British Academy Games Award for Artistic Achievement

Last updated
British Academy Games Award for Artistic Achievement
Awarded forThe best visual art in a game.
CountryUnited Kingdom
Presented by British Academy of Film and Television Arts
Currently held by Tunic
Website www.bafta.org/games

The British Academy Video Games Award for Artistic Achievement is an award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA). It is given "for demonstrating exceptional visual art across all genres". [1]

Contents

The award was first presented at the 2nd British Academy Games Awards in 2005 to Half-Life 2 under the name Art Direction. The following year it was awarded as Artistic Achievement and has been presented under that name ever since. As developers, Ubisoft Montreal hold the record for most nominations, with seven, as well as most nominations without a win. Media Molecule and Thatgamecompany are the only developers to have won the category twice. The most nominated publishers are Sony Interactive Entertainment, who have thirty three and six wins. Electronic Arts and Xbox Game Studios are tied for most nominations without a win, with seven.

The current holder of the award is Tunic by Finji, which won at the 19th British Academy Games Awards in 2023.

Winners and nominees

In the following table, the years are listed as per BAFTA convention, and generally correspond to the year of game release in the United Kingdom.

Table key
Indicates the winner
YearGameRecipient(s)Developer(s)Publisher(s)Ref.
2003/04
(2nd)
Half-Life 2 Valve [2]
Burnout 3: Takedown Criterion Games Electronic Arts
Doom 3 id Software Activision
Killzone Guerrilla Games Sony Computer Entertainment
Onimusha 3: Demon Siege Capcom
Prince of Persia: Warrior Within Ubisoft Montreal Ubisoft
2005/06
(3rd)
Shadow of the Colossus Team Ico and Japan Studio Sony Computer Entertainment [3]
Black Criterion Games Electronic Arts
Hitman: Blood Money IO Interactive Eidos Interactive
LocoRoco Japan Studio Sony Computer Entertainment
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Bethesda Game Studios Bethesda Softworks
We Love Katamari Namco
2006/07
(4th)
Ōkami Atsushi Inaba Clover Studio Capcom [4]
BioShock 2K Boston and 2K Australia 2K Games
Heavenly Sword Ninja Theory Sony Computer Entertainment
Ratchet & Clank: Tools of Destruction Insomniac Games
Skate EA Black Box Electronic Arts
Viva Piñata Ryan Stevenson, Ed Bryan Rare Microsoft Game Studios
2007/08
(5th)
LittleBigPlanet Kareem Ettouney, Mark Healey, Leo Cubbin Media Molecule Sony Computer Entertainment [5] [6]
Assassin's Creed Jade Raymond, Patrice Desilets, Claude Langlais Ubisoft Montreal Ubisoft
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Infinity Ward Activision
Dead Space Visceral Games Electronic Arts
Gears of War 2 Epic Games Microsoft Game Studios
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots Yoji Shinkawa Konami
2009
(6th)
Flower thatgamecompany Sony Computer Entertainment [7]
Assassin's Creed II Sebastien Puel, Patrice Desilets Ubisoft Montreal Ubisoft
Batman: Arkham Asylum Rocksteady Studios Eidos Interactive and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Infinity Ward Activision
Street Fighter IV Yoshinori Ono Dimps and Capcom Capcom
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves Naughty Dog Sony Computer Entertainment
2010
(7th)
God of War III Stig Asmussen, Ken Feldman, Cecil Kim Santa Monica Studio Sony Computer Entertainment [8]
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood Mohamed Gambouz Ubisoft Montreal Ubisoft
Call of Duty: Black Ops Colin Whitney, Brian Anderson, Dominique Drozdz Treyarch Activision
Heavy Rain David Cage, Guillaume de Fondaumiere, Scott Johnson Quantic Dream Sony Computer Entertainment
Limbo Arnt Jensen, Morten Bramsen Playdead Microsoft Game Studios
Mass Effect 2 BioWare Electronic Arts
2011
(8th)
Rayman Origins Michel Ancel, Celine Tellier, Christophe Villez Ubisoft [9]
Batman: Arkham City Rocksteady Studios Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
L.A. Noire Ben Brudenell, Cheekin Chan, Simon Wood Team Bondi Rockstar Games
LittleBigPlanet 2 Media Molecule Sony Computer Entertainment
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception Naughty Dog
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Todd Howard Bethesda Game Studios Bethesda Softworks
2012
(9th)
Journey thatgamecompany Sony Computer Entertainment [10]
The Room Fireproof Games
Halo 4 343 Industries Microsoft Game Studios
Dear Esther Robert Briscoe The Chinese Room
Borderlands 2 Randy Pitchford, Paul Hellquist, Jeramy Cooke Gearbox Software 2K Games
Far Cry 3 Jean-Alexis Doyon, Genseki Tanaka, Vincent Jean Ubisoft Montreal Ubisoft
2013
(10th)
Tearaway Tarsier Studios and Media Molecule Sony Computer Entertainment Europe [11]
BioShock Infinite Scott Sinclair, Shawn Robertson, Stephen Alexander Irrational Games 2K Games
Beyond: Two Souls John Rostron, David Cage, Guillaume De Fondaumiere Quantic Dream Sony Computer Entertainment
The Last of Us Naughty Dog
Device 6 Simogo
Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch Yoshiyuki Momose Level-5 Bandai Namco Games
2014
(11th)
Lumino City State of Play Games [12] [13]
Assassin's Creed Unity Mohamed Gambouz, Patrick Limoges, Jean-Sébastien Guay Ubisoft Montréal Ubisoft
Far Cry 4 Jean-Alexis Doyon, David Wilkinson, Scott Mitchell
Valiant Hearts: The Great War Paul Tumelaire, Ghislain Avrillon, Laurent Labouille Ubisoft Montpellier
Hohokum Honeyslug and Santa Monica Studio Sony Computer Entertainment Europe
Monument Valley ustwo Games
2015
(12th)
Ori and the Blind Forest Moon Studios Microsoft Studios [14] [15]
Assassin's Creed Syndicate Ubisoft Quebec Ubisoft
Batman: Arkham Knight Rocksteady Studios Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
Everybody's Gone to the Rapture The Chinese Room and Santa Monica Studio Sony Computer Entertainment
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain Kojima Productions Konami Digital Entertainment
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt CD Projekt Red CD Projekt
2016
(13th)
Inside Playdead [16] [17]
Abzû Giant Squid Studios 505 Games
Dishonored 2 Arkane Studios Bethesda Softworks
The Last Guardian Japan Studio Sony Interactive Entertainment
Uncharted 4: A Thief's End Naughty Dog
Unravel Coldwood Interactive Electronic Arts
2017

(14th)

Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice Ninja Theory [18]
Cuphead StudioMDHR Entertainment
Gorogoa Jason Roberts Annapurna Interactive
Horizon Zero Dawn Guerrilla Games Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe
Uncharted: The Lost Legacy Naughty Dog
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Nintendo EPD Nintendo
2018

(15th)

Return of the Obra Dinn Lucas Pope Lucas Pope 3909 [19]
Detroit: Become Human Guillaume de Fondaumière, David Cage, John O’Brien Quantic Dream Sony Interactive Entertainment
God of War Santa Monica Studio
Marvel's Spider-Man Insomniac Games
Gris Nomada Studio Devolver Digital
Red Dead Redemption 2 Rockstar Games
2019

(16th)

Sayonara Wild Hearts Simogo Annapurna Interactive [20] [21]
Concrete Genie Pixelopus Sony Interactive Entertainment
Death Stranding Kojima Productions
Control Remedy Entertainment 505 Games
Disco Elysium ZA/UM
Knights and Bikes Rex Crowle, Moo Yu, Kenneth C M YoungFoam Sword Double Fine Presents
2020

(17th)

Hades Jen Zee Supergiant Games [22] [23]
Cyberpunk 2077 CD Projekt Red CD Projekt
Dreams Media Molecule Sony Interactive Entertainment
The Last of Us Part II Naughty Dog
Ghost of Tsushima Jason Connell, Joanna Wang, Ian Jun Wei Chiew Sucker Punch Productions
Half-Life: Alyx Valve Corporation
2021

(18th)

The Artful Escape Beethoven & Dinosaur Annapurna Interactive [24] [25]
It Takes Two Hazelight Studios Electronic Arts
Psychonauts 2 Double Fine Xbox Game Studios
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart Insomniac Games Sony Interactive Entertainment
Returnal Housemarque
Resident Evil Village Capcom
2022

(19th)

Tunic Finji [26] [27]
Elden Ring FromSoftware Bandai Namco
God of War Ragnarök Raf Grassetti, Dan McKim, Eric Valdes Santa Monica Sony Interactive Entertainment
Immortality Doug Potts, Stephanie Reese, Kerry HennessyHalf Mermaid Productions
Pentiment Hannah Kennedy, Soojin Paek Obsidian Xbox Game Studios
A Plague Tale: Requiem Asobo Focus

Multiple nominations and wins

Developers

DeveloperNominationsWins
Ubisoft Montreal 70
Naughty Dog 60
Santa Monica Studio 51
Media Molecule 42
Capcom 30
Insomniac Games 30
Japan Studio 30
Quantic Dream 30
Rocksteady Studios 30
Bethesda Game Studios 20
CD Projekt RED 20
Criterion Games 20
Guerrilla Games 20
Infinity Ward 20
Kojima Productions 20
Ninja Theory 21
Playdead 21
Simogo 21
Thatgamecompany 22
The Chinese Room 20
Valve 20

Publishers

DeveloperNominationsWins
Sony Computer/Interactive Entertainment 336
Ubisoft 91
Electronic Arts 70
Microsoft/Xbox Game Studios 70
Activision 40
Capcom 41
2k Games 30
Annapurna Interactive 31
Bandai Namco Games 30
Bethesda Softworks 30
Warner Bros Interactive 30
505 Games 20
CD Projekt 20
Eidos Interactive 20
Konami 20
Valve 20

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