Capcom, AIAS, and Media Manipulation 101

Somebody needs to stand up for the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences. I swear I was going to do it, but veteran game journo Ray Padilla beat me to the punch on his 1up blog.

I neglected to cover the Capcom Versus Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences brouhaha last week, so here's the quick rundown: The Academy, whose awards ceremony takes place at DICE next week, put out the list of nominees, and great Capcom games like Okami weren't listed. They weren't snubbed: it's because Capcom isn't a member of the Academy, which requires membership fees.

Capcom, when contacted by GameSpot about the awards, prepared a lengthy statement slamming the AIAS:

Again, from the AIAS webpage, their awards are supposedly about “Recognizing the best games of 2006."
Evidently, they meant, the best games that paid to be recognized. As a company, we find ourselves questioning the value or credibility of awards that seem to honor developers for their creative work, when the truth is that their marketing departments have to pay to obtain consideration.

This sounds very high-minded, but let's think about it. The AIAS is a non-profit organization. The AIAS awards ceremony, which, as per the last sentence, is aimed not at lining the pockets of the AIAS but at boosting the image of its members, is a gala show held in Las Vegas and hosted by Jay Mohr. Who's paying for the space? The TV broadcast? The talent?

Where's this magical money supposed to come from, if not from Academy members?

Not to mention the fact that, as AIAS president Joseph Olin pointed out to GameDaily, every other major awards ceremony (the Oscars, Grammys, Emmys, everything) operates this way. You pay a fee to submit your games for consideration. Capcom's statement makes this whole thing out to be a scam.

If Capcom is trying to swing the media onto their side in this matter, they're succeeding very well. That's the gist of Padilla's blog post:

1Up's idiotic article on the Capcom vs. AIAS situation is a disservice to the gaming business. Capcom is positioning itself as the victim here and 1Up is totally aiding the company [...] The kicker is his closing paragraph where he says, "Welcome to your games business, folks. One voice, under the dollar." If he knew anything about other entertainment industries he wouldn't have scribbled that crap. [...] The AIAS is a brilliant organization that helps promote and further the industry.
Capcom is at fault here for not participating in the group and whining like a little bitch about it.

I can't muster up that level of anger, but I agree -- 1up's news writer bought Capcom's bill of goods on this one.