Celebrating Excellence in Video Games...

The next British Academy Video Games Awards will take place on Tuesday 10 March 2009 at the London Hilton, Park Lane.

Since 2003 the British Academy Video Games Awards have focused attention on the highest achievements in video games released in the UK each year in order to motivate and inspire those who make them and to educate and develop the tastes of those who play them. With a focus on creativity and innovation as opposed to commercial success alone, niche but highly creative work can be recognised and rewarded.

The Awards' 13 categories include Action & Adventure, Artistic Achievement, Casual, Gameplay, Multiplayer, Original Score, Sports, Strategy, Story & Character, Technical Achievement, Use of Audio and of course Best Game. The forthcoming Awards will also introduce a new Handheld category, encompassing games for mobiles phones, Sony PSP, Nintendo DS and Nintendo GBA.

We are also delighted to be presenting once again the BAFTA Ones to Watch Award in association with Dare to be Digital , supporting fresh new talent in the industry. In addition, the Academy's highest honour, the Fellowship , will be given to an individual for their truly outstanding contribution to the games industry. Last year's recipient - and the Academy's very first Games Fellow - was The Sims and Spore creator Will Wright . Finally, a new Gift of the Academy Prize, for games or gaming technology worthy of special recognition, will be decided by the Academy's Video Games committee.