Best PC Game

WINNER: Watch Dogs

RUNNER UP: Battlefield 4

This category was brutal with Watch Dogs taking an early lead and Battlefield 4 and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt fighting back and forth for second place.  It was only the final vote that pushed EA’s shooter into the runner-up slot.

Best Xbox One Game

WINNER: Forza 5

RUNNER UP: Titanfall

With nearly a dozen “exclusive” titles coming to Microsoft’s new console the voting seemed to focus mostly on Titanfall and Forza 5 with the popular racing title nosing past the giant-robot shooter in the final hour to take the win.

Best PlayStation 4 Game

WINNER: Killzone 4: Shadow Fall

RUNNER UP: Infamous: Second Son

Another new console and even more exclusives, Sony was rocking the first-party launch titles, and despite some modest interest in Kingdom Hearts III, Killzone 4 narrowly squeaked past the super-powered open-world action game to snag the win.

Best Xbox 360 Game

WINNER: Grand Theft Auto V

RUNNER UP: Batman: Arkham Origins

Nearly every nominee in this category got at least one vote, but GTA5 and the new Batman game were locked in a tie of superhero proportions until the final vote when Rockstar’s much-anticipated open-world game sent our caped crusader running home to Alfred.

Best PlayStation 3 Game

WINNER: Beyond: Two Souls

RUNNER UP: Saint’s Row 4

Sony’s visionary new and exclusive game Beyond, might be the perfect sendoff for the PS3.  It certainly swept this award logging nearly three times as many votes as Saint’s Row 4.  Last year’s runner-up is this year’s winner, but only time will tell if it can surpass 2012’s Best of Show Winner, “The Last of Us”.

Best PlayStation Vita Game

WINNER:  Limbo

RUNNER UP: Batman: Arkham Origins – Blackgate

Rayman Legends and Killzone Mercenary tied for third but the portable version of cult-favorite Limbo took an early lead that even the caped crusader couldn’t surpass.  Regardless, we have a few good reasons to blow the dust off our Vitas this year.

Best Wii U Game

WINNER:  Mario Kart 8

RUNNER UP: Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze

The only thing more surprising the Mario Kart 8 sweeping this award was the fact that Bayonetta 2 and Pikmin 3 didn’t receive a single vote.  Donkey Kong Country slipped into an easy second place proving you can take the monkey out of the jungle but you had better put him behind the wheel of a kart racer.

Best Nintendo 3DS Game

WINNER:  Legend of Zelda. Link Between Worlds

RUNNER UP: Sonic: Lost World

Zelda swept this category while Sonic and Super Smash Bros. battled for second place with Sonic surging to victory at the final vote.

Best Mobile Game

WINNER:  Deus Ex: The Fall

RUNNER UP: FIFA 14

With only two nominees for this category both titles were assured a bit of notoriety but Deus Ex swept this award earning all but a single vote.  This was easily the biggest landslide in the history of our E3 awards.

Best Action/Adventure Game

WINNER:  Watch Dogs

RUNNER UP: Grand Theft Auto V

Watch Dogs easily won this category with over half of the votes but left behind a 5-way tie for second place.  Invoking my seldom-used executive override, I cast my vote pushing GTA5 just ahead of its competition that included; Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag, Infamous: Second Son, Thief, and Kingdom Hearts 3.

Best FPS Game

WINNER:  Battlefield 4

RUNNER UP: Titanfall

Cheer up Call of Duty fans.  Even though Ghosts didn’t get a single vote I still have high hopes for the new Activision FPS, but the proven track record of the Battlefield franchise clearly overwhelmed the new contender, Titanfall, coming in second place with half the votes of EA’s military shooter.  Regardless of who we pick you’ll have plenty of things to shoot this fall.

Best Third-Person Shooter

WINNER:  Splinter Cell: Blacklist

RUNNER UP: Saint’s Row 4

High tech drones and stealth gameplay once again beat out purple dildos and open-world gang warfare.  In one game you serve the president and the other you ARE the president.  Both games promise to offer incredible yet completely different types of fun.

Best Multiplayer Game

WINNER:  Battlefield 4

RUNNER UP: Super Smash Bros.

Nothing could stop EA’s juggernaut from sealing this category; especially after the impressive 64-player live on-stage demo at E3, but the real surprise was when Nintendo’s party fighter snuck past Titanfall and Destiny to nail the runner-up slot, proving classics never die.

Best Platformer Game

WINNER:  Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze

RUNNER UP: Ducktales Remastered

Wii U is the undeniable home of platform gaming with five of the seven nominees for this category being Nintendo exclusives.   While the PS3 got some minor support for games like Knack and Max: The Curse of Brotherhood, nothing could stop classics like Donkey Kong and Ducktales (sing-a-along…you know the words) from taking the top two spots.

Best Role-playing Game (RPG)

WINNER:  South Park: The Stick of Truth

RUNNER UP: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

South Park seems to have survived the demise of their publisher and is back and better than ever, snagging this award two years in a row.  All I can say is they had better release this game soon because you’re automatically disqualified from the 2014 awards.   Meanwhile Witcher 3 and Dragon Age: Inquisition rolled the dice and Wild Hunt emerged victorious.

Best Fighting Game

WINNER:  Super Smash Bros.

RUNNER UP: UFC 2014

If you’re wondering where Killer Instinct is, rest assured it did come in third place, losing to UFC by only a single vote but still only earning a sixth of the votes of Super Smash Bros.  I can only assume this means more people already own a Wii U than those planning to buy an Xbox One.

Best Sports Game

WINNER:  NBA Live 14

RUNNER UP: FIFA 14

EA’s new Infinity Engine looks amazing and sports games are truly leaping into the next generation.  While FIFA took an early lead, the return of the NBA Live franchise quickly double the amount of soccer votes and obliterated the single vote for Madden 25.  But no matter how you slice it, EA Sports dominated this category.

Best Music Game

WINNER:  Rocksmith 2014

RUNNER UP: Just Dance 2014

Apparently four times as many of our staff would rather play (or learn to play) guitar than shake their booty in front of their TV.  Rocksmith crushed Ubi’s dancing franchise by a 4:1 margin.

Best Racing Game

WINNER:  Need for Speed: Rivals

RUNNER UP: Forza 5

We had two ties in this category with NFS and Forza locked for first and Mario Kart 8 and The Crew battling for second.  Sadly, when I invoked my executive tie-breaking vote to put NFS Rivals into first place I had no other choice than to give the runner-up to Forza 5.  Keep your eye on The Crew.  Not only is this game releasing on multiple systems to reach more gamers; it promises to deliver up a new style of racing action unlike anything we have ever played before.

Biggest Surprise of the Show

WINNER:  Mirror’s Edge 2

RUNNER UP: Star Wars: Battlefront

While new announcements like Kingdom Hearts 3 and The Division earned audible gasps during the various press events it was nothing compared to the cheers when new reboots for Battlefront and Mirror’s Edge were announced at EA’s press briefing.  Our staff agreed and EA sweeps this category.

Best New Franchise

WINNER:  The Division

RUNNER UP: Watch Dogs

Even though it was announced last year Watch Dogs continues to show improvement and easily took the second spot while Tom Clancy’s new game, The Division earned the extra votes to make it the clear winner for best new franchise.

Best Innovative New Tech

WINNER:  Tablet Integration into Console Gaming

RUNNER UP: Oculus Rift VR Tracking

While Microsoft insists that Kinect is the wave of the future, Sony wisely sidestepped the whole PS Move issue.  And even though the nominated new Kinect can now read facial expressions and your heartbeat that wasn’t enough to earn even a single vote.    Our staff clearly thinks tablet integration into games like Battlefield 4 is the future of gaming, and if you aren’t using a tablet you can at least immerse yourself into your games with the new Oculus Rift VR headset.

Most Anticipated Game for 2014

WINNER:  The Division

RUNNER UP: Titanfall

While sequels and franchise favorites made up the majority of nominees for this category it was new games like The Division and Titanfall that stood out with a 2:1 split on votes between the two while Bethesda’s new title, The Evil Within came in a very close third.

Best Game of Show – E3 2013

WINNER:  Battlefield 4

RUNNER UP: Titanfall

This was the most brutal of categories with Watch Dogs and The Division tied for runner-up while Battlefield 4 and Titanfall were tied for first.  Invoking my final deciding vote for 2013 I had to give the award to Battlefield 4 based on its wider appeal and accessibility to gamers across multiple platforms.  While Titanfall will almost certainly come to the PC it is an Xbox One exclusive when it comes to consoles, and FPS games, especially multiplayer FPS games need the largest possible audience.

Well, that sums up our picks for the best games of the 2013 E3 show.  With two new consoles and dozens of new games on the horizon, it’s never been a better time to be a gamer.   In parting I would like to mention a few other titles worth of “Honorable Mention”.  These didn’t make the final cut but you definitely need to keep your eye on them:

• The Evil Within
• Wolfenstein: The New Order
• The Bureau: XCOM Declassified
• Thief
• The Crew
• Dying Light
• Dead Rising 3
• D4
• Call of Duty: Ghosts
• Sunset Overdrive
• Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare
• Dragon Age: Inquisition
• Destiny
• HALO