# D.I.C.E. Award for Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction

The D.I.C.E. Award for Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction is an award presented annually by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences during the D.I.C.E. Awards. This award is "presented to the individual or team whose work represents the highest level of achievement in designing a unified graphic look for an interactive title". Creative/technical Academy members with expertise as an artist, animator or programmer are qualified to vote for this award.
The award's most recent winner is Black Myth: Wukong, developed and published by Game Science.

## Art Direction & Animation

The Academy originally offered Outstanding Achievement in Art/Graphics at the first two annual awards ceremonies. This would be separated into the categories of Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction and Outstanding Achievement in Animation at the third annual awards ceremony. Since the categories separated, roughly half of the finalists and winners for "Art Direction" and "Animation" were the same game within its respective release year. The games that had won both awards for "Art Direction" and "Animation" were:
* Final Fantasy VIII
* Final Fantasy IX
* Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus
* Half-Life 2
* Gears of War
* Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
* Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
* The Last of Us
* Ori and the Blind Forest
* Cuphead
* Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
* God of War Ragnarök
The games that won the "Art Direction" award but were not finalists in the "Animation" category were:
* Ico
* The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
* BioShock
* LittleBigPlanet
* Journey
* Monument Valley
* Control
* Ghost of Tsushima
* Alan Wake 2
* Black Myth: Wukong
2022 was the only year that the "Art Direction" and "Animation" categories had the same five finalists and winner. 2025 was the only year that the two categories did not have any of the same finalists.

## Winners and nominees
### 1990s

Table key :
* Indicates the winner
| Year | Game | Developer(s) | Publisher(s) |
| 1997/1998 (1st) | Riven: The Sequel to Myst | Cyan Worlds | Red Orb Entertainment |
| 1997/1998 (1st) | Blade Runner | Westwood Studios | Virgin Interactive |
| 1997/1998 (1st) | Final Fantasy VII | SquareSoft | Sony Computer Entertainment |
| 1997/1998 (1st) | GoldenEye 007 | Rare | Nintendo |
| 1997/1998 (1st) | Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee | Oddworld Inhabitants | GT Interactive |
| 1997/1998 (1st) | The Curse of Monkey Island | LucasArts | LucasArts |
| 1998/1999 (2nd) | Banjo-Kazooie | Rare | Nintendo |
| 1998/1999 (2nd) | Grim Fandango | LucasArts | LucasArts |
| 1998/1999 (2nd) | Half-Life | Valve | Sierra On-Line |
| 1998/1999 (2nd) | Spyro the Dragon | Insomniac Games | Sony Computer Entertainment |
| 1999/2000 (3rd) | Final Fantasy VIII | SquareSoft | Square Electronic Arts |
| 1999/2000 (3rd) | Disney's Villains' Revenge | Disney Interactive | Disney Interactive |
| 1999/2000 (3rd) | Pharaoh | Impressions Games | Sierra On-Line |
| 1999/2000 (3rd) | Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage! | Insomniac Games | Sony Computer Entertainment |
| 1999/2000 (3rd) | The Sims | Maxis | Electronic Arts |

### 2000s

| Year | Game | Developer(s) | Publisher(s) | Ref. |
| 2000 (4th) | Final Fantasy IX | SquareSoft | Square Electronic Arts | |
| 2000 (4th) | Escape from Monkey Island | LucasArts | LucasArts | |
| 2000 (4th) | Jet Grind Radio | Smilebit | Sega | |
| 2000 (4th) | Spyro: Year of the Dragon | Insomniac Games | Sony Computer Entertainment | |
| 2001 (5th) | Ico | Japan Studio | Sony Computer Entertainment | [14][15] [16][17] |
| 2001 (5th) | Halo: Combat Evolved | Bungie | Microsoft Game Studios | [14][15] [16][17] |
| 2001 (5th) | Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty | Konami | Konami | [14][15] [16][17] |
| 2001 (5th) | Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee | Oddworld Inhabitants | Microsoft Game Studios | [14][15] [16][17] |
| 2001 (5th) | Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader | Factor 5 | LucasArts | [14][15] [16][17] |
| 2002 (6th) | Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus | Sucker Punch Productions | Sony Computer Entertainment | |
| 2002 (6th) | Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem | Silicon Knights | Nintendo | |
| 2002 (6th) | Kingdom Hearts | SquareSoft | Square Electronic Arts | |
| 2002 (6th) | Metroid Prime | Retro Studios | Nintendo | |
| 2002 (6th) | Ratchet & Clank | Insomniac Games | Sony Computer Entertainment | |
| 2003 (7th) | The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker | Nintendo EAD | Nintendo | [20][21] [22][23] |
| 2003 (7th) | Final Fantasy X-2 | SquareSoft | Square Electronic Arts | [20][21] [22][23] |
| 2003 (7th) | Jak II | Naughty Dog | Sony Computer Entertainment | [20][21] [22][23] |
| 2003 (7th) | Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time | Ubisoft Montreal | Ubisoft | [20][21] [22][23] |
| 2003 (7th) | Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando | Insomniac Games | Sony Computer Entertainment | [20][21] [22][23] |
| 2004 (8th) | Half-Life 2 | Valve | Vivendi Universal Games | |
| 2004 (8th) | Doom 3 | id Software | Activision | |
| 2004 (8th) | Metroid Prime 2: Echoes | Retro Studios | Nintendo | |
| 2004 (8th) | Prince of Persia: Warrior Within | Ubisoft Montreal | Ubisoft | |
| 2004 (8th) | Sly 2: Band of Thieves | Sucker Punch Productions | Sony Computer Entertainment | |
| 2005 (9th) | Shadow of the Colossus | Japan Studio | Sony Computer Entertainment | [26][27] [28][29] |
| 2005 (9th) | God of War | Santa Monica Studio | Sony Computer Entertainment | [26][27] [28][29] |
| 2005 (9th) | Jade Empire | BioWare | Microsoft Game Studios | [26][27] [28][29] |
| 2005 (9th) | King Kong | Ubisoft Montpellier | Ubisoft | [26][27] [28][29] |
| 2005 (9th) | Ultimate Spider-Man | Treyarch | Activision | [26][27] [28][29] |
| 2006 (10th) | Gears of War | Epic Games | Microsoft Game Studios | |
| 2006 (10th) | Call of Duty 3 | Treyarch | Activision | |
| 2006 (10th) | Final Fantasy XII | Square Enix | Square Enix | |
| 2006 (10th) | Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas | Ubisoft Montreal | Ubisoft | |
| 2006 (10th) | Viva Piñata | Rare | Microsoft Game Studios | |
| 2007 (11th) | BioShock | 2K Boston, 2K Australia | 2K Games | |
| 2007 (11th) | Assassin's Creed | Ubisoft Montreal | Ubisoft | |
| 2007 (11th) | Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare | Infinity Ward | Activision | |
| 2007 (11th) | Heavenly Sword | Ninja Theory | Sony Computer Entertainment | |
| 2007 (11th) | Team Fortress 2 | Valve | Valve, Electronic Arts | |
| 2008 (12th) | LittleBigPlanet | Media Molecule | Sony Computer Entertainment | |
| 2008 (12th) | Dead Space | EA Redwood Shores | Electronic Arts | |
| 2008 (12th) | Fable II | Lionhead Studios | Microsoft Game Studios | |
| 2008 (12th) | Mirror's Edge | DICE | Electronic Arts | |
| 2008 (12th) | Prince of Persia | Ubisoft Montreal | Ubisoft | |
| 2009 (13th) | Uncharted 2: Among Thieves | Naughty Dog | Sony Computer Entertainment | |
| 2009 (13th) | Assassin's Creed II | Ubisoft Montreal | Ubisoft | |
| 2009 (13th) | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 | Infinity Ward | Activision | |
| 2009 (13th) | Machinarium | Amanita Design | Amanita Design | |
| 2009 (13th) | Resident Evil 5 | Capcom | Capcom | |

### 2010s

| Year | Game | Developer(s) | Publisher(s) |
| 2010 (14th) | Red Dead Redemption | Rockstar San Diego | Rockstar Games |
| 2010 (14th) | Alan Wake | Remedy Entertainment | Microsoft Game Studios |
| 2010 (14th) | Enslaved: Odyssey to the West | Ninja Theory | Namco Bandai Games |
| 2010 (14th) | God of War III | Santa Monica Studio | Sony Computer Entertainment |
| 2010 (14th) | Kirby's Epic Yarn | HAL Laboratory, Good-Feel | Nintendo |
| 2011 (15th) | Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception | Naughty Dog | Sony Computer Entertainment |
| 2011 (15th) | Batman: Arkham City | Rocksteady Studios | Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment |
| 2011 (15th) | Battlefield 3 | DICE | Electronic Arts |
| 2011 (15th) | Portal 2 | Valve | Valve |
| 2011 (15th) | Rayman Origins | Ubisoft Montpellier | Ubisoft |
| 2012 (16th) | Journey | Thatgamecompany | Sony Computer Entertainment |
| 2012 (16th) | Borderlands 2 | Gearbox Software | 2K Games |
| 2012 (16th) | Dishonored | Arkane Studios | Bethesda Softworks |
| 2012 (16th) | Far Cry 3 | Ubisoft Montreal | Ubisoft |
| 2012 (16th) | Halo 4 | 343 Industries | Microsoft Studios |
| 2013 (17th) | The Last of Us | Naughty Dog | Sony Computer Entertainment |
| 2013 (17th) | BioShock Infinite | Irrational Games | 2K Games |
| 2013 (17th) | Puppeteer | Japan Studio | Sony Computer Entertainment |
| 2013 (17th) | Rayman Legends | Ubisoft Montpellier | Ubisoft |
| 2013 (17th) | Tearaway | Media Molecule | Sony Computer Entertainment |
| 2014 (18th) | Monument Valley | ustwo | ustwo |
| 2014 (18th) | Assassin's Creed Unity | Ubisoft Montreal | Ubisoft |
| 2014 (18th) | Sunset Overdrive | Insomniac Games | Microsoft Studios |
| 2014 (18th) | The Vanishing of Ethan Carter | The Astronauts | The Astronauts |
| 2014 (18th) | Valiant Hearts: The Great War | Ubisoft Montpellier | Ubisoft |
| 2015 (19th) | Ori and the Blind Forest | Moon Studios | Microsoft Studios |
| 2015 (19th) | Lara Croft GO | Square Enix Montreal | Square Enix Europe |
| 2015 (19th) | Rise of the Tomb Raider | Crystal Dynamics | Square Enix Europe |
| 2015 (19th) | Star Wars Battlefront | DICE | Electronic Arts |
| 2015 (19th) | The Order: 1886 | Ready at Dawn | Sony Computer Entertainment |
| 2016 (20th) | Inside | Playdead | Playdead |
| 2016 (20th) | Battlefield 1 | DICE | Electronic Arts |
| 2016 (20th) | Firewatch | Campo Santo | Campo Santo |
| 2016 (20th) | The Last Guardian | Japan Studio, GenDesign | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2016 (20th) | Uncharted 4: A Thief's End | Naughty Dog | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2017 (21st) | Cuphead | Studio MDHR | Studio MDHR |
| 2017 (21st) | Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice | Ninja Theory | Ninja Theory |
| 2017 (21st) | Horizon Zero Dawn | Guerrilla Games | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2017 (21st) | Little Nightmares | Tarsier Studios | Bandai Namco Entertainment |
| 2017 (21st) | The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild | Nintendo EPD | Nintendo |
| 2018 (22nd) | God of War | Santa Monica Studio | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2018 (22nd) | Detroit: Become Human | Quantic Dream | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2018 (22nd) | Gris | Nomada Studio | Devolver Digital |
| 2018 (22nd) | Marvel's Spider-Man | Insomniac Games | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2018 (22nd) | Red Dead Redemption 2 | Rockstar Games | Rockstar Games |
| 2019 (23rd) | Control | Remedy Entertainment | 505 Games |
| 2019 (23rd) | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | Infinity Ward | Activision |
| 2019 (23rd) | Concrete Genie | Pixelopus | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2019 (23rd) | Death Stranding | Kojima Productions | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2019 (23rd) | Resident Evil 2 | Capcom | Capcom |

### 2020s

| Year | Game | Developer(s) | Publisher(s) |
| 2020 (24th) | Ghost of Tsushima | Sucker Punch Productions | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2020 (24th) | Hades | Supergiant Games | Supergiant Games |
| 2020 (24th) | The Last of Us Part II | Naughty Dog | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2020 (24th) | Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales | Insomniac Games | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2020 (24th) | Ori and the Will of the Wisps | Moon Studios | Xbox Game Studios |
| 2021 (25th) | Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart | Insomniac Games | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2021 (25th) | Call of Duty: Vanguard | Sledgehammer Games | Activision |
| 2021 (25th) | Deathloop | Arkane Studios | Bethesda Softworks |
| 2021 (25th) | Kena: Bridge of Spirits | Ember Lab | Ember Lab |
| 2021 (25th) | Resident Evil Village | Capcom | Capcom |
| 2022 (26th) | God of War Ragnarök | Santa Monica Studio | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2022 (26th) | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II | Infinity Ward | Activision |
| 2022 (26th) | Horizon Forbidden West | Guerrilla Games | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2022 (26th) | Stray | BlueTwelve Studios | Annapurna Interactive |
| 2022 (26th) | The Callisto Protocol | Striking Distance Studios | Krafton |
| 2023 (27th) | Alan Wake 2 | Remedy Entertainment | Epic Games |
| 2023 (27th) | Hogwarts Legacy | Avalanche Software | Warner Bros. Games |
| 2023 (27th) | Marvel's Spider-Man 2 | Insomniac Games | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2023 (27th) | Star Wars Jedi: Survivor | Respawn Entertainment | Electronic Arts |
| 2023 (27th) | Starfield | Bethesda Game Studios | Bethesda Softworks |
| 2024 (28th) | Black Myth: Wukong | Game Science | Game Science |
| 2024 (28th) | Indiana Jones and the Great Circle | MachineGames | Bethesda Softworks |
| 2024 (28th) | Lego Horizon Adventures | Guerrilla Games, Studio Gobo | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| 2024 (28th) | The Plucky Squire | All Possible Futures | Devolver Digital |
| 2024 (28th) | Senua's Saga: Hellblade II | Ninja Theory | Xbox Game Studios |

## Multiple nominations and wins
### Developers and Publishers

Sony has published the most nominees and winners in this category; Sony also has published games with multiple back-to-back wins, yet with different developers. The only other publisher with back-to-back wins has been Square Electronic Arts. Nintendo and Microsoft have also published multiple nominees, with two wins each. Sony, Nintendo, Microsoft, Ubisoft, and Square Enix Europe have the distinction of publishing multiple nominees within the same year. Ubisoft is the most nominated publisher without a win in this category (12 nominations, 0 win).
Several of Sony's developing subsidiaries have developed multiple nominees and winners. Insomniac Games has developed the most nominees, but only one of its nominated games has won (Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart). Sony subsidiary Naughty Dog is the studio who has developed the most winners in this category. Sony's second party studios Sucker Punch Productions and Santa Monica Studio, as well as Sony's in-house Japan Studio, have all won this award category twice. The only developer with back-to-back wins has been SquareSoft. Ubisoft Montreal is the most nominated developer without a single win in this category (8 nominations, 0 win).
Developers :
| Developer | Nominations | Wins |
| Naughty Dog | 6 | 3 |
| SquareSoft/Square Enix | 6 | 2 |
| Japan Studio | 4 | 2 |
| Santa Monica Studio | 4 | 2 |
| Remedy Entertainment | 3 | 2 |
| Sucker Punch Productions | 3 | 2 |
| Insomniac Games | 10 | 1 |
| Valve | 4 | 1 |
| Rare | 3 | 1 |
| Media Molecule | 2 | 1 |
| Moon Studios | 2 | 1 |
| Nintendo EAD/EPD | 2 | 1 |
| Ubisoft Montreal | 8 | 0 |
| DICE | 4 | 0 |
| Infinity Ward | 4 | 0 |
| Ninja Theory | 4 | 0 |
| Ubisoft Montpellier | 4 | 0 |
| LucasArts | 3 | 0 |
| Capcom | 3 | 0 |
| Guerrilla Games | 3 | 0 |
| 2K Boston/Irrational Games | 2 | 0 |
| Arkane Studios | 2 | 0 |
| Bethesda Softworks | 2 | 0 |
| Retro Studios | 2 | 0 |
| Treyarch | 2 | 0 |
Publishers :
| Publisher | Nominations | Wins |
| Sony Computer/Interactive Entertainment | 38 | 12 |
| Electronic Arts | 12 | 2 |
| Microsoft/Xbox Game Studios | 11 | 2 |
| Nintendo | 8 | 2 |
| SquareSoft/Square Enix | 5 | 2 |
| Rockstar Games | 2 | 1 |
| Ubisoft | 12 | 0 |
| Activision | 7 | 0 |
| LucasArts | 4 | 0 |
| 2K Games | 3 | 0 |
| Bandai Namco Entertainment | 3 | 0 |
| Bethesda Softworks | 3 | 0 |
| Capcom | 3 | 0 |
| Devolver Digital | 2 | 0 |
| Oddworld Inhabitants | 2 | 0 |
| Sierra On-Line | 2 | 0 |
| Square Enix Europe | 2 | 0 |
| Valve | 2 | 0 |

### Franchises

The most nominated franchises have been Call of Duty (six nominations) and Final Fantasy (five nominations). Final Fantasy, God of War, and Uncharted have been the only franchises to have won more than once. The Call of Duty franchise has not won any award in this category despite receiving the most nominations.
Franchises :
| Franchises | Nominations | Wins |
| Final Fantasy | 5 | 2 |
| God of War | 4 | 2 |
| Uncharted | 3 | 2 |
| Ratchet & Clank | 3 | 1 |
| Alan Wake | 2 | 1 |
| BioShock | 2 | 1 |
| Half-Life | 2 | 1 |
| The Last of Us | 2 | 1 |
| The Legend of Zelda | 2 | 1 |
| Ori | 2 | 1 |
| Red Dead | 2 | 1 |
| Sly Cooper | 2 | 1 |
| Call of Duty | 6 | 0 |
| Spider-Man | 4 | 0 |
| Assassin's Creed | 3 | 0 |
| Horizon | 3 | 0 |
| Prince of Persia | 3 | 0 |
| Resident Evil | 3 | 0 |
| Star Wars | 3 | 0 |
| Spyro | 3 | 0 |
| Battlefield | 2 | 0 |
| Halo | 2 | 0 |
| Hellblade | 2 | 0 |
| Metroid | 2 | 0 |
| Monkey Island | 2 | 0 |
| Oddworld | 2 | 0 |
| Rayman | 2 | 0 |