Mar 22, 1:40 pm
Last week, after a long day at work, I headed into central London. As a wee Irish lass I still find this a scary experience, but I put on my bravest face and set out. I had good reason to venture into the capital that fine Wednesday night and was not about to pass up an opportunity simply because I would become an A to Z wielding tourist once again. I had to find ‘Circus’ a little club somewhere near Piccadilly.
I was welcomed to the event by the notorious Monobrow (otherwise known as Ben Talbot) who kindly walked me about to meet the rest of the Official 360 Magazine crew. There was a healthy crowd of gamer types at the party, and although it lacked A list celebrities in Gucci gowns there was a good atmosphere and lots of free beer so I fitted right in. So why were we all there?
It was of course the OXM awards ceremony, a 12 and a half minute awards ceremony to be more precise. Ben had spent the last few days perfecting the awards video and I have to say it ran pretty smoothly, even if the ending was a little cheesy. There was a good mix in the winners and it reflected just how much the 360 has evolved over the last year. We now have games with stories worth mentioning, family games, and of course the arcade got its own category.
Ubisoft were looking good with Rainbow Six Vegas and GRAW popping up in lots of categories, and even winning the titles of Best Strategic Game and Best Co-op Game respectively. I was also pleased to see Dead Rising, Viva Pinata, and Burnout all at least getting a mention. Good old Tomb Raider got one in for the females in games with Lara winning best games character and OXM readers revealed that they may be leaning away from first person shooters, with the Readers’ Choice award going to Oblivion.
All in all it was a great night. It was nice to see some familiar faces and always good to see what’s going on in the world of awards. Next year I want a Best Frag Doll category .. I mean .. Quick look over there it’s a picture of me at the awards with Ben Talbot!
