1UP.com Announces Nominees for Second Annual 1UP Awards

1UP.com Announces Nominees for Second Annual 1UP Awards SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- 1UP.com, Ziff Davis Media Game Group's online community for gaming enthusiasts, announced today the nominees for the second annual 1UP Awards. Gamers can nominate their favorite video and PC games of 2004 online at http://bestof2004.1up.com/; voting ends December 31, 2004. The 1UP Awards will be voted on by the 8-million-plus readers of Ziff Davis Media's leading electronic and videogame properties which include: 1UP.com, Electronic Gaming Monthly, Computer Gaming World, Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine, GMR, and Xbox Nation. The winners will be posted online at http://www.1up.com/ and featured in the March issues of the five magazines. "With blockbusters like Halo 2, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, and Half-Life 2, 2004 is very likely the best year for games ever," said Sam Kennedy, Editor-in-Chief of 1UP.com. "We have not seen so many triple 'A' titles packed into one year in a long time. These Awards not only provide gamers with a benchmark for assessing the most innovative games in 2004 but allow videogame publishers to evaluate and compare each title's value in the marketplace." The 1UP Awards are named for the Ziff Davis Media Game Group's online destination for gaming enthusiasts. The website provides up-to-the-minute news and reviews, tips and tricks, and a networked community for gamers, including personal homepages, member blogs, and live forums with industry celebrities covering all game platforms. The Game Group's print and online editors, widely recognized as the foremost authorities in the industry, collaborated to select the nominees for the top video and PC games of the past year in 12 distinct categories, including the new "Most Innovative" category. The 2004 1UP Award nominees are: ROLE PLAYING GAME: Fable (Microsoft) Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords (LucasArts) Paper Mario 2: The Thousand Year Door (Nintendo) Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles (Square Enix) Baten Kaitos (Namco) Shin Megami Tensai: Nocturne (Atlus) Shadown Hearts: Covenant (Midway) Tales of Symphonia (Namco) The Bard's Tale (inXile) Vampire: The Masquerade -- Bloodlines (Activision) STRATEGY/SIMULATION: The Sims 2 (Electronic Arts) The Urbz (Electronic Arts) Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War (THQ) Pikmin 2 (Nintendo) Evil Genius (Vivendi) Kohan II (Gathering/Take-Two) Lord of the Rings: Battle For Middle Earth (Electronic Arts) Rome: Total War (Activision) Full Spectrum Warrior (THQ) Rise of Nations: Thrones & Patriots (Microsoft) Phantom Brave (Nippon Ichi) SHOOTER: Doom 3 (Activision) Killzone (SCEA) Halo 2 (Microsoft) Far Cry (Ubisoft) Half-Life 2 (Valve) Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault (Electronic Arts) Tribes: Vengeance (Vivendi) Chronicles of Riddick (Vivendi) Call of Duty: United Offensive (Activision) Call of Duty: Finest Hour (Activision) Unreal Tournament 2004 (Atari) Battlefield: Vietnam (Electronic Arts) SPORTS/EXTREME SPORTS: Madden NFL 2005 (Electronic Arts) ESPN NFL 2K5 (Sega) Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005 (Electronic Arts) NBA Live 2005 (Electronic Arts) ESPN NBA 2K5 (Sega) ESPN NHL 2K5 (Sega) MVP Baseball 2004 (Electronic Arts) FIFA Soccer 2005 (Electronic Arts) Winning Eleven 7 International (Konami) Tony Hawk's Underground 2 (Activision) Mario Power Tennis (Nintendo) NCAA Football 2005 (Electronic Arts) NCAA March Madness (Electronic Arts) NFL Street (Electronic Arts) NBA Ballers (Midway) RACING: Need for Speed Underground 2 (Electronic Arts) Burnout 3 (Electronic Arts) NASCAR 2005 Chase For The Cup (Electronic Arts) RalliSport Challenge 2 (Microsoft) ACTION: Ratchet & Clank Up Your Arsenal (SCEA) Ninja Gaiden (Tecmo) Prince of Persia Warrior Within (Ubisoft) Katamari Damacy (Namco) Viewtiful Joe 2 (Capcom) Spider-Man 2 (Activision) Otogi 2 (Sega) Onimusha 3 (Capcom) Sly 2: Band of Thieves (SCEA) Ace Combat 5 (Namco) ADVENTURE: GTA: San Andreas (Rockstar) Metroid Prime 2 (Nintendo) Metal Gear Solid 3 (Konami) Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow (Ubisoft) Jak 3 (SCEA) X-Men Legends (Activision) Silent Hill 4: The Room (Konami) Metroid: Zero Mission (Nintendo) FIGHTING/WRESTLING: Def Jam Fight For NY (Electronic Arts) Dead or Alive Ultimate (Tecmo) Mortal Kombat: Deception (Midway) Dragon Ball Z Budokai 3 (Atari) Rumble Roses (Konami) WWE Smackdown Vs. Raw (THQ) Guilty Gear X2 #Reload (Majesco) Fight Night 2004 (Electronic Arts) ONLINE/MULTIPLAYER: Halo 2 (Microsoft) Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow (Ubisoft) Star Wars Battlefront (LucasArts) Tribes: Vengeance (Vivendi) Rainbow Six 3: Black Arrow (Ubisoft) Battlefield: Vietnam (Electronic Arts) Unreal Tournament 2004 (Atari) MASSIVELY MULTIPLAYER: World of Warcraft (Blizzard) EverQuest II (Sony Online) City of Heroes (NCSoft) Final Fantasy XI (Square Enix) Star Wars Galaxies: Jump to Lightspeed (Sony Online) MOST INNOVATIVE: Katamari Damacy (Namco) Pikmin 2 (Nintendo) Taiko Drum Master (Namco) Donkey Konga (Nintendo) Feel The Magic: XY/XX (Sega) Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy (Midway) Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow (Online) (Ubisoft) GAME OF THE YEAR: GTA San Andreas (Rockstar) Halo 2 (Microsoft) Half Life 2 (Valve) Metroid Prime 2 (Nintendo) The Sims 2 (Electronic Arts) Burnout 3 (Electronic Arts) Doom 3 (Activision) Fable (Microsoft) World of Warcraft (Blizzard) Def Jam Fight For NY (Electronic Arts) Ratchet & Clank Up Your Arsenal (SCEA) Ninja Gaiden (Tecmo) Prince of Persia Warrior Within (Ubisoft) Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (Electronic Arts) Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords (LucasArts) Katamari Damacy (Namco) Rome: Total War (Activision) Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow (Ubisoft) About Ziff Davis Media Game Group Ziff Davis Media Game Group is the largest publisher of electronic game magazines in the United States. Electronic Gaming Monthly has the highest rate base of any independent gaming magazine published. It covers the PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, Game Boy Advance, and all relevant and emerging game systems. The Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine is the #1 publication for passionate PlayStation gamers. GameNOW is the monthly guide that delivers in-depth coverage of console games in a voice and environment tailored to teenage gamers. GMR is the magazine for active video and computer game shoppers and is distributed through Electronics Boutique. Xbox Nation is the independent voice covering the Microsoft Xbox, and Computer Gaming World is the longest running and most respected publication for core PC gamers. 1Up.com, Ziff Davis' newest property, reaches active electronic game buyers on the web. About Ziff Davis Media Inc. Ziff Davis Media is a leading integrated media company focusing on the technology, videogame and consumer lifestyle markets. The Company is an information services provider of technology media including publications, websites, conferences, events, eSeminars, eNewsletters, custom publishing, list rentals, research and market intelligence. In the United States, the Company publishes 10 market-leading magazines including PC Magazine, Sync, eWEEK, CIO Insight, Baseline, Electronic Gaming Monthly, Computer Gaming World, Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine, Xbox Nation and GMR. The Company exports the power of its brands internationally, with publications in 41 countries and 20 languages. Ziff Davis Media leverages its content on the Internet with eight highly-targeted technology and gaming sites including PCMag.com, eWEEK.com, ExtremeTech.com and 1UP.com. The Company also produces highly-targeted b-to-b and consumer technology events including DigitalLife. With its main headquarters and PC Magazine Labs based in New York, Ziff Davis Media also has offices and lab facilities in the San Francisco and Boston markets. Additional information is available at http://www.ziffdavis.com/. Source: Ziff Davis CONTACT: Randy Zane of Ziff Davis Media Inc., +1-212-503-3535, randy_zane@ziffdavis.com Web site: http://www.ziffdavis.com/ http://bestof2004.1up.com/ ------- Profile: International Entertainment