nintendo published console award winners six years in a row from 2000—2005 with Pokémon Snap (2000), Mario Tennis (2001), Mario Party 3 (2002), Mario Party 4 (2003), Mario Party 5 (2004), and Donkey Konga (2005).
- Nintendo also won in 2020 with Super Mario Maker 2, and 2021 with Animal Crossing: New Horizons.
- Sierra On-Line had PC winners in 2000 with 3D Ultra Lionel Traintown, and 2001 with Return of the Incredible Machine: Contraptions.
- Sony Computer Entertainment published winners in 2004 with EyeToy: Play, and in 2005 with Sly 2: Band of Thieves.
- Microsoft Game Studios won Computer Family Game of the Year in 2004 with Zoo Tycoon: Complete Collection, and in 2005 with Zoo Tycoon 2.
- RedOctane won in 2006 with Guitar Hero, and 2007 with Guitar Hero II.
- MTV Games won in 2010 with The Beatles: Rock Band, and 2011 with Dance Central.
In 2001, Nintendo has published every nominee for Console Family Title of the Year.
| Developer | Nominations | Wins |
|---|---|---|
| Harmonix | 16 | 5 |
| Nintendo EAD/EPD/SPD/R&D1 | 15 | 5 |
| Hudson Soft | 5 | 3 |
| Humongous Entertainment | 7 | 2 |
| Media Molecule | 4 | 2 |
| Dynamix | 3 | 2 |
| Insomniac Games | 3 | 2 |
| Blue Fang Games | 2 | 2 |
| Namco | 2 | 2 |
| Traveller's Tales | 12 | 1 |
| Ubisoft Paris | 6 | 1 |
| HAL Laboratory | 5 | 1 |
| Toys for Bob | 4 | 1 |
| SCE London Studio | 3 | 1 |
| Berkeley Systems | 2 | 1 |
| Broderbund | 2 | 1 |
| Disney Interactive | 2 | 1 |
| Japan Studio | 2 | 1 |
| Maxis | 2 | 1 |
| Sony Online Entertainment | 2 | 1 |
| Sumo Digital | 2 | 1 |
| Ubisoft Milan | 2 | 1 |
| Avalanche Software | 5 | 0 |
| Argonaut Games | 4 | 0 |
| Heavy Iron Studios | 4 | 0 |
| Rare | 3 | 0 |
| EA UK | 2 | 0 |
| Good-Feel | 2 | 0 |
| High Voltage Software | 2 | 0 |
| Intelligent Systems | 2 | 0 |
| Knowledge Adventure | 2 | 0 |
| Neversoft | 2 | 0 |
| NDCube/Nintendo Cube | 2 | 0 |
| Purple Moon | 2 | 0 |
| Sesame Workshop | 2 | 0 |
| Simon & Schuster Interactive | 2 | 0 |
| Team Asobi | 2 | 0 |
| Ubisoft Montpellier | 2 | 0 |
| Publisher | Nominations | Wins |
|---|---|---|
| Nintendo | 36 | 12 |
| Sony Computer/Online/Interactive Entertainment | 23 | 9 |
| MTV Games | 6 | 3 |
| Microsoft (Game) Studios | 11 | 2 |
| Disney Interactive | 10 | 2 |
| Electronic Arts | 8 | 2 |
| Sierra On-Line/Entertainment | 5 | 2 |
| RedOctane | 2 | 2 |
| Activision | 11 | 1 |
| Ubisoft | 10 | 1 |
| Atari | 4 | 1 |
| Infogrames | 3 | 1 |
| Broderbund | 2 | 1 |
| Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment | 8 | 0 |
| THQ | 5 | 0 |
| Hasbro | 3 | 0 |
| Lego Media | 3 | 0 |
| LucasArts | 3 | 0 |
| Mattel Media/Interactive | 3 | 0 |
| Devolver Digital | 2 | 0 |
| Harmonix | 2 | 0 |
| Knowledge Adventure | 2 | 0 |
| Square Enix | 2 | 0 |
Franchises
The Disney and Mario video game franchises have garnered the most nominations. The Mario franchise has won the most awards in this category. The Nickelodeon video game franchise has the most nominations without winning a single award. There have been numerous franchises that have won consecutive awards:
- Mario won the console awards four years in a row with Mario Tennis in 2001, Mario Party 3 in 2002, Mario Party 4 in 2003, and Mario Party 5 in 2004.
- Mario won back-to-back again in 2023 with Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, and in 2024 with Super Mario Bros. Wonder.
- Zoo Tycoon won computer awards in 2004 with Zoo Tycoon: Complete Collection, and 2005 with Zoo Tycoon 2.
- Guitar Hero won in 2006 with Guitar Hero, and in 2007 with Guitar Hero II.
Miss Spider's Tea Party is the only game that has received nominations for both "PC Family Title of the Year" and "PC Children's Entertainment Title of the Year" in 2000. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is the only game to receive nominations for both console and computer platforms in the same year. The Backyard Sports franchise has separate nominees for console and computer in 2005 with Backyard Baseball for console and Backyard Skateboarding winning a computer award. Super Mario Maker has received multiple nominations across multiple years, with the Wii U version winning in 2016, and the Nintendo 3DS version being nominated in 2017. Animal Crossing: New Horizons has won in 2021, and the Happy Home Paradise expansion has been nominated in 2022.
| Franchise | Nominations | Wins |
|---|---|---|
| Mario | 15 | 9 |
| LittleBigPlanet[e] | 4 | 3 |
| Disney | 15 | 2 |
| Rock Band | 7 | 2 |
| Backyard Sports | 6 | 2 |
| Guitar Hero | 5 | 2 |
| Ratchet & Clank | 2 | 2 |
| Zoo Tycoon | 2 | 2 |
| Lego | 14 | 1 |
| Pokémon | 5 | 1 |
| Rayman[f] | 5 | 1 |
| Rabbids | 4 | 1 |
| Skylanders | 4 | 1 |
| Dance Central | 3 | 1 |
| Animal Crossing | 2 | 1 |
| Donkey Kong | 2 | 1 |
| EyeToy | 2 | 1 |
| National Geographic | 2 | 1 |
| The Sims | 2 | 1 |
| Sly Cooper | 2 | 1 |
| Nickelodeon[g] | 6 | 0 |
| Harry Potter | 5 | 0 |
| Star Wars | 4 | 0 |
| Astro Bot | 3 | 0 |
| DC Comics | 3 | 0 |
| DreamWorks | 3 | 0 |
| Just Dance | 3 | 0 |
| Kirby | 3 | 0 |
| Spyro | 3 | 0 |
| Wario | 3 | 0 |
| Wii | 3 | 0 |
| Dragon Quest | 2 | 0 |
| Marvel | 2 | 0 |
| Miss Spider's Tea Party | 2 | 0 |
| Sesame Street | 2 | 0 |
| SingStar | 2 | 0 |
| SpongeBob SquarePants | 2 | 0 |
| Tak | 2 | 0 |
| Tonka | 2 | 0 |
- Sackboy: A Big Adventure is a part of the LittleBigPlanet franchise.
- Rabbids are a spin-off franchise of Rayman.
- includes Blue's Clues, Rugrats, SpongeBob SquarePants, and Tak.
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