Uncharted 3 leads AIAS 2011 award nominations

We've already told you what our favorite games of 2011 are, but the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences apparently needed a bit more time to ruminate on the matter. The final awards will be given at the annual DICE summit in Las Vegas on February 9, giving us all tons of time to pressure the AIAS into giving Rayman Origins the awards for Outstanding Animation and Outstanding Art Direction.

Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception is the belle of the ball this year, with a total of 12 nominations across several categories. Other notable titles include Portal 2 (10 nominations) L.A. Noire (9 nominations), Bastion (3 nominations), and Battlefield 3 (6 nominations). 2010's top game from the AIAS was Mass Effect 2, which walked away with awards in the RPG and storytelling categories.

Jay Mohr will be hosting again -- here's his monologue from last year -- and the entire show will be streamed online through GameSpot, starting at 7:30pm PT/10:30pm ET. Or you could buy a plane ticket and fly to Vegas, hoping to somehow sneak in. We wouldn't suggest that, though, as your time and money can be better spent petitioning for Rayman Origins.

Hit the jump for the full list of this year's nominees.

Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition

• L.A. Noire
• LittleBigPlanet 2
• Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
• InFamous 2
• Portal 2

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design

• Battlefield 3
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
• L.A. Noire
• Need For Speed: The Run
• Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

Outstanding Achievement in Story

• Bastion
• L.A. Noire
• Portal 2
• The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
• Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

Outstanding Character Performance

• Deus Ex: Human Revolution (Adam Jensen)
• L.A. Noire (Cole Phelps)
• Portal 2 (Wheatley)
• Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (Nathan Drake)
• Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (Victor Sullivan)

Downloadable Game of the Year

• Bastion
• Drawn: Trail of Shadows
• Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet
• Ms. Splosion Man
• Orcs Must Die!

Casual Game of the Year

• Fruit Ninja Kinect
• Tiny Wings
• Jetpack Joyride
• Monsters Ate My Condo
• Where's My Water?

Social Networking Game of the Year

• Army Attack
• CastleVille
• Gardens of Time
• The Sims Social
• Triple Town

Role-Playing/Massively Multiplayer Game of the Year

• Dark Souls
• Deus Ex: Human Revolution
• Star Wars: The Old Republic
• The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
• The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings

Outstanding Innovation in Gaming

• Bastion
• L.A. Noire
• Portal 2
• Skylanders Spyro's Adventure
• The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Sports Game of the Year

• FIFA 12
• Madden NFL 12
• MLB 11 The Show
• NBA 2K12
• NBA Jam: On Fire Edition

Racing Game of the Year

• Forza Motorsport 4
• Mario Kart 7
• Real Racing 2 HD

Fighting Game of the Year

• Fight Night Champion
• King of Fighters XIII
• Mortal Kombat
• Super Street Fighter 4: 3D Edition
• Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3

Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year

• Iron Brigade
• Orcs Must Die!
• Total War: Shogun II
• Toy Soldiers: Cold War
• Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II - Retribution

Family Game of the Year

• Dance Central 2
• Just Dance 3
• Kinect Disneyland Adventure
• LittleBigPlanet 2
• Skylanders Spyro's Adventure

Mobile Game of the Year

• Contre Jour
• Dead Space
• Infinity Blade II
• Tentacles
• The Dark Meadow

Handheld Game of the Year

• Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective
• Kirby Mass Attack
• Mario Kart 7
• Professor Layton and the Last Specter
• Super Mario 3D Land

Adventure Game of the Year

• Batman: Arkham City
• L.A. Noire
• Portal 2
• The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
• Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

Outstanding Achievement in Online Game Play

• Battlefield 3
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
• Gears of War 3
• LittleBigPlanet 2
• Star Wars: The Old Republic

Outstanding Achievement in Connectivity

• Battlefield 3
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
• Dragon Age II
• Portal 2
• Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

Action Game of the Year

• Battlefield 3
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
• Dead Space 2
• Gears of War 3
• Saints Row: The Third

Outstanding Achievement in Animation

• Assassin's Creed: Revelations
• Batman: Arkham City
• L.A. Noire
• Rayman Origins
• Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction

• Batman: Arkham City
• Battlefield 3
• Portal 2
• Rayman Origins
• Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

Outstanding Achievement in Visual Engineering

• Battlefield 3
• Crysis 2
• L.A. Noire
• RAGE
• Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

Outstanding Achievement in Game Play Engineering

• Batman: Arkham City
• Portal 2
• Skylanders Spyro's Adventure
• The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
• The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction

• Batman: Arkham City
• L.A. Noire
• Portal 2
• The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
• Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

Game of the Year

• Batman: Arkham City
• Portal 2
• The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
• The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
• Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception