The annual gathering of debauchery and debutantes known as the Game Developers Conference (GDC) is just around the corner in beautiful San Francisco. While this industry event doesn't have the same consumer hype as E3, PAX, or even the Tokyo Game Show, for people in the gaming industry this is THEIR time to shine. Leading lights from within and outside of this still burgeoning world will convene to discuss everything from technical trends to marketing mayhem.

Sure, there aren't a lot of new game announcements to give it a sexy sheen, but for us gamers, but developers getting to put their heads together and sharing ideas can only lead to better games for us. Let them have their drunken days of debate and dilettantism, I'm all for it if it leads someone to realize that we could really use a General Chaos remake with Move support.

What better way for them to honor themselves than with their own awards, the rather non-creatively named Annual Game Developers Choice Awards (I personally would call them Perennial Overachieving New Game or PONG's). This year's big nominee getter was the excellent Indie title Braid, with our own favorite Red Dead Redemption also getting more than few noms. We are looking forward to both the conference itself, where we hope to get some big scoops for you, and the final announcement of the award winners, which will hopefully come AFTER our own Game of the Year winners are announced!

The complete list of nominees for the 11th Annual Game Developers Choice Awards are as follows:

Best Game Design
Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Nintendo)
Mass Effect 2 (BioWare)
Limbo (Playdead)
Red Dead Redemption (Rockstar San Diego)
God of War III (SCE Santa Monica)

Innovation
Heavy Rain (Quantic Dream)
Kirby's Epic Yarn (Good-Feel & HAL Laboratory)
Minecraft (Mojang)
Limbo (Playdead)
Dance Central (Harmonix)

Best Technology
Starcraft II (Blizzard)
Red Dead Redemption (Rockstar San Diego)
Heavy Rain (Quantic Dream)
Mass Effect 2 (BioWare)
God of War III (SCE Santa Monica)

Best Handheld Game
God of War: Ghost of Sparta (Ready At Dawn/SCE Santa Monica)
Cut the Rope (ZeptoLab)
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker (Kojima Productions)
Game Dev Story (Kairosoft)
Dragon Quest IX (Level 5)

Best Audio
Limbo (Playdead)
Red Dead Redemption (Rockstar San Diego)
Halo: Reach (Bungie)
Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (DICE)
Mass Effect 2 (BioWare)

Best Downloadable Game
Costume Quest (Double Fine)
Limbo (Playdead)
Super Meat Boy (Team Meat)
Minecraft (Mojang)
Monday Night Combat (Uber Entertainment)

Best Writing
Red Dead Redemption (Rockstar San Diego)
Heavy Rain (Quantic Dream)
Mass Effect 2 (BioWare)
Costume Quest (Double Fine)
Fallout: New Vegas (Obsidian)

Best Debut Game
Limbo (Playdead)
Darksiders (Vigil Games)
Minecraft (Mojang)
Monday Night Combat (Uber Entertainment)
Super Meat Boy (Team Meat)

Best Visual Arts
God of War III (SCE Santa Monica)
Limbo (Playdead)
Call of Duty: Black Ops (Treyarch)
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (Ubisoft Montreal)
Red Dead Redemption (Rockstar San Diego)

Game of the Year
Red Dead Redemption (Rockstar San Diego)
Mass Effect 2 (BioWare)
Call of Duty: Black Ops (Treyarch)
Limbo (Playdead)
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (Ubisoft Montreal)