Last night in Las Vegas, the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences held their annual D.I.C.E. (Design, Innovate, Create, Entertain) conference and awards ceremony.

NCsoft, ArenaNet and Cryptic Studios received accolades for Guild Wars and City of Villains. Both products share the honor of “Best Massively Multiplayer Game of 2005”. NCsoft had three nominations in that category, including Lineage II for its Chronicle 3 expansion last year. The results of the voting showed Guild Wars and City of Villains tied.

Additionally, Robert and Richard Garriott presented at the conference and Richard Garriott was inducted into the Academy’s Hall of Fame, joining such visionaries as Peter Molyneux, Will Wright, John Carmack, Hironobu Sakaguchi, Trip Hawkins, Shigeru Miyamoto and Sid Meier.

Congratulations to all who were honored!

Clarinda Merripen (Cryptic Studios) and Robert Garriott (NCsoft) accepting the Best Massively Multiplayer Game of 2005 for City of Villains and Guild Wars

Robert Garriott speaking at the D.I.C.E. conference

Richard Garriott with his mother, Helen, and his brother, Robert, after being inducted into the Academy’s Hall of Fame