If you can't tell by all the fallout from this year's show, it was one heck of an E3. So crazy, we had to split our SJ E3 Awards into two parts. Here is the thrilling conclusion, including our picks for Best in Show!

The Game That Nintendo Needs to Promote More
Bayonetta 2
Platinum Games > Wii U 

As the Wii U is still struggling with consumers, Nintendo needs to step up their promotion of third party software, and that includes Bayonetta 2. Sure, having a model dressed as the titular main character in her sexy new outfit at your booth is great, but if Nintendo doesn’t actually start doing the proper amount of advertising and promotion, it won’t matter how good it is if it doesn’t sell well. This one title could be the game changer for the Big N, but only if they take full advantage of it.

Michael Revis

Best Mario Galaxy Game That’s Not Mario Galaxy
Sonic Lost World
Sega > Wii U 

Sonic is one of the strangest franchises in the video game industry: a legend from the past that brought speed to platforming, who at one point even gave Mario a run for his money, but has since been tarnished by a string of strange or subpar games. Recently, Sonic seemed to be getting his mojo back with hits like Sonic Colors and Sonic Generations. Then for some reason, they decided to shoehorn Sonic into the Mario Galaxy world, sans Mario. Having played the game, it’s actually quite fun and absolutely beautiful, but I’m not sure purists will see it with the same blue-tinted glasses as I did. At least he’s not swinging a sword around! 

Urian Brown

Best Harvest Moon Game That’s Not Harvest Moon
Hometown Story
Natsume > 3DS 

Remember the super fun Harvest Moon game, Grand Bazaar? In that game, you not only ran a farm, but also had to sell your own goods at a weekly bazaar. Well, this game takes that concept a step further, as the entire game is focused on running and building up a great shop. But that’s only part of the game: the rest of the time you’ll be running around chatting up the charming townsfolk and building relationships with them. The townspeople are a lot more dynamic in this game, so you can expect more than just the same line of dialogue spouted over and over.  And the topper is that Hometown Story is by Yasuhiro Wada, the creator of the original Harvest Moon.

Urian Brown

Weirdest Game
Octodad: Dadliest Catch
Young Horses, Inc > PS4 

Seriously. I don’t even know what the hell this game is. Watching a cephalopod in a business suit awkwardly flounder around a room is probably one of the oddest things I’ve ever seen in video gaming. How do you even describe such a thing other than just flat-out bizarre? The premise is also starkly reminiscent of Chicken Boo, as far as animals pretending to be human goes. Octodad will be flailing onto Sony’s PS4 lineup in 2014.

Michael Revis

Editor’s Note: I played this at GDC a few years ago, and laughed my buns off. I was pretty sure it would never actually make it onto a major console, but I’m happy to admit I was wrong. This game is ridiculously funny to play, or even to watch someone play.

Urian Brown

Worst Booth Design
Microsoft

For some reason, I'm a little obsessed with the booths of the “Big Three.” I’m always curious to see what changes they’ll make each year. Sony tends to stick to their industrial “backstage of a rock show” look. Nintendo has lots of big, bright and adorable displays and statues. And Microsoft’s booth is always bathed in green and usually quite open and airy—boy, not this year. They had everyone crammed into an alley-like booth, causing major congestion and, at times, a straight-up fire hazard. In past years, you could just stroll around their big open booth and take in their offerings at your leisure. This year you had to elbow your way in just to get a peek. This has not been a good E3 for Microsoft.

Urian Brown

Biggest Surprise
Final Fantasy XV
Square Enix > PS4, Xbox One 

Final Fantasy Versus XIII had been in limbo for a good while now, seemingly because SE had no idea what to do with the game that could be the swift kick in the testicles that the franchise needs to get back on its feet after several disappointing titles. So when Square Enix finally made the reveal that not only was the game still in development, but that it was also being rebranded as a main entry in the Final Fantasy series, the entire building exploded. The only sad thing was that there was still no playable demo available, but the knowledge that the game is still alive and heading in a hopefully positive direction is reassuring at the very least.

Michael Revis

Best Reason to Finally Get Off My Butt and Finish a Game I’ve Never Finished
The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD
Nintendo > Wii U 

I’M LAZY.

And I have a short attention span! It’s hard for me to finish games, because I’m already on to the next one. However, this game has been nagging at me for years. Like showing up at my house at odd hours and angrily demanding—WHY DIDN’T YOU FINISH ME? WAS I BAD? DID I ANNOY YOU? WHAT REASON COULD YOU HAVE? And then I’m like, listen man, I got tired of sailing all the time. I’m sorry, I really am. But I think now I’m at a point in my life where I could use some time on a boat, sailing the seas and reflecting upon my life. While the game’s got souped-up graphics, there’s no word yet on extra content yet. 

Urian Brown

Biggest No-Show Award
The Last Guardian
Sony > PS3 (4?) 

The Last Guardian has been in development hell for almost half a decade, constantly losing more key figures in the development team as time goes on. And yet Sony seems to refuse to say anything about the actual progress the game is making. Team Ico is known to deliver the goods, but if we don’t even see so much as a new trailer sometime soon, people are going to start to assume the worst. Perhaps it will end up finding a home on the PS4 instead?

Michael Revis

Coolest Moment of My Life So Far
The Voice Actor Who Plays Mario Asked For My Picture!

I’ve been known to don a funny costume or two, and this year I wore a wacky Mushroom-inspired ensemble. As I was waiting in line to play Super Mario 3D World, a man came up to me and said, “I gotta get a picture with you.” Since he was wearing a mushroom shirt and didn’t look like a typical gamer, I asked him, “Do you work for Nintendo?” He laughed and said, “I’m the voice of Mario.” Then I melted. I’ve loved that voice since Mario 64! And while posing for multiple pictures, he did the Mario voice in my ear. See, dressing up like a crazy guy does have its advantages!

Urian Brown

Best in Show

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
CD Projekt RED > PC, PS4, Xbox One 

There’s not really much else to say about CD Projeckt Red’s presentation for the third title in the Witcher series, other than it looks absolutely brilliant. Advertised as having over 100 hours of gameplay, a world that constantly changes based on the decisions you make, a deep combat system that challenges players, and a fully explorable open world that is 35 times larger than the previous game, the developers are going all-out to make certain that the final chapter of Geralt’s tale will be his most memorable yet. Oh, and did we mention that there are no moronic DRM systems planned for the game?

Michael Revis

Dark Souls 2
Namco Bandai > PS3 

I made the trip down to LA just to play this game and it didn't disappoint. The game was still as hard as the original and with a lot of new twists thrown in. New weapons, new enemies and a new mechanic that allows you to effectively dual wield swords are among the noticeable changes. The challenge is definitely back for those who like punishing games. The demo I played included an impressive looking Mirror Knight who will be able to summon other players to aid it. My only disappointment with the game is that I was unable to beat the Mirror Knight in the allotted time and thus missed out on a free T-shirt and ultimate glory... 

Alexis Kirsch

BurgerTime…I mean Destiny!
Data East > 80's Arcade/Bungie > PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One

Actually, I had a cool moment playing BurgerTime at the excellent Videogame History Museum display at E3. I was cursing, because my BT skills have gotten rusty, and although I had easily topped the high score, I was far from playing at my best. Some young guy behind was watching, and he was like, “Whoa! I didn’t even know BurgerTime had that many levels! That was awesome.” So for one second I was transported back to the 80’s and became the cool guy in the arcade. It was nice. Oh, and Destiny was nice! Beeeeee-utiful! One the rare times a game actually meets with the tremendous hype. Although there were plenty of shades of Halo in it—after all it is Bungie—you can tell they’re stoked to be working on something new. My love for Halo might be coloring my judgment, but that was the best thing I saw at E3. I mean, besides BurgerTime.

Urian Brown

Hope you enjoyed the 2013 SJ E3 Awards! If you have any suggestions for your own awards, feel free to leave it in the comments field below!